What’s happening at SBARC? Here you will find the latest club news, events, projects, net activities, and news from our special interest groups (SIGS).
Be sure to check in frequently so you don’t miss out on any of the interesting things going on with the club and its members!
We have moved content for the Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net here, and content for the Digital Modes Net here.
Our next meeting on November 20, 2026 will be election night. As we have done in previous years, we will have on-line voting, mail in voting as well as good old fashioned in-person voting on election night. Here are the relevant links:
To vote online you must be logged into the site using your Member User Name and Password.
To vote online, CLICK HERE
To download a printable ballot CLICK HERE
For in person voting, ballots will be provided at the meeting.
The November 20th meeting will also be OLD TIMERS NIGHT! It’s always fun to see who is still standing at the end of the presentation.
To cast your vote, you must be a member in good standing and dues paid up current through November 20th.
If you experience any problems with on-line voting, please contact us ASAP here: CLICK HERE
As most of you know, November is election time for SBARC and The whole country. If you haven’t had enough election stuff already, here are the details about our SBWF/SBARC annual Board of Directors election.
The election will be held in person at the November 20th General Club Meeting.
Our proposed slate of directors and officers is shown below. Our current board of directors all agreed to serve again in 2027. So our slate looks just like last years slate.
The period of accepting nominations from the floor is now officially open. If you would like to run for a position on The Board of Directors, all you need to do is have someone nominate you and let us know. The nomination period will close at midnight on November 12, 2026 to give us time to prepare the ballots.
As we have done in past years, you will be able to vote on-line. On-line voting will be available beginning Sunday November 16th and will close at midnight on Thursday November 19th. Of course, you will still be able to vote in person at the November 20th meeting.
| Position | Officer |
|---|---|
| President and CEO | Brian Milburn, K6BPM |
| Treasurer and CFO | Dorothy Oksner K6DSO |
| Secretary | Larry Martinez, WA6MVJ |
| Director At Large | Levi Maaia, K6LCM |
| Director At Large | Wayne Beckman, AF6GX |
| Director At Large | Michael Taylor, K6RQV |
| Director At Large | Mike Wapner, K6QD |
Post expires at 1:16am on Saturday November 21st, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
We’re getting geared up for our annual pot luck BBQ coming up on October 4, 2026. We are changing locations this year. We will be having the event at Tuckers Grove Area 4. It is a really nice spot with lots of shade. Dave, AI6VX has once again volunteered to to the cooking!
As we have done for the last few years, SBARC will provide the hamburgers and hotdogs with all the trimmings. Members can bring a side dish, salad, desert, chips, drinks or anything they like. If you can’t bring anything, that’s OK too. Spouses and families are welcome or bring a friend to meet the nice people in amateur radio.
When: Sunday October 4th, 2026
Time: 10:30am until 3:00pm
Where: Tuckers Grove Park Space 4
Tuckers Grove is at the mountain end of Turnpike Road
We hope to see you there!
Post expires at 3:49pm on Monday October 5th, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
This month’s meeting we will have an in-person presentation by Kent Olsen N6WT. He will be introducing the DX Marathon.
This is a DXCC and Worked All Zone chase that runs all year, every year. Scores are calculated and awards presented after the year ends on December 31. Then a new year begins.
Participation is easy and since it runs all year, you can work DX when it is convenient. You can participate even if you are a casual DX’er.
Zoom Link
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81329247684?pwd=UEWLEpXKnKIl751zP4qhCWzYboAr9U.1
Please join us this Friday!
SBARC General Club Meeting
Friday, September 18, 2026 at 7:30 PM (Doors open at 7pm)
Goleta Union School District Board Room
401 North Fairview Avenue in Goleta
Post expires at 4:24pm on Saturday September 19th, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
This months meeting is going to be a little different than usual. If you attended the last meeting, we talked about getting our members getting set up to do MeshCore communications. So this meeting is going to be a HANDS ON and we will help everyone get set up and on the air.
MeshCore is an OFF-THE-GRID messaging system and works whether you have internet/cellular or not. If everything is down, you can still communicate.
THIS IS NOT COMPLICATED. If you can use text messages on your smartphone, you already know how to use this. It also requires repeaters, but SBARC/SBWF has already installed 9 repeaters that blanket most of the area with coverage.
You only need 2 things to get set up, a smartphone and a small “Companion” transceiver. The smartphone app is called MeshCore. It is available for FREE on the iPhone App Store and also on Google Play App Store for Android users.
There are a lot of options for companion nodes. There are several models that are ready to go, right out of the box, or you can build one yourself, There are several kits available, or you can buy the individual parts and assemble them yourself. This may not be a good option for many users because you need a little experience choosing and using transceiver boards, batteries, and all the assorted little parts that go along with it.
I evaluated some of the off-the-shelf units and found one I particularly like and think would be a good option for a lot of our members. They are called “ThinkNode M1”. Everything is assembled and ready to use. They use a Nordic processor which is very power efficient. They have a built in battery that provides about 2.5 days of use on a charge. They also have built-in GPS which is switchable so you can use it only when needed. This is nice because GPS cuts your battery life in half, GPS is rarely useful, so being able to turn it on and off is very useful. They also use an ePaper display that only uses power when the display changes. These are very small and lightweight, and you can easily put one in a pocket.
We purchased a few of these and they will be available to club members for a $63.00 reimbursement at the meeting. Tax and Shipping is included. You can also purchase these on Amazon here: https://a.co/d/0bxv9g7N. They are currently on sale as of this writing.
There are many more off-the-shelf systems available on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=meshcore. You will also see bare boards with display as well. Remember that these also require a battery, case, and 915 MHz antenna.
This meeting will NOT be on Zoom.
Please join us this Friday!
SBARC General Club Meeting
Friday, August 21, 2026 at 7:30 PM (Doors open at 7pm)
Goleta Union School District Board Room
401 North Fairview Avenue in Goleta
Post expires at 1:58am on Thursday October 22nd, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
ITU Corporation has acquired Ameritron and Mirage RF Amplifier brands from MFJ Enterprises. Its has previously acquired HyGain and Cushcraft lines from the now defunct MFJ so some of our favorite brands are getting new life.
Read the article here:
Post expires at 7:35am on Saturday August 1st, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
Part of the attraction to amateur radio is experimenting with new things and learning things you thought you would not be able to understand. A couple of members have suggested we have some sort of group projects that everyone can participate in and learn new things that have been confusing in the past. Some of the fun things our members do seem too complicated or confusing and a lot of us miss out on things they would enjoy. It doesn’t matter what your age is, or what background you have, you studied, passed a test, and have an amateur radio license.
This meeting I am going to be introduce a couple of projects you can participate in that will provide you with hours of entertainment after they’re finished. If everyone is interested then we’ll devote next months meeting to providing hands on instruction. We have a couple of projects in mind that anyone can do with minimal expense, and involve no soldering and the only tools you will need is a screwdriver. We’ll have some additional informational handouts at the meeting.
Please join us this Friday!
SBARC General Club Meeting
Friday, July 17, 2026 at 7:30 PM (Doors open at 7pm)
Goleta Union School District Board Room
401 North Fairview Avenue in Goleta
Zoom Link
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84169511388?pwd=oQFS75Hb6VrOa9oWQ1eHWD5xAfcX7H.1
Post expires at 1:04am on Friday September 18th, 2026 but will still be available in the archives.
