The Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) notes that the International
Amateur Radio Union (IARU), of which RAC is a member society, has
advised that Timothy S. Ellam, VE6SH/G4HUA and Ole Garpstead, LA2RR,
have been nominated for president and vice-president, respectively,
for 2014-2019. They are currently serving a five year term in those
positions.

Their nomination is supported by the board of directors of the Radio
Amateurs of Canada and at the February 20th, 2014 board meeting the
board directed the president to vote by written ballot supporting the
reelection of these individuals. The new term begins May 9, 2014.

An international consultation produced no additional nominations for
these positions.

The IARU is the international association representing amateur radio
interests.

Geoff Bawden, VE4BAW
President and Chair RAC

ARES members need to be able to respond. In addition to our radio equipment most of us will use our vehicles to get where we need to go.  Is your vehicle winter ready? Here are some hints

http://tranbc.ca/2012/12/18/an-emergency-kit-show-and-tell-to-help-shift-into-winter/#101013

Just a thank you to section members who participate in the DRN7/2 Net.  Amateurs from BC, Washington, Idaho,Montana and Oregon take part in nets twice a day to move NTS traffic. Traffic enters and leaves the NTS system through this net.  In January 2014 over 350 pieces of traffic were moved.Thanks to all those involved for your time and effort.

On the main page of this website is a HF Propagation Report. Do you know what it means? Do you know how/what the values represent ?  The URL below will take you to a page that will explain the things you need to know.  My compliments to  Richard Corbell, VE2XIP,  for an excellent description

http://ve2xip.cactus.net/?p=1676

Earlier today IC released a consultation
documenthttp://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt-gst.nsf/eng/sf10786.htmlproposing
changes to CPC-2-0-03, the Antenna Siting Protocol to address the
Industry Minister’s policy statement of 5 February 2014 removing the
15m exemption for “cell towers”.

The RAC Bulletin of 6 February had commented on the Minister’s policy
statement and urged that the drafting of the regulatory changes should
follow closely the Minister’s statement. It provided several reasons
why the exemption should not be removed for radio amateurs.

The consultation document released today proposes exactly the type of
change to the height exemption RAC favoured. Continue reading IC Proposes Changes to Antenna Siting Protocol* 2014-02-28. →

Environment Canada has issued several weather alerts and statements for the BC coast for the weekend of Feb 28, Mar 1 &2 2014. As always check your local forecast. 

To see all the information go to http://weather.gc.ca/warnings/index_e.html?prov=bc

The US  FCC and FEMA have published some interesting information on communication tips during an emergency. Go to

http://www.fcc.gov/emergency-communications-tips

Amateur operators in BC currently enjoy the exemption under the distracted driving legislation.  Some folks are still fighting this battle. We must ensure that this exemption is not abused.  Remember hand held radio  (portables) are NOT exempt from the legislation.  To see more about the Vermont folks and their battle go to

http://vtdigger.org/2014/02/21/ham-radio-operators-seek-exemption-hand-held-cellphone-ban/

K1XX will be active this weekend as part of the ARRL Contest. He will use VP2MLL. More information can be found at

 http://dxing.at-communication.com/en/vp2mll_montserrat/

A new idea in Oregon has helped locate a missing senior citizen. Between law enforcement and local hams it didn’t take long. For all the info go to

http://www.arrl.org/news/rdf-bracelet-helps-oregon-hams-to-locate-missing-man