[HQRP] The American QRP Club -- {LONG}

[John Moore]

>From -- QRP-L
 
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> Date: Wed Jun 04 2003 - 03:01 AM EDT
> From: George Heron N2APB (n2apb@erols.com)
>
>Dear Fellow QRPers -
>
>This is a message from Doug KI6DS, George N2APB, Jim WA6GER and Joe N2CX
>announcing a major new organization specifically designed to enrich our
>radio hobby, increase the enjoyment we all get from QRP, and position us
>well for massive growth envisioned in the years ahead.
>
>Effective today, 4 June 2003, we are announcing the merger of the NorCal QRP
>Club and the New Jersey QRP Club to form the American QRP Club.
>
>Throughout the last decade NorCal has provided many tangible benefits to the
>entire QRP community.  Over fifty novel and original projects have been
>designed, kitted and produced for QRPers around the world.  NorCal defined
>and honed  the concept of QRP weekends (Pacificon) filled with informative
>and entertaining presentations during the days and fun-filled evening social
>sessions with the attendees. Further, they've published a quarterly magazine
>(QRPp) that provides many of us with project ideas, construction techniques
>and operating guidelines that have pulled newcomers into QRP and have
>allowed us all to grow over the years.
>
>In many ways the NJQRP has been a sister club to NorCal, having adopted the
>same operational model during its eight-year existence.  This guidance has
>enabled the NJQRP to grow and become the major east coast QRP presence,
>providing over thirty new designs and kits, a QRP forum weekend of their own
>(Atlanticon), a quarterly journal with a predominant homebrewing theme (QRP
>Homebrewer), and a dynamic and content-rich website that is unrivaled in QRP
>circles.
>
>Even considering the close association NorCal and NJQRP have enjoyed over
>the years, much duplication and redundancy has naturally evolved, providing
>each of the leadership teams with added work, and replicated expenses.
>Those in our QRP community also pay for these duplication of efforts; for
>example with subscriptions to multiple QRP journals, overlapping feature
>material at the QRP forums, and kit designs that are needlessly overlapping
>and uncoordinated.
>
>The formation and charter of the American QRP Club addresses each of these
>situations and provides an economy of scale that benefits everyone in QRP
>today.
>
>COMBINED JOURNAL.  We are producing a single journal on a quarterly basis
>called "The Homebrewer" that is intended for "builders, experimenters, ham
>radio operators and low power enthusiasts", just as stated in the journal's
>subtitle.  The Homebrewer is a larger-format, increased content version of
>either QRPp or QHB magazine. It is at least a 72-page magazine containing
>content-rich homebrewing and construction material, with additional sections
>dealing with operating, contesting and local club happenings throughout the
>country. On an annual basis we will issue a CD-ROM collection of the
>previous four issues, including bonus material: software, tools and
>reference material . The quality of journal is intended to be first class in
>every respect, including technical content, editing integrity and
>journalistic standards. We know the combined subscriber bases of QRPp and
>QHB will enjoy this publication aspect of the American QRP Club.  Members of
>both clubs today will still receive all issues due - e.g., if one has two
>issues remaining in a QRPp subscription, and four issues remaining from a
>QHB subscription, six issues of The Homebrewer magazine will be entered in
>the database for the individual.  New annual subscriptions to The Homebrewer
>magazine, or renewals from either QRPp or QHB, will cost $20 for US and
>Canada, and US$30 for DX subscribers. We have not seen price increases in
>our QRP magazines for many years and this new rate accommodates increased
>printing and mailing costs today, as well as covering for additional
>content.  Payment should be made out to "American QRP Club" and sent to:
>American QRP Club, c/o Paul Maciel AK1P, 1749 Hudson Drive, San Jose, CA
>95124. Be sure to indicate whether this order is for a new subscription or a
>renewal, as it will better enable us to record the transaction.
>
>KITTING.  The leadership of the American QRP Club (KI6DS, N2APB, WA6GER and
>N2CX) has already started combining kitting operations to bring about the
>economies of scale.  What this means is that we're capitalizing on Doug
>Hendricks's expertise in promotion and parts procurement.  We are using and
>expanding the already-strong NJQRP kitting engine.  We are relying on Joe
>Everhart for technical focus and direction.  We are counting on George Heron
>for editorial strength, kit documentation and website communication from the
>club.  Jim Cates is providing us the time-proven QRP wisdom and guidance of
>the ages. We are creating a developer network that will focus and funnel new
>designs into the kitting operation to provide all QRPers with innovative and
>well-coordinated projects. Further along these lines, we're strengthening
>our alliances with our valued QRP vendors and working with them to identify
>product opportunities for us that fill in the gaps in their product lines
>and enable QRPers everywhere to best use their products and services.
>
>QRP FORUMS.  The American QRP Club will sponsor the highly-acclaimed and
>premier quality QRP weekends on an annual basis: Atlanticon and Pacificon.
>Each local group, NJQRP and NorCal, will continue to be responsible for
>planning and execution of their respective forums; however the American QRP
>Club will fund the activities based on the kitting and journal operations.
>Substantial guidance and administrative support will be available to each
>local club to help coordinate and synchronize activities, and to provide
>similar services and benefits where applicable - e.g., the "forum kit"
>concept that is so well-received at Atlanticon and Lobstercon will be next
>used at Pacificon.  Arrangements and travel accommodations for guest
>speakers will be provided, as will be other unique event surprises we have
>up our sleeves. A national convention is currently being negotiated and
>planned. This coordination of these QRP weekends throughout the country is
>sure to reduce the individual costs of conducting them and will increase the
>value and benefit for the entire QRP community.
>
>WEBSITE.  Communication among all QRPers continues to be of paramount
>importance.  Of course this statement is true by our very nature as
>RF-oriented hams, but also through our use of email technology and Internet
>services available to nearly everyone today.  The American QRP Club will
>continue to use the QRP-L email reflector as its primary tool for
>information exchange and topic discussion. A website is being constructed to
>reflect the services, goods and technical/operational needs of all QRPers.
>While we await a domain name, you can see our new face at
>www.njqrp.org/a-qrp. Each local club may, of course, continue to have a
>website presence as desired to directly serve needs of their local members.
>
>LOCAL CLUBS.  Both NorCal and NJQRP will continue to exist as local clubs,
>serving the needs of the local members who gather for meetings, operate as a
>unit during field operations, have holiday parties together, and so on.  The
>American QRP Club is structured as an overarching umbrella organization to
>these local clubs with the purposes of: reducing the redundancies of each
>constituent group, fostering a means for each to better achieve their
>localized goals of QRP awareness among the ham population, and introducing
>the youth of America to the joys of home construction and radio sport. This
>local QRP club scene is incredibly vibrant and is "where it's all happening"
>..  We will be encouraging and facilitating other local clubs to join the
>network of services and values offered by the American QRP Club.
>
>AMERICAN QRP Club.  We purposely selected the name of the organization as
>such because we are predominantly an American club, sharing the goals,
>dreams and passions of our great country.  We also have many Canadian
>members in our club, and the name of our organization can also be extended
>to represent our valued North American neighbors.  We want to ensure that
>they know that they are valued and welcomed members.  The focus of the
>American QRP Club is on US and Canada, but we will always welcome members
>from DX countries, just as the G-QRP club welcomes members from the US and
>Canada to join their organization.
>
>UNLIMITED HORIZONS.  There is so much more that the American QRP Club will
>be offering over time - this summary merely scratches the surface.  Our
>leadership team has the motivation, the track record, the enthusiasm and the
>vision to help evolve the QRP community as a whole and create something
>bigger than any of us have ever imagined. The youth of our population and
>the public as a whole are all fertile ground for the introduction to the
>benefits and value of low power ham radio.  Education, service, value and
>enjoyment of radio are our goals.  We hope that you'll join us in helping to
>create this enabling environment in the American QRP Club.
>
>Sincerely yours,
>     Doug Hendricks, KI6DS  email: ki6ds@dospalos.org
>     George Heron, N2APB, email: n2apb@amsat.org
>     Jim Cates, WA6GER, email: wa6ger@juno.com
>     Joe Everhart, N2CX, email: n2cx@voicenet.com
>
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