Each Thursday night at 2000, the Colorado Connection hosts an informal net. The net is designed to test the system and disseminate information. It begins with a short introduction about the system, status reports, announcements, then a call for check-ins from the various repeaters. After check-ins, a discussion is held about some topic of interest.
If you'd like to call the net, contact our net manager, Will Beals (NØXGA). He'll send you a net script with a suggested format, which you may customize to fit your needs. It's great experience for hams new and old.
Every Sunday morning at 0830 local time, a statewide net is conducted on the Colorado Connection. It's purpose is communication between the 29 A.R.E.S. districts of Colorado.
A.R.E.S. stands for "Amateur Radio Emergency Services" and is acronym "ares," (air ease). This organization is sanctioned by the American Radio Relay League. It functions nationwide. In general, there are no membership fees. Most districts have a membership roster on which you may become active. You may need to complete an application and wait for a security check before you are added to the district roster. Members participate in training with police, fire and emergency services and may be asked to assist these agencies in times of need.
We encourage you to become active with your district and participate in the statewide nets. I rationalize that some may think, "I know how to talk into a microphone," so why should I belong, when that is what they do. First, members are trained in using voice, packet, amtor (amateur teletype over radio) and CW (morse code) message formatting and use of Amateur Television (ATV). Some messages are sensitive so, to limit access, the messages will most likely be transmitted by packet, amtor or CW. In which case the format is critical. Voice messages and learning to speak succinctly are also prerequisite to good emergency communications. Becoming active with your district can expose you to modes of communication you have not experienced.
Some of the repeater sights for Colorado Connection repeaters are available because public service communications are conducted on the Connection. We are thankful for this statewide 2 meter coverage and the volunteers who maintain the repeaters. We encourage support of the Connection from all who use the system.
We hope you will indulge us this ½ to ¾ hour of use on the Colorado Connection each Sunday morning. Please join us with your questions during the general check-in portion of the net. Welcome to A.R.E.S. You'll be happy knowing you are helping others.
Section I of the Public Service Communication Manual (PCSM) is available from the ARRL. (If you choose this link, you'll need to use the BACK button on your browser to return to the Connection web pages.)
For further information, check the Colorado ARES web site (If you choose this link, you'll need to use the BACK button on your browser to return to the Connection web pages.) or contact Pat Lambert (WØIPL) the Coordinator of the A.R.E.S. VHF statewide net.
The Central Colorado Traffic Net is held each evening at 1930 local time on The Colorado Connection repeaters. The net will conclude before or promptly at 1945. The purpose of this formal net is to pass NTS traffic into and out of Colorado.
If you have formal traffic to pass, would be willing to deliver or forward other formal traffic, you are asked to check-in to this net. It's difficult to find many net control operators or traffic handlers, so if you'd like to participate, please contact one of the net control operators. Especially sought, are traffic handlers from the outlying repeaters. We'd like to see participation from users on each of the Connection repeaters. Due to the volume of traffic on the Connection we ask that if you have no traffic to pass or are not going to pass traffic, please don't check into the traffic net. It is not a social hour. There's really no point in passing a message to and from anywhere within the same local telephone calling area, so refrain from passing traffic from Englewood to Thornton via the CCTN.
Section II of the Public Service Communication Manual PCSM is available from the ARRL. (If you choose this link, you'll need to use the BACK button on your browser to return to the Connection web pages.)
Form FSD-3 (ARRL Numbered Radiograms) is available from the ARRL. If you choose this link, you'll need to use the BACK button on your browser to return to the Connection web pages.
For further information, contact Bruce Howard (KBØUIH), Net Manager, Central Colorado Traffic Net
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