The CRDARS Annual General Meeting took place on Wednesday 3rd October 2018.

The following members were elected to roles on the committee:

Founding members Colin Lyne and Chris Watkins have both stepped down from their committee roles this year. We’d all like to express our thanks to both of them for their work in making the club what it is today.

Colin has agreed to continue his work as the primary point of contact for new and prospective members, and Irene has once again agreed to continue as club treasurer. Thank you to both of you for all of your work in the background. It really is appreciated.

From October 2018, subs for members over the age of 18 will rise to £20 for the year. The £2 charge for the individual meetings will be eliminated. This should be simpler for everyone, and will result in an overall saving for members who attend more than five meetings during the year. Subs remain at £5 per year for under 18s.

We’d like to extend our thanks to AJ for the donation of a 2m mobile radio, and to Richmond School Amateur Radio Society for the donation of a 2m/70cm collinear antenna.

The club has reluctantly agreed that we are not in a position to run a JOTA station for the scouts this year, although we hope to be able to put a suitable team together and run a JOTA station in future years.

Colburn Village Hall is no longer available for us to use as an examination venue. Arrangements are currently being made to register Hudswell Village Hall as our new exam centre, so we should be able to offer examinations at Hudswell in the near future.

The club is currently exploring whether or not it’s financially viable for us to repair a donated Yaesu FT-757 transceiver. If so, this is likely to become our main HF radio. Thanks to Paul Hunt for taking the time to investigate this.

A working party has been arranged to erect the club’s HF antenna, on at least a temporary basis. Hopefully this will make it easier for our members to use our G5RV until both antenna and feeders can be permanently installed. Thank you to everyone involved for your time and hard work.

As the club now meets on the 1st and 3rd week in any given month, there is the possibility that the club may hold a second December meeting on the 19th, likely depending on whether there is any interest in meeting so close to Christmas. A decision will be made closer to the time, and details will be posted to the web site once we know one way or the other.

Finally, it has once again been suggested that we attempt to hold a short, regular 2m club net. In the past, we’ve found that Sunday evenings have been inconvenient for a lot of our members, so we’re trying to come up with an alternative day or time when the majority of members can get on the air for 15 minutes or so.

The CRDARS Annual General Meeting took place on Thursday 9th November 2017.

The following members were elected to roles on the committee:

Members have agreed in principle to a change of venue. We intend to trial a few club meetings at Hudswell Village Hall over the coming months. Mac and Dave are already planning to operate portable from the car park over the weekend, in order to test HF conditions at the site.

If everything pans out, it is likely that CRDARS will begin to hold meetings on Wednesdays in Hudswell. Further information will be posted here once we know more. Please assume that the existing meetings will proceed as scheduled in Colburn unless you hear otherwise.

The club finances were reviewed by those present, and are in good order. There is enough money in the bank to fund the purchase and installation of antennas at Hudswell if necessary.

The club has been discussing the possibility of replacing our existing HF radio, and a possible plan has emerged. The club has acquired a repaired Yaesu FT-757, kindly donated from the estate of Grahame Bentley (G3XHB). Richmond School Amateur Radio Society are offering to donate a matching power supply and automatic ATU, which would give CRDARS a fully functional set of HF equipment at no cost to the club.

Finally, as several members are likely to have family commitments in December, it was decided to change the date for our group meal from December to January. A pie and chips night has been provisionally scheduled for 11th January, and it has been proposed that members’ food be paid for out of club funds. Further details to follow closer to the date.

The date for the 2017 AGM has now been set for Thursday 9th November. It will take place at 19:30, at our usual venue of Colburn Village Hall.

In addition to the election of the club’s officers, a vote will be held on whether or not the club should relocate to Hudswell Village Hall. There are definitely some pros associated with the proposed move, such as a higher, more radio friendly location, and the possibility of installing some permanent antennas on the building. However, Hudswell also looks like it’ll be a bit more expensive, and may be a less convenient location for some of our members.

Colin would appreciate it if our members can let him know whether or not they’ll be able to attend. If you’re unable to attend and would like to cast a vote in absentia, please contact Colin before Thursday 9th so that your vote can be counted in time.

We also plan to discuss plans for a Christmas meal this year. Last year, this took the form of a pie/pasty, chips and peas night, and was enjoyed by all who attended. We’ve scheduled in a Christmas meal for 14th December this year, but need to decide on the final arrangements.