The Hamilton Amateur Radio Club Branch 12 NZART from 1 January 2010 to 7 February 2010 presented the National System Award 2010 - Historic Places, based upon the original idea by Wellington VHF Group, and in association with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. This was a FUN award to demonstrate the coverage and use of the National System, to promote our history and category 1 historic places.
 Image Courtesy Hamilton Branch |
| During the Award participants visited 662 Category 1 Historical sites, 70% of the registered category 1 historic places. 181 unique call signs were listed in the 26 logs received by the custodians and the logs accumulate to over 7400 points (see Award Structure for how points awarded). 6 participant’s logs demonstrated that they had worked all branches in New Zealand. The highest individual log accumulated 686 points, with 1033 points logged against one individual’s call sign. Details are in the appendices. |
Thank you to those operators that put historical places on the air but did not wish to participate in the award. These operators made a significant difference to the award and we are grateful for your participation. Thanks to Wellington VHF Group for lending us the idea for the award and the National System trustees for the access to the system. We are grateful to the assistance of the Historical Place Trust, particularly Rebecca O’Brien (Registrar), for their support and understanding as we pressured their website. The category 1 Historical Places added an interesting dimension to the award.
Background
The Wellington VHF Group Award is usually presented every two years; therefore the Award would not have occurred in 2010. The Hamilton Branch arranged a similar award for the 2010 year, using the very successful model of the Wellington VHF Group. The award was associated with the Historical Places Trust, with points awarded for contacts to/from Category 1 Historical Places.
Award Structure
The Custodians for the award were Phil King, ZL1PK and Gavin Petrie, ZL1GWP. Points were awarded for:
Contact any Amateur in each NZART Branch area (excluding Branches in recess) via the National System. Only Branches on the provided list are valid. 1 point
Contact ZL1UX, official station of Branch 12 via the National System. 3 bonus points
Contact any amateur operating from a Category 1 Historic Place (as listed in the Historic Places Trust Register, available on the Historic Places Trust Website) via the National System. 1 point
Contact any Amateur whilst operating from a Category 1 Historic Place (as listed in the Historic Places Trust Register, available on the Historic Places Trust Website) via the National System. 1 point
Award risks were assessed and mitigation plans put in place to avoid any negative affect on the award.
Our Experience
The Category 1 Historical Places added an interesting dimension to the award. This encouraged people to develop an understanding of the history in our community. The process of discovery was described as a “mighty fine challenge”.
The spread of sites and accessibility allowed operators all over the country to participate. The most challenging geography was the Southland area where long distances needed to be conquered to access the National System. Alan, ZL4ACG used an 11 element beam attached to his vehicle, to access the National System. As he could not access the National System from his home QTH he spent many hours down the road, in his vehicle, listening and logging calls. On at least one occasion the local Police visited Alan, having been advised of his suspicious behaviour, radio operating.
A number of road trips developed over the period of the award. This provided access to Historical Places that would otherwise not have been made available. Considering the distance travelled during the award we are pleased that everyone returned safely home and the government treasury did not get any funding from our operators, which we are aware of.
During the award many operators found the opportunities for face to face meetings as they travelled.
The Historical Places aspect engaged a number of families in the activity. This is particularly great as you do not need a scribe to fill in your own log.
Certificate
With this award the certificate was offered in two formats, electronic (PDF) and hardcopy. The Historical Places Trust provided helpful assistance with the preparation and distribution of the certificates.
Raymond McNickle ZL1RGM. Organiser & liaison with Historic Places Trust