ARES: mentoring new net control operators —
The following message was sent by Roberta Joiner with a special invitation to people who feel that they could use this information. I am also copying the information from her web address to make her information immediately accessible. Should you find it helpful, please let her know.
Her message is:
Greetings all – I have attached the first issue of Tips for Net Control. There is no set schedule for these, as I get input from others and make observations and discoveries myself, I will put them out, upon approval of the two Emergency Coordinators, Bob Fike and John Gerhardt. These have a spot on the xczcomm.com website, under TRAINING > Net Control Operations.
73,
Roberta AJ6KN
SLV/Coastal ARES Net Manager
Her attachment: Net Control Station Tips #1 -March 2021•
Review the SLV/CoastalARES scripts here https://xczcomm.com/index.php/net-scripts and modify them to fit your exercise as well as current circumstances (meetings on Zoom, not in person.) Friendly, courteous, welcoming and professional is our goal. When you’ve decided on a 2nd exercise, write up a script for that portion as well. Feel free to ask for help from Roberta at [email protected].
Remember to put your call sign out every ten minutes (that may mean at least once in the middle of check ins) as well as at the end of transmission on a repeater or simplex frequency when moving back and forth between exercises.
When taking check-ins, I find it easiest to acknowledge those I heard clearly first, then ask others in that call sign suffix group to come back if there were doubles or triples or they are just too difficult to hear. If you have tried two times and still can’t get the call sign, feel free to ask for someone’s help to see if they were able to hear it more clearly.
I find it easiest to ask a specific person to relay rather than open it up to the group such as “can anyone hear that station?” as that just invites more doubles and triples. Choose someone you heard clearly and expect will be keeping track of call signs (we all should be keeping track of call signs, of course, even if we are not net control!)
If no one is able to copy them, just let them know they are not coming into the repeater well and move on to the next person.
When doing a simplex net, make a note of those who you are able to hear well – those are YOUR Big Guns. Note their location as well, so that if you are missing someone in a particular geographical area, you can ask a Big Gun in that area to call out for anyone who might have not been heard and then they will relay the information to you.
For Simplex nets:
Please advise operators to turn their squelch OFF (down) and volume DOWN to better hear operators they would otherwise miss. When requesting information from someone, make sure and confirm that the information you believe you got is correct. This is especially true in a simplex net, where it is more likely for errors to occur.
For example, you are requesting signal check reports, as follows:
Net Control: AJ6KN how do you copy me?
AJ6KN: Net Control, I copy you loud and clear.
Net Control: AJ6KN I copy you loud and clear and you copy me loud and
clear. Is that correct?
AJ6KN: Affirmative.
Net Control moves on to the next call sign.
Or the following dialog could occur:
Net Control: AJ6KN, what radio are you using tonight?
AJ6KN: Icom 2730a dual band.
Net Control: Icom 2720a Dual band – is that correct?
AJ6KN: Negative. That’s an Icom two seven three zero alpha dual band.
Net Control: Icom two seven three zero alpha dual band. Is that
correct?
AJ6KN: Affirmative, AJ6KN.
(Net Control moves on to the next call sign).
LET’S HAVE SOME FUN!
Roberta AJ6KN
SLV/Coast ARES Net
[email protected] OR [email protected]
