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38 | LIFE IN SOLERA | FEBRUARY 2023 | Let's Go on a Fox Hunt! As mentioned in previous articles, the Solera Radio Club is part of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) for the City of Beaumont/Solera Cadre. We hone our emergency communications skills by training and participating in a national program known as the Amateur Radio Emergency Radio Service (ARES). The club is attached to the West Riverside County ARES Division/Banning Pass District. One of the emergency services we assist first responders with is locating lost or missing persons. In addition, we assist with locating injured hikers in our local mountains; especially if the hiker was well equipped with a two-way radio. Club members will use their radio gear to triangulate a path to the injured hiker. We practice our triangulating skills by participating in amateur radio direction finding (ARDF) events. Such events are referred to as radio orienteering or "Fox Hunts." Participants use ARDF techniques to locate hidden transmitters in a designated search area. Armed with homemade radio receiver antennas, a group of two or more radio operators triangulate by measuring the strength of the transmitter waves. Under the pressure of time constraints, they strive to hone-in on the location of the transmitter (simulated injured hiker). These events are exciting and highly competitive for radio operators. This is just another way for club members to put their radio equipment to good use and have fun at the same time. TRIVIA ANSWER FOR JANUARY: Question: When listening to various radio frequencies, I will occasionally hear a series of electronic sounds; what is that noise? Answer: The noise you might be hearing is radio operators communicating in digital mode. A common form of digital communications is through something called narrow band emergency messaging software (NBEMS). Computers connected to radio transceivers exchange data/messages over the airways without the need for the internet, which will likely be unavailable during or after a disaster incident. This is just another tool for club members to use while assisting emergency management services in our community when the need becomes apparent. TRIVIA QUESTION THIS MONTH (answered next month) Do amateur radio stations need to use huge antenna towers to contact others around the world? "When All Else Fails – Think Radio Communications." ~ Ray C. Gayton-Jacob (N6KZM), ray.n6kzm@gmail.com and http://www. soleraradio.com RADIO CLUB