Are you looking for a practical way to use your amateur radio skills while supporting the community?

At the Cape Ann Amateur Radio Association (CAARA), we provide amateur radio support for half marathons in and around Cape Ann throughout the year (roughly one/month, March through December). We are looking for volunteers to join us in our race support activities. You do not need to be a member of CAARA to participate!

Events are on Saturday or Sunday mornings, with a typical race start time of either 8am or 9am. Radio operators are on site about 30 minutes before the race starts, and are generally finished up around noon. For most races we like to have six checkpoints on the course, plus a lead and tail vehicle.

Volunteering for these activities is a great way to get started with amateur radio public service. You get a chance to experiment with field operation of your equipment, you get to interact with other radio amateurs, and you get to support the runners participating in these events. We can pair you with an experienced volunteer, and we can provide you with a radio if you don't own one of your own. You can volunteer for a single event or you can become a regular member of our volunteer team.

We have available positions in all of our upcoming races. You can find the schedule of events at https://sites.google.com/view/caararaces; take a look, pick an unstaffed checkpoint location, and email Kevin Lyons K1KL at kevinlyonsk1kl@gmail.com if you would like to participate.