Atlanticon
QRP Forums
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The
Atlanticon QRP Forum
A
weekend of QRP fun, presentations and
social gathering hosted by the NJQRP Club and sponsored by the AmQRP
Club each year in the spring. QRPers from all over the US (and
internationally) show up for this annual event held in Baltimore,
Maryland. The annual event is held in
Baltimore, Maryland at the end of March
during the weekend of the
ever-popular Greater Baltimore Computerfest and Hamboree. The hotel
is very close to the state fairgrounds in Timonium, Maryland and
special rates are established for QRPers planning to attend.
All who register in advance for Atlanticon receive our famous
"Atlanticon Kit" prior the weekend.
QRP
presentations all day Saturday
About 170
QRPers usually show up for Atlanticon and on Saturday get treated to
QRP seminar topics presented by acknowledged leaders and
experts in our hobby. These are hour-long audio/visual
presentations made by knowledgeable hams in fields of transmitter
design, antenna analysis, homebrew construction, electronic
simulation, operating from the field, microcontroller hardware &
software design, and more. We normally run straight through from 9am
to 5:30pm, with only shorts breaks for lunch and stretching of legs.
These Saturday QRP seminars are one of the great highlights of the
weekend. We will have a great lineup of speakers for the event.
The
Atlanticon Kit
As has become a custom for
Atlanticon, we send a special "Atlanticon Kit" to all those
who pre-register for Atlanticon. This is a small-but-useful project
that you'll be able to use in the shack for years to come. But
even more important, it serves as the basis for the Saturday evening
fun & games we have planned.
Atlanticon 2008 is (TBD)
This
is the same weekend as the Greater
Baltimore Hamboree and Computerfest, which is the most popular
hamfest in the mid-Atlantic region. Many QRPers in attendance at
Atlanticon find it very enjoyable to catch an early Saturday at the
Fairgrounds' hamfest, and then do it again even longer on Sunday
morning.
Hotel
The
"Atlanticon hotel" is our usual one the Holiday Inn Select
Baltimore North in Timonium, MD. Located just off exit 16 of
Interstate 83 North, this quality hotel is just minutes away from the
hamfest fairgrounds, and only about 45 minutes from
Baltimore-Washington International airport (BWI). A reduced room rate
of is arranged with the Holiday Inn Select to help QRPers with
weekend expenses. Be sure to ask for the "Atlanticon
rates". We've had plenty of advance registrations and the block
of rooms we had them set aside is disappearing. To get a room call
them at (410) 252-7373 and tell them that you want the Atlanticon
rate. You'll get a discount of $30 off their usual rate. See the
hotel's information-packed website at
http://www.bal-north.hiselect.com/
for more information.
Friday
night
Atlanticon
starts at 7:30 on Friday night with a social evening where we
meet up with old friends and make new ones. Vendors and QRPers
alike often show their projects at tables around the large banquet
room in which we meet, right up until 11pm.
Saturday
all day
Saturday is
the main event, wherein the illustrious QRP speaking staff
delivers the presentations from 8:30 until 5pm. A box lunch is
available for purchase for a nominal price, making it convenient to
stay with your friends and continue discussions through lunchtime. We
break for individual dinnertime cuisine at local restaurants and
reconvene at 7:30 for an evening of wild QRP fun - a homebrew
building contest and a special Atlanticon Event are the usual
activities for Saturday evening. We normally go until 11pm and then
many of us then carry on in the hotel bar, quenching the insatiable
QRP thirsts - with both knowledge and liquid! There will be a
construction competition on Saturday evening in the hospitality room
for both open homebrew entrants and competitions based on
construction creativity (packaging, etc) and performance.
Sunday
morning
Sunday
finds most QRPers hustling over to
the hamfest for a morning of looking for that gem of a deal during
the last hours of the 'fest. The Timonium Fairgrounds is only a short
ride away and is well worth the trip.
The
Greater Baltimore HAMBOREE & Computerfest
The
Atlanticon hotel is only a short distance from the very popular
Greater Baltimore Computerfest and Hamvention, being held the very
same weekend! See their website for complete details:
http://www.gbhc.org. Many
Atlanticon attendees plan their weekend to make it over to the
hamfest very early on Saturday morning or on Sunday morning, thus
making the over weekend a true ham adventure.
Over 170 QRPers
normally attend these Atlanticon weekends ... sure hope you too can
join us for our very special QRP extravaganza on March 30-31.
Mark your calendars and make your travel reservations early to get
the good rates and we'll see you there!
Last Modified: March 31, 2007