I accepted the certificate on behalf of the group which was presented by Councillor Frances Melville, Provost of Fife. Drivers and co drivers of the 4 x 4 vehicles were invited along to the ceremony and I was very thankful some came along on the night and gave me much needed moral support.

You can see some details on the Fife Fire and Rescue web site HERE.

Also received, along the same lines, was a letter from the Rt Hon Alex Salmond MSP First Minister.

Council certificate of appreciation to fife raynet

Alex Salmond letter of appreciation to fife raynet

Jim Burke GM4TNP

We had requests from other sources that I had to refuse as I did not want to involve non RAYNET members.

I had no other access to 4 x 4 vehicles. There is, as far as I know, no 4 x 4 group in Fife, but if such a group did exist I could have made good use of them.

There are ample 4 x 4 users in Fife but no organised group.

The question…..?

Do you think a 4 x 4 group should be established in Fife and if so would you be prepared to join and assist with the running of such a group?

We need someone to take the lead. I have enough on my plate with the RAYNET group and I am not an avid or experienced 4 x 4 person. Anyone out there prepared to put themselves forward?

Please give this some thought and get back to me. You never know what a little effort might lead to.

Best regards
Jim Burke GM4TNP
Group Controller Fife RAYNET

Council certificate of appreciation to fife raynet

Alex Salmond letter of appreciation to fife raynet

The presentation is to be held at the Town House Kirkcaldy on Wednesday 6th April at approx 7- 7.30 pm. Places will be limited so drivers and co drivers please let me know your availability as soon as you can.

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This is best described by Mike Bruce the Lifeboat Coxswain when he wrote this 2010 gala report.

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The event is well attended with up to 10,000 people on the busy days. RAYNET members from most of the local groups attend and we even have one lad from Warrington who comes up to visit his brother who comes along to join in the fun. It is a good social gathering and there is plenty of time for a chat over a cuppa.
I hope to see you there in 2012 which will be the 32nd year of the Gala.

Regards
Jim Burke Group Controller Fife RAYNET.

We can never thank you all enough for what you all do to help make our event run smoothly, from helping with road marshalling during parade, general safety of all members of the public, monitoring comms, First aid / Lost children post, emergency public addressing when required and your teams efficient handling of first aid incidents whether minor or major is second to none.

We are especially thankful this year for your attendance at both the Saturday and the Sunday events.

Lizzie and our gala team were extremely delighted that the well walk went better than planned with no incidents, again this is down to your team working efficiently and being so well prepared.

We have not received all the money in yet from various areas but figures so far indicate welly walk should hopefully be in excess of £2000 adding to the estimated weekends total before expenses of approx £15,000 – £16,000 with hopefully more to come.

I will keep you updated of final totals.

Mike Bruce
Coxswain
RNLI ANSTRUTHER LIFEBOAT

We set up a special event station to show members of the public attending the gala one aspect of amateur radio. I remember stringing up a dipole over some lamp posts and having an enjoyable day operating in the sun.

Over the next couple of years we took along the Fife Council Emergency Planning Vehicle to show members of the public what RAYNET was all about. This was not very exciting as the folk came in, were given a tour of the wagon and an explanation of what it was for and off they went. Imaging this several hundred times, I am sure you get the idea.

During these periods John Smith ran the RNLI radio communications for the event from inside the boat shed. He could not see what was going on outside. Next step saw the EPO vehicle being used as the communications base giving John a chance to see what was going on and get closer to the action.

About this time the vehicle also took on many other functions, First Aid Post, lost children (and Grannies) base, lost property deposit, announcements over the public address system in the wagon and a place where folk could get a cup of coffee or tea in relative calm. RAYNET members attending also took on the role of ‘mingling’ with the crowds and keeping an eye out for folks needing assistance.

Knowing that the Doctor was selling tickets at the car raffle stand and the nurse helping at the hamburger stand meant we could summon their assistance at short notice. This proved very beneficial when folk came along with nose bleeds, fish bones in the throat, sunstroke, scrapes and grazes. Incidentally, the lad with the fish bone in the throat ate half my roll which was commandeered by the nurse to dislodge the offending object. Revenge of the Kipper.

The Gala of course is all about raising funds for the RNLI and the whole event is a great family day out with lots to see. The list of groups attending is too great to list here but they include the Emergency Services, Army, Navy, International Rescue, Secret Bunker, parachuting, raft building and racing the same, local bands, disco dancers, ducking stool, and lots of veteran and vintage cars.

Highlight of the day is of course the launching of the lifeboat and a sea rescue usually performed by RAF rescue helicopter depending on the weather and availability. I remember helping pack up some pancakes topped with strawberries and cream that were rescued from the lifeboat and winched into the helicopter. All good clean fun.

One frightening demonstration was set up by Fife Fire and Rescue. This is the chip pan demonstration where a small cup of water is tipped into a pan of burning fat. The explosion like burst of flame and the radiant heat that could be felt about 40 feet away took my breath away and meant another chip pan went the way they should all go, into the recycle bin.

I am sorry to be the bearer of sad news.

Fife Group Member Geoffrey James Robbins passed away on Friday night.

Geoff joined Fife RAYNET group in November 2007 and has been an active member, he will be sorely missed.

Geoff may be known to you as GM3KMF or by his old callsign 2M0AGS.

He was often accompanied to our meetings by his young daughter Naomi.

I last spoke with them both at the recent Jaycee Open Day.

Geoff was by no means an old man and although I knew he had health problems he always came over as cheery and uncomplaining.

Our thoughts must go out to young Naomi, the rest of Geoff’s’ Family and friends.

I have attached a wee photograph of Geoff for you to remember him by.

GM3KMF Geoff James Robbins

Best regards to you all.
Jim Burke
GM4TNP

Loch Leven 1/2 Marathon Route

Our main task is to provide radio communications for the First Aid teams. Sometimes this is for First Aiders at fixed points about the course or mobile units that respond on request.

View the Communications Plan

As well as providing for the First Aiders, we have no objection to passing messages for the organisers that involve the welfare of the participants or the spectators. RAYNET members are also stationed at the water stations about the course.

Where First Aid vehicles are used, as well as voice radio, we also fit GPS receivers that connect to the radios. This system sends the location, speed and direction of the vehicle via the radio back to the control vehicle. This information is displayed on a laptop computer that shows on a map the detailed location of the vehicles. This allows a quick deployment of a First Aid vehicle without having to ask the locations.

This saves much time and effort in the event of an incident. In addition to this we also provide a ‘back marker’. This is a RAYNET member on a bicycle that is fitted with radio and GPS so the control can see at a glance on their laptop where the rear runner, or walker as is often the case, is located.

We have on occasion sent Slow Scan images from locations on the course back to the control vehicle using the same radio system.

The commentator for the event is given a receiver so that he can listen to our communications. This gives him instant feedback of who and where the first runners are. This keeps the spectators waiting at the finish up to date with the excitement of the race.

In the early days ‘Control’ used to be someone’s car. We now thankfully have the use of the Fife Council Emergency Planning vehicle. This vehicle is fitted out for such events and incidents that the Council would have to respond to such as power cuts, flooding and pollution.

Information For Event Organisers