Our club is gearing up for Field Day 2025 on June 28-29 with the 'Radio Connects' theme. This year showed growth with 4,369 entries and 31,785 participants, so we're expecting good activity. I'm tasked with organizing our Get On The Air (GOTA) station but I'm a bit confused about the logging requirements and power restrictions. It's part picnic, campout, practice for emergencies, informal contest, and most of all, fun - the most popular ham radio activity held annually in the US and Canada. Anyone have experience running a GOTA station?

Great choice volunteering for GOTA duty! The power limit is 100 watts max, and you log separately but don't count toward your club's contact total. More than 31,000 hams get together with their radio clubs on the fourth weekend in June each year. Focus on getting new and inactive hams on the air - that's the real mission.

This is actually my second year helping with our GOTA station and it's been so rewarding! Last year we had several Technician licensees make their first HF contacts. You can find nearby Field Day sites with the Field Day Site Locator at the ARRL website if you want to see how other clubs are doing it.

I got my start in Field Day through a GOTA station five years ago - now I'm an Extra and compete in contests regularly. It's a great chance to introduce youth to the thrill of ham radio and remind ourselves that the future rests in getting young people pumped up about this hobby. Make it welcoming and educational!