San Antonio Hams

Clarification from the ARRL News Site. Looks like ham repeaters are welcome on state lands under the following proviso (requires hoops to be jumped through):

“Our contact in the California Office of Emergency Services suggests that, if any affected repeater is in any way involved with local emergency or government support activity, they should ask that agency to engage with CAL FIRE concerning the repeater. If the agency makes the case, there is a good chance that the repeater will be unaffected,” Tiemstra added.

http://www.arrl.org/news/report-causes-concern-and-confusion-in-california-s-amateur-radio-ranks

DUKE CITY HAMFEST ALBUQUERQUE

The weekend of September 21, I attended the Duke City Hamfest, along with about 400 other amateurs. While well organized, this size of an event, isn’t large enough to attract first-line vendors often seen at Dayton and Visalia. Nonetheless, the organizers did a great job with the various classes, including two excellent talks by Rob Sherwood, NCØB. With these thoughts in mind, here are my observations and comments.

That whole world of vendors has dramatically changed. In days past, the vendors could come and with the help of the manufactures cover their expenses, maybe make a little money, and would continue to support their mutual customers. This was a win-win situation. With the advent of the $100 + per night per person room costs and high transportation costs, it has become too expensive for the manufacturers, much less vendors, to attend a hamfest. This is not an ideal scenario.

Another big change is the resale market. Once upon a time, amateur radio gear tended to hold its value over time, as long as it was smoke-free, and well maintained. Good, bad or indifferent, Icom changed that with the introduction of the IC-7300! At a street price of $1,495, it literally blew away the used market place. However, there is a hidden issue, applicable to any, used, solid-state transceiver—replacement parts!

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Remember the South Texas Hamfest and Electronics Expo this weekend,
Saturday, October 19th, 2019 at the San Patricio County Fairgrounds
Event Center, 219 West 5th Street, Sinton, TX 78387

The hamfest doors open at 8:00AM to 3:00PM.

Check the web-page for registration and table information as well as other activities planned.

https://southtexashamfest.org/

Please, drop by the ARRL table and say hello to West Gulf Director John, N5AUS, Vice-Director, Lee, W5LHC and South Texas Section Manager, Paul, KE5ZW.

Travel safe and hope to see many folks there.

Paul, KE5ZW

2019 ARRL West Gulf Division Ballot Process

The paper ballots for the election of the ARRL West Gulf Division Director were mailed on September 30, 2019 by third-class mail.
The envelope containing your ballot should arrive within the next 3-5 days. (Note: original date of this email was 10/7/2019). Along with the paper ballot will be a self-addressed ballot return envelope.

Your marked ballot MUST be returned in the enclosed self-addressed ballot return envelope. If it is not, your ballot will not be counted, even if it is received. The purpose of requiring the use of the provided self-addressed ballot return envelope is to maintain election security.

There is no online voting. Voting may only occur by use of the paperballot provided.

If you, or a family member, have not received your ballot by the close of business on October 14, 2019, please send two separate emails stating you have not received your ballot and requesting that a ballot be sent to you, to: (1) Dan Henderson at n1nd@arrl.org; and (2) Lee Cooper,W5LHC01@gmail.com.

Sending two emails acts as a cross-check to ensure the ARRL has received notice that you did not receive a ballot and that you are requesting a ballot.

All ballots, in the provided self-addressed ballot return envelopes MUST be RECEIVED on or before noon, November 15, 2019. Please allow sufficient time before November 15, 2019 for your ballot to be received. All late ballots will not be counted.

Voting is a right unique to free men and women. Please exercise your right, and vote for the candidate of your choice in the ARRL West GulfDivision Director Election.

If you have questions regarding the voting process, please contact DanHenderson, N1ND, at ARRL HQ, 1-860-594-0200 or at n1nd@arrl.org.

John Robert Stratton N5AUS

ARRL West Gulf Division Director

The next and last W5SC/100 Special Event operation is scheduled for Saturday, November 9, 2019, from 10 AM to 4 PM at the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology (SAMSAT), 102 Mabry Dr San Antonio, TX 78226.

“We have a “shack” in an office in the back part of SAMSAT.”

SAMSAT is on Port San Antonio campus near Lackland Air Force Base (the building was the Main Chapel for Kelly AFB). Open to the public every Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm, FREE (donations welcome), Volunteer-led tours (not always available].

On site equipment installed includes an ICOM IC-781 (provided by SAMSAT) and a roof mounted Cushcraft R-5 vertical antenna (provided by San Antonio Radio Club).

Weather and conditions permitting, SARC will again be setting up and using the club’s trailer mounted tri-band beam. Operations so far have been on 20 meters, SSB.

Notable contacts have been a Aeronautical Mobile station at 30,000 some thousand feet altitude over Arizona in May, and a submarine in August.

SARC’s Special Event operation uses the “ARRL Field Day” model, as follows: ANYONE can operate the station, regardless of license class, because we operate with an Extra-Class licensed “Control Operator”, and therefore we have Extra-Class privileges as far as frequency and mode.

Add-on encouragement: If you haven’t been to the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology, it’s well worth making the time to visit. Link to their website is below.

https://www.samsat.org/

Double hitter: visit our Centennial Event and see the museum’s fantastic displays as well.

The South Texas Hamfest on October 19th 2019, will be here before we know it !!
Discount registration is still available! For those that print and mail in your pre-registration forms there is now a link available at the bottom of the main page.

We will be hosting a Testing Session at the South Texas Hamfest on October 19th 2019, to get your FCC Amateur Radio Operators License.

For those taking the ham test for the first time, or upgrading, if you
pass, your name will be entered into an Exclusive Prize Drawing.

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Jamboree-on-the-Air, or JOTA, is the largest Scouting event in the world. It is held annually the third full weekend in October, for 2019
it’s Oct 18-20.
JOTA uses amateur radio to link Scouts and hams around the world, around the nation, and in your own community. This jamboree requires no travel, other than to a nearby amateur radio operator’s ham shack.

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http://radioaficion.com/news/new-fcc-rules-that-impact-ham-radio/

I couldn’t copy an excerpt from this article, so I made a quick screenshot instead. Click the above link for the full article.

Some of the changes may impact certain popular models of the Baofeng HT radios. These radios can operate outside the Ham Radio bands and might not be type accepted for GMRS / FRS, etc..

It restricts the sale of combined FRS/GMRS radios. It drops the cost of a GMRS license from $85 to $65 / family and increases the license period from 5 years to 10 years.

AMATEUR HIGH-FREQUENCY EMERGENCY / HURRICANE NETS

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Major Hurricane Dorian Prompts Sustained Activations