May 15

via the ARRL

The US Department of Defense (DoD) is phasing out the US Navy-Marine Corps Military Auxiliary Radio System(MARS) program. Its operational mission will transition to the other MARS service branches by the end of September. The head of the US Navy-Marine Corps MARS program in Williamsburg, Virginia, made the announcement. The Navy-Marine Corps MARS program also supports the US Coast Guard as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the US Department of Homeland Security, and local emergency management agencies. A US Department of Defense-sponsored program, MARS branches are separately managed by their respective military service branches. MARS volunteers are Amateur Radio operators who provide auxiliary or emergency communications to local, national, and international emergency and safety organizations, as an adjunct to normal communications. 

“Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station Atlantic (NCTAMS LANT) intends to work with US Army MARS and US Air Force MARS in transitioning the Navy-Marine Corps MARS (NAVMARCORMARS) program by 30 Sep 2015,” the announcement said. “The intent of the transition is to best align the program to support national mission requirements.” Chris Jensen of NCTAMS LANT told ARRL that the Navy no longer has any service specific requirements for Navy-Marine Corps MARS and is working within DoD to transition the program into Army and Air Force MARS. “We will continue to publish updates as this transition progresses,” he said.

The announcement encouraged current Navy-Marine Corps MARS members and clubs to submit applications to the US Army MARS or US Air Force MARS programs as soon as possible.

W2IK

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May 12

The Bexar Operators Group, with W2IK at the helm, will be operating this year’s 2015 ARRL Field Day at the Choke Canyon State Park’s Caliham Unit near the town of Three Rivers about 70 miles south of San Antonio. We will be operating at the “Screened Shelter” area (These are full cabins WITH air conditioning)

If you are interested in joining us, drop an email at W2IK@ARRL.NET for more information and to reserve your spot.

All food and drink will be supplied. The “class” of operation will be determined later.

We will be experimenting with different antennas ranging from NVIS to “Inverted V”and Wire Beam styles apexed up to 50 feet.

Although all of our antennas do not require tuners when used on their proper frequencies, we will have several types of tuners available so we can compare how antennas compare when attempting to match non-resonant elements on frequencies other than the antennas’ intended use.

We will be using solar powered (400 watts) energy for equipment operation and 12 volt DC lighting systems will be displayed so attendees can see how a DC lighting system works during any emergency communications work and which are the best types to have on hand. There is a big difference between 12 volt incandescent, LED and florescent systems.

Space is limited to 8 persons, so please check with us for availability. New hams are encouraged to make the trip as there will be a wealth of information available.

Read the rest of this entry »

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Nov 29

Friday December 5th 6:00 p.m. to Saturday December 6th 6:00 p.m. We still have multiple slots open for this event.

Especially 10:00 p.m. Friday to 6 p.m. Saturday. All license classes invited to participate.

Contact Louis – K5STX at k5stx@k5stx.net or by phone: 830-305-2889

 

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Oct 9

Local Time: 1800 hrs Friday December 5th to 1800 hrs Saturday December 6th, 2014

This annual event is always the first Friday / Saturday of December each year.  Ham Operators, operating from their local National Weather Service Offices around the country, are trying to contact as many other NWS offices as possible during a 24 hour period that runs from 6pm CDT Friday until 6pm CDT Saturday.  Modes used include VHF/UHF,HF, Internet Enhanced (EchoLink, and IRLP) and various digital modes..

Access is limited at the local NWS office due to space constraints and the fact that the meteorologists are actively working in the same room, so the noise level and disruption factor is a concern.

Operators are scheduled to work in groups of no more than 3 in multiples of 2 hour shifts!

All classes of licensed Amateur Radio Operators are encouraged to participate.  This is a great opportunity for Technician class operators to get some HF time in the early morning shifts with a General or Extra class on the roster!

Visitors are limited to those who RSVP before the event! No drop in visitors!  Please, if you would like to come by just to visit, you MUST be on the roster!

To volunteer for a 2 hour shift or more, Contact event coordinator Louis – K5STX at k5stx@k5stx.net or k5stx@hillcountryreact.org!  Sign up early, the based slots go fast!

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Jul 11

Fellow hams:

My name is John Ralston, K0RVB, Net manager for the San Antonio Area Rainfall Net. At the risk of sounding dramatic, I send you the following official communication.

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that Sunday, July 13th, 2014, will be the last day for the rainfall net.  This decision did not come easily, was not made quickly and involved a great deal of communication with the National Weather Service and board members of the net’s sponsor, the San Antonio Radio Club.

nwscocorahsThe decision to end the net was based solely on our data presentation to the NWS and how they receive their main data stream for daily rainfall amounts. Their main source of receiving daily, timely rainfall data is from CoCoRaHs, a web based reporting model, giving the NWS real time data on a 24 hr model from 8a to 8a.

I encourage each of you to sign up with CoCoRaHs, at http://www.cocorahs.org/ if you have not already done so. Our rainfall reports can still be utilized by the NWS by reporting through the website.

Read the rest of this entry »

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May 26

skywarn_noaa_trainedHere is a link to a movie trailer I made from video and photos of my Skywarn Spotting Activities over the past year.

The movie, music and titling was all done on my iPhone 5 using iMovie… it’s simple easy to make you just drag and drop the files you want. it creates the audio, transitions and titling for you.

This version has been updated to remove reference to a specific local ham club and local ARES group at their request.

I hope you enjoy watching it, as much as we did making it.

Matthew Rottman K5NON
MPR Photography
Bicycling for the Heck Blog

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May 5

W5JBO_John_Orton_SKJohn was born 9/3/1947 & raised in Beverly Hills California. He had 2 brothers Tom Orton & Jim Orton & a sister Victoria Orton.  A daughter Tina Marie Orton, and nieces and nephews.

He went to Beverly Hills High School, then transferred to Belmont High School in Los Angeles where he met at the time & went steady with who would one day be his wife, Karen in 1965. He graduated from Beverly Hills High in 1967 & moved to the Bay area in Northern California, he attended Cabot College.  His career as an Aero Space Engineer took him everywhere from the West Coast to Korea.

John had various interests during his lifetime, he loved trains, sail boating, surfing, hiking, motorcycling & riding his mountain bike plus gardening…but what he loved most was Ham Radio.  In California he was known on the radio as “WA6BOB”.

See his ham radio website  here… http://w5jbo.weebly.com/

In March 2010 John retired from Space Vector in Chatsworth, California and moved to Texas where he met up again with his now wife Karen and they were married in January 2011, after 44 years of loosing track of each other.

John got back into radio again in Texas and acquired a new handle of  “W5JBO” he got into contesting, was always asked to help out with testing, he would volunteer to put up other operators antennas & would also volunteer to do radio repairs in our garage.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Apr 20

Never to early to put it on the calendar!

Local Time: 1800 hrs Friday December 5th to 1800 hrs Saturday December 6th, 2014

This annual event is always the first Friday / Saturday of December each year.  Ham Operators, operating from their local National Weather Service Offices around the country, are trying to contact as many other NWS offices as possible during a 24 hour period that runs from 6pm CDT Friday until 6pm CDT Saturday.  Modes used include HF Voice, EchoLink, and IRLP.

Access is limited at the local NWS office due to space constraints and the fact that the meteorologists are actively working in the same room, so the noise level and disruption factor is a concern.

Operators are scheduled to work in groups of no more than 3 in multiples of 2 hour shifts!

All classes of licensed Amateur Radio Operators are encouraged to participate.  This is a great opportunity for Technician class operators to get some HF time in the early morning shifts with a General or Extra class on the roster!

All equipment is on-site and set up except for headphones!  Highly recommended!

Visitors are limited to those who RSVP before the event! No drop in visitors!  Please, if you would like to come by just to visit, you MUST be on the roster!

To volunteer for a 2 hour shift or more, Contact event coordinator Louis – K5STX at k5stx@k5stx.net or k5stx@hillcountryreact.org!  Sign up early, the based slots go fast!

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Apr 10

Spring_Is_In_The_AirSpring is in the air, and that means our public service events have started up again, just like Spring flowers.

Help is needed for all of these events.  Contact person will be listed for each event below. Don’t wait to be asked, volunteer now!

  • April 19th – Bexar County ARES – HT Rodeo. See link to story already posted.  Pre-register by sending your name and call sign to HTrodeoRSVP@gmail.com.  Only those pre-registered by April 12th will be able to participate in the weeklong Roundup event leading up to the rodeo. Details on how to participate will be return emailed. Bring your HT to the event -preferably charged up and ready to rodeo!
  • April 27th – Fiesta Wildflower 100 Bicycle Tour.  This is a one day, Sunday event, starting / ending at Morgan’s Wonderland, near Wurzbach Parkway & Thousand Oaks, on the NE side of San Antonio.   Routes go up toward Canyon Lake and over past New Braunfels toward Seguin.   Hams are needed to staff around 9-10 rest stops, plus net control. We’ll have motorcycle marshal support on the course, but no active SAG support (unless the organizer changes their normal operations).  Rumor has it that the event organizer will be reimbursing fuel expenses by the hams and motorcycle marshals who support the event.  I’m still trying to confirm that rumor (that I got from one of the organizers).Please contact Lee Besing N5NTG direct via email at info@sanantoniohams.org with “Fiesta Wildflower 100” in the subject line. Cell contact is 210-771-7075 (voice / text okay).
  • May 3rd – Bulverde 5k/10k Senior Citizens Run.  This is a half day (morning) event held in Bulverde, Texas, starting / ending at the Bulverde Senior Citizens Center next to the Fire Station on Cougar Bend & FM1863. Around 8 hams are needed for this event.  Hill Country REACT is coordinating the event. This is a mobile /  HT event using a local repeater.Please Contact Charlie Land KC5NKK via email using kc5nkk@hillcountryreact.org with “Bulverde Run” in the subject line.
  • May 10th – American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure.  This is a one day Saturday event, with the start/finish at Retama Park (loop 1604 & IH-35). We expect 4 different routes this year, instead of 5, but the coverage area is still spread out.  We anticipate having around 9 break points, plus 10 SAG vans that need Ham teams to drive / navigate. We’ll also have the Safellite Auto Glass cars helping out on the shorter routes as usual.     We need hams for break points (rest stops), SAG drivers and net control help.  We normally have APRS coverage for this event, but that hasn’t been locked down yet due to personal health issues affecting our usual APRS team from Austin. No background check or DMV check required, but drivers will need to provide copies of their current valid drivers licenses.Please contact Lee Besing N5NTG direct via email at info@sanantoniohams.org with “Tour de Cure” in the subject line. Cell contact is 210-771-7075 (voice / text okay).
  • May 25th – 4th annual American Hero 25k Relay Run.  This annual event has a new location on the south side of town. This is a one day Sunday event. The start / finish will be at the Texas A&M University – San Antonio Campus, near south Loop 410 and Zarzamora (Address is on University Way).  Unknown route at this time, but it will be a 5k looped route, that the participants will run 5 times. Since it’s a relay run, some of the runners will be relay runners while others run the full length.   Last year it lasted until around 2pm.   This will likely be a simplex mobile to mobile or HT operation since repeater coverage in that area is very skimpy.  See http://americanhero25krelay.org/ for event details.  I expect to need about 8-10 hams to cover the route.Please contact Lee Besing N5NTG direct via email at info@sanantoniohams.org with “American Hero 25k Relay” in the subject line. Cell contact is 210-771-7075 (voice / text okay).
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Mar 18

HT Rodeo!
Sponsored by your friendly neighborhood ARES group!

Saturday, April 19, 2014 @ Red Cross on E Houston St, 78219

This All-day event starts at 9:00AM

  • HT Contests!
  • Antenna Shootout (2M)!
  • Prizes!
  • Free Picnic Lunch!
  • Educational workshops and seminars!
  • Free!
  • -No admission charge
  • -No entry fee
  • -No charge for lunch
    • (Desserts and snacks will be available for a small charge)
  • -No charge for workshops

To Participate:

  1. Pre-register by sending your name and call sign to HTrodeoRSVP@gmail.com Only those pre-registered by April 12th will be able to participate in the weeklong Roundup event leading up to the rodeo. Details on how to participate will be return emailed.
  2. Bring your HT to the event -preferably charged up and ready to rodeo!

Ruth Lewis KE5MHJ
Bexar County ARES EC

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