This boot camp will also be of great help if any group wishes to create their own “Jump Team” from scratch.

Rich was an active member, and former officer,  of the KARS (Kendall Amateur Radio Society) in Boerne, Texas.

Richard was the father of Ryan Birks-Kilman and wife Laurel of Kissimmee, Fla.; Kelly Kilman Anderson, and Katy Kilman of San Antonio. He was the grandfather to Alison, Erin, Katie, Cassidy, Lily and Sarah of Kissimmee, Fla; Mikayla, Kirstin, Rogan and Evelyn of San Antonio. He is also survived by sisters Mary Martin and Melanie Roller and husband Frank of Pipe Creek; and brother Ronald Kilman of Austin. He is also survived by five nieces and four nephews.

So if you didn’t get a copy already, please send email to subscribe@sanantoniohams.org to be added to the list.  We’ll send you a separate copy just to catch you up to date, and put you on the list for the next edition.   Double check your spam folder, and whitelist info@sanantoniohams.org to ensure delivery.

VIEW THE APRIL 2012 NEWSLETTER HERE

We really will try to start putting out a newsletter once a month, with the headlines & happenings around Central Texas.  If you know of an event, or have a story about something going on that is ham radio related, please contact us at info@sanantoniohams.org, or better yet, register as a user on this website, and we’ll bump up your editor priv’s to allow you to post your own articles!

Lee Besing N5NTG
Webmaster
SanAntonioHams.org
210-771-7075 cell (voice / text)

The 2nd Annual American Hero 25k Relay Run will be held on Sunday, May 27th, at Brackenridge Park in San Antonio, Texas.   Last year, hams helped with this last minute organized event, from Alamo Stadium, with the course being down into Brackenridge Park.  Due to planned construction at the stadium, and perhaps the need to avoid causing the traffic confusion into the Zoo area that morning, the routes have been changed and the start / finish will be at the Koehler Pavilion inside Brackenridge Park.

Contact Lee Besing N5NTG by email at info@sanantoniohams.org or by calling 210-771-7075 to volunteer.  Free t-shirts and food from the Spaghetti Warehouse.

At the March 2012 CCARC Eyeball meeting,  discussion lead to a vote that passed by majority to change the Eyeball Meeting format. We will no longer have a set day ( First Thursday of each month) nor will we meet every month at Driscoll Children’s Hospital. Our Club has become, by popular demand, an EVENT instead of Meeting Club..

 The next 4 months have been planned already..

For April.. we will be caravanning up to the Belton Ham-Fest.. A group Friday afternoon and then   a second group early Saturday morning will be headed up. After the Saturday morning stroll thru the Ham-Fest at 3pm we will be meeting at the Ox Bow restaurant almost right next door to the Belton Expo. This will be our April 2012 CCARC Eyeball meeting.  Everyone come up and enjoy the Ham-Fest and the CCARC Eyeball meeting at the Ox Bow before the trip back.

 In May, the CCARC Eyeball Meeting will be at the 2nd annual Buccaneer Tail Gate, More info coming the APOC has moved to the shopping strip behind the old Luby’s on Alameda (Near DCH). Testing, Food, lots of “trash to treasures” stories to be told here!! More Info to com.. Stand By!!

In June, the CCARC Eyeball Meeting will be breakfast at the “STARTING LINE” of the First Annual CCARC “On the Air Car Rally/Mobile Net around the BAY”.. A full day, afternoon and evening of tripping around the bay , on the air and stops for fun things to do.. More Info to come.. Stand By!!

In July.. plans are under way and development of our FIRST Mobile Fox Hunt!! Working on the route and the hardest locations for all those foxes!! We’ll let you know about that one!!!

Hope to see everyone in Belton.. If you want to go, don’t have a ride give me a call .. we’ll get ya there!!!

Linda Peterson
DCH Disaster Services*W5LSS / W5DCH Trustee
361.442.9852 cell

My grandfather, George R. Matthews, was a HAM in San Antonio.  He has been silent key since the late 1980’s.  I have recently been trying to find out what his call sign was. 

I live in North Carolina and no one around here has any log books with his call sign information in it.  I have asked my mother, but she can’t remember.  I have no documents with his call sign information on it and only one picture of him in his shack.  That picture does not show his call sign either. 

He owned and operated Matthews Electronics at San Antonio International Airport up until he passed away.  I was hoping that maybe someone in the San Antonio Ham radio community may have information about my grandfather’s call sign.  Any help would be very appreciated.

Thank you

Bobby Bridgers, KK4ARX
kk4arx@gmail.com

photo courtesy of ARRL.org website

The holder of one of the best-known US Amateur Radio call signs, Frederick (Fred) Maia, W5YI, died of cancer Wednesday, March 28. He was 76 and was a resident of Arlington, Texas.

Fred was a leading Amateur Radio journalist for nearly 35 years and a pioneer of the volunteer examining program adopted by the FCC in 1984.

Maia published “The W5YI Report,” dubbed “America’s Oldest Ham Radio Newsletter,” from 1978 to 2003, and has been a CQ contributing editor since 1985. His regulatory affairs column, first titled “Ticket Talk,” then “Washington Readout,” offered news and perspective on FCC Regulations and ITU actions. His final column will appear in the May 2012 issue of CQ.

After the FCC adopted volunteer examining for all levels of Amateur Radio licensing in 1984, Fred became the first Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (VEC) appointed by the FCC. Fred subsequently founded The W5YI Group in 1986 to develop, publish and sell amateur and commercial radio license study materials. In the realm of FCC commercial radio licensing, Fred formed National Radio Examiners to provide examination services.

Maia served as President of the W5YI-VEC until his retirement in October of 2000 when he sold The W5YI Group study material products to Master Publishing, Inc. The retail operations were purchased by General Manager Larry Pollock, NB5X, newly appointed President of the W5YI-VEC and National Radio Examiners organizations. Maia continued writing “The W5YI Report” newsletter until July 2003

Read the full story here on ARRL.org.

This year, Hams Rule!  Yep, ALL communications go by  ham radio, other than some internal event staff communications using commercial radios at the start/finish line.   The 2012′s event is a 1-day event, starting & ending in Boerne Texas.  The routes are changed 100% from last year.

We’ll have eight (8) White 15-Passenger SAG Vans to staff with Hams, Eight (8) Rest Stops to staff with Hams, and two (2) repeaters to coordinate with.    All communications will be on 2 meters radio, using the 145.19 Boerne (KARS) repeater and the 146.98 Kerrville (Hill Country Amateur Radio Club) repeater.   Dual band radios are suggested to enable local SAG to SAG or SAG to Rest Stop communications off-net.

Contact Lee Besing at tdc@sanantoniohams.org or call him at 210-771-7075 to volunteer!  Don’t wait, assignments are going fast!   Lee will be attending the HCARC meeting on April 5th up in Kerrville to sign up their volunteers.

Actually, the exact title is “South Texas Tour de Cure”, and it’s starting / ending in Boerne, Texas, not San Antonio. But it will happen this year on Saturday, May 19th, as a one day event with 4 routes to choose from. There will be an 18 mile & 30 mile routes going south from Boerne into the Fair Oaks Ranch area, and the 60 & 104 mile routes go north from Boerne thru Sisterdale and Comfort, before the 104 goes NW to Kerrville and back around down past Camp Vista, Center Point and thru Comfort on the way back to Boerne.

We’ve suggested a new slogan for the new Tour de Cure routes…  “If you’re tired of flat, whimpy, boring rides, change over to the Tour de Cure for the hilliest ride you can ask for…” LOL   In other words… The ride is extremely hilly, with a need for extreme caution on the part of our Ham drivers and Motorcyle Marshals.   Roads are mostly narrow 2 lane paved roads with double yellow lines and no shoulders for the riders.  Speed limits are usually near 60mph on the open roads.   Cell phone coverage is very spotty in some areas!  I suspect we may be busier than last year in the SAG and communications venue.

This will NOT be a flat boring ride.

There will be some challenges caused by the hilly terrain. We’ve got APRS radios to install in all of our SAG vans, plus key supply trucks, courtesy of Austin Amateur Radio Club (Paul Fenrich KA5FZU is returning to run APRS). Mike Perez W5ZAP will be leading our valuable Motorcycle Safety Marshals and Curtis Rabenhalt N5QPN will be our route safety officer. Yup, we snagged up Curtis to volunteer this year!   I’ve driven the entire 104 mile route, and found we had solid APRS coverage on most of the course.  I was using my own 25 watt APRS unit with a full sized higher gain antenna, more power & antenna than our borrowed tracking units will have.

Net Control Hams – We’re expecting to possibly need 2 net controls.  One up near Kerrville at Rest Stop #4, the other at the Champion High School (location of the start / finish line) in Boerne.  Depends up on how well the Champion High School Net Control can reach both repeaters.

SAG Van Drivers & Navigators - All fuel is paid for using designated re-fueling stations (usually Valero).  We will be having a training & orientation meeting in May.  SAG vans will be picked up in San Antonio after 5pm on Friday, and must be returned Saturday night.  The ADA TdC is only paying for 1 day’s use, and Enterprise is being “very proud” of their vans this year, in terms of rental cost per day.  We’re trying to get the same Enterprise location on IH-10 & Wurzbach, that we used for last year’s BikeMS event in San Antonio.  Very friendly staff & very convenient for a Boerne event.

Rest Stop Hams - You will be tasked with all communications in / out of your stop.   Stay on top of your Break Point Captain regarding need for supplies, because of the lag to get a supply truck back out there.  Stay in touch with net control regarding any medical issues or need for a SAG to move riders further up the route.  Bike repair & medical services will be available at every rest stop.   There will be a Lunch Stop on the 104 mile route only!

Watch Out for the other bike ride!  Yup, there is a second bike ride overlapping 15 miles of our route, along FM473 thru Sisterdale.  The Real Ale Ride starts in Blanco, Texas, and has a rest stop in Sisterdale, just blocks away from the Tour de Cure Rest Stop.   Fortunately, they will be going the same direction as the TdC, and will start a bit later than the TdC riders.  But an agreement was made between the two rides, to allow each other’s riders to get help from any SAG van or Motorcycle support person.  If you need to pick up a rider from the RAR, bring them to their rest stop in Sisterdale.  Exact location of their rest stop, and the overlapped part of the route will be covered in the training meeting held in May.

Contact Lee Besing N5NTG at 210-771-7075 or by email at tdc@sanantoniohams.org to volunteer or ask questions.  Assignments will be on a first come, first served basis.  We’re approaching both KARS (Boerne) and HCARC (Kerrville) for Ham volunteers, in addition to those coming from San Antonio.  I’ve been told our Houston SAG Teams are also planning to volunteer, so I’ll save some SAG van assignments for them.

Here are images of the 4 routes, but the exact location of some rest stops have been “adjusted” slightly since these were made.  For example, RS1 has since been moved back closer to the start line.  Click on the image for a more detailed view on the Map My Ride website.

104 Mile Route



60 Mile Route



30 Mile Route



18 Mile Route

Hams who are planning to work this event, are asked to attend this training / orientation event to learn about the changes in this year’s route & rest stops.  Yup, changes are in the winds, especially after the wildfires up near Bastrop.

If you prefer a more stable assignment, i.e. a fixed location or roaming “communications only” assignment, we can arrange for that as well.  We’ll put you in contact with Mike Hardwick, N5VCX, who is the head pooh-bah for ham communications.

Mike says “Thanks for advertising for the BP MS150. More and more volunteers are needed each year and getting out the word is the only way to get enough volunteers for the event.  I do have two requests that I need all MS150 volunteers to follow.

1. All amateur radio operators need to sign up at http://bpms150hams.org/. This is the master list of all hams whether for SAG, supply or break points and helps determine what needs to be staffed for the event.
2. Radio requirements are dual band radios with a minimum of 25 watts of power on both bands and a gain type antenna. If someone is only working a break point and only talking to someone at a break point that will be an exception to the requirements. Anyone that is mobile must have a dual band (VHF/UHF) radio for the event that has the correct power level. Anything less causes problems throughout the event.

Also if anyone would like to have an APRS tracker in their vehicle, I will have 12 or 13 extra units that can be put in their vehicles if they want. Drop me an e-mail and let me know who is interested.”

Susan says… “I still have a few rooms for SAG hams available at the Crowne Plaza in Houston for Friday night, and some cabins at Camp Lone Star for Saturday night in La Grange.”  

We pick up our SAG vans in San Antonio (or Austin for those closer to that area), drive into Houston on Friday night for the free hotel room, and get up for a 5am briefing in the Adicks Park & Ride just behind the hotel (how convenient that is!).   The Crowne Plaza is just off IH-10 & Hwy 6 in Katy on the west side of Houston.  All fuel is pre-paid by BPMS150 at designated stations, IF YOUR NAME IS ON THE LIST.   Another reason to get your name & assignment NOW, because last minute volunteers won’t be on that list for free fuel in official vehicles.

Free food, Saturday night & Sunday, plus free lunches both days. Free gas in your van, Free t-shirt on your back!  What more could you ask for?  13,000+ riders on the road, starting from 3 locations on Saturday at 7am, 2 locations on Sunday.

Contact Lee Besing N5NTG at 210-771-7075 if you are interested.

A few weeks ago, we were quietly told that Craig Kennedy, owner of  KComm The Ham Store, would likely be closing his doors at the end of March.

 March 31st was to be the last parking lot tail-gate sale.   We were asked to keep the news quiet until all the final arrangemens had been made with the employees, etc., before publicizing the news. 

During the past couple of weeks, the word was spread by rumor, by email, by phone calls, during Ham Breakfasts, etc. that the store was closing. 

The San Antonio Radio Club, W5SC, has been holding their monthly meetings in the store, and had their club station setup for visiting hams to use while at KComm.  That era has also come to an end, with the club needing to move their equipment & trailer (in back parking lot) to another location, and to find a new meeting location.   I was told today, that April’s SARC meeting will still be at KComm, but starting in the month of May, the meetings are moving to Jim’s Restaurant on San Pedro & Ramsey.

Store on Gulfdale

Yesterday, we stopped by the store around 9am to find that it was the most crowded that we’ve ever seen it, including during a SARC Club meeting night.  

Craig was playing “lets make a deal” with old equipment, furnishings, anything that wasn’t nailed down to the floor or wall it seemed. 

It was our opinion that he likely did more sales that day in a few hours, than he had likely done all month.  Several folks commented that if Kcomm had seen this much business every weekend, we wouldn’t be there for the closing today.

When I got my ham license back in the late 80′s, Kcomm The Ham Store was located over on the NW side of town, on Mobud Street, just off Loop 410, between Evers & Bandera, in a small industrial complex. 

In 1996, Craig & his dad, Tex Kennedy, bought the current property on Gulfdale and moved the store there, because folks said they needed to be in a “more central location with easier access”.   I’m not sure why this new location was anyeasier to get to, than the old one, but that’s the reason I was given for the move back then. 

Apparently, at some point 5 or 10 years ago, they were offered the chance to sell the property and lease it, sort of a reverse mortgage for business, by an investment firm out of state.  He accepted the offer and supposedly cleared a tidy profit at the time.  But when it came time for his lease to be renewed at the end of next month, the monthly rent was jacked up, too high for him to continue meeting the overhead on the decrease in business that had been happening over the past few years.

Mel told me that when he first went to work for Craig, more than 13 years ago, he usually could expect to see 10-12 radios per week that needed repairs performed.   About 40-50 radios per month.  But as the technology changed to more surface mounted components, and radios became more reliable under normal conditions (still not idiot proof), the number of repairs dropped.  For the past few years, he was seeing 15-20 radios a month or less, needing repairs, and some of them would need to be sent back to the factory for repairs due to the problem not being something a field technician could fix.

Competition from the Internet likely played a large part in the decrease in sales for new equipment, with large sellers like AES, HRO, etc. creating a web presence offering deeply discounted radios with no local sales taxes being added.  Almost anyone with a computer and a website could start selling radio equipment and accessories with very little overhead, compared to a brick & motar ham store.   As the economy weakened, local hams had less spending money, and looked harder for bargains that were usually found on the web, but then wondered why  they couldn’t get the free advice and support from the local store.  Duh!

Anyway, back to this weekend…  

Ed Larose’s last day, in fact all of the employee’s last paycheck day was Friday, March 30th.  Oscar’s office had been cleared out weeks ago, and Ed cleared his out this past week.  Mel & Tim were still wandering around the store helping customers just like the good ole days…  Craig ran the cash register and made the bargain deals, or not, with the ham customers.  The word had spread, by various means, about the closing, and parking slots out front became rare, while hams inside seeked out bargains that last week they had ignored.

 I interviewed Craig and some of the other employees about their future plans.   Ed Larose is “re grouping, but not retiring”, and has no definite plans beyond unemployement for the near future (there goes Obama’s figures back up).  Mel & Tim have some ideas, and they may end up working contract for Craig or Oscar in the future if needed.    Oscar is assuming the commercial side of the business and will continue with his existing clientele on his own.    Craig will keep the store open until near the end of April, as he sells down some of the older inventory items, and figures out where to move what’s going to be left.  Several hams on Saturday offered to come back and help Craig move when that happens. 

Craig said he & his wife talked about future plans, and although he’s personally at retirement age himself, he really hates to see San Antonio without a Ham Store locally.   He said that he’ll be looking for a new physical location (read that smaller & cheaper rent) to reopen in some form or fashion to keep a Ham Radio store available for those who prefer to deal face to face.   He said that won’t happen immediately, and probably not before the end of summer.

Craig said he will likely keep normal hours thru the next few weeks, but if in doubt call the store at  210-366-3111 to verify his status.  Without all the other employees rattling around inside the store, there may be times Craig needs to step out for other business.  The closer to the end of April, the more erratic the open hours may become, and don’t look for new inventory to be arriving during this time.   

I asked Craig about servicing / repairing radios in the meantime, and he said he would consider repairs on a “case by case basis”.  Since he has laid off all of his employees, it would depend upon him to repair, or to make arrangements to bring back Mel or Tim on a temp per job basis for the repair.

Mel told me he wouldn’t mind helping out other hams with needed repairs or ham related installations on his own, but he wasn’t going to set up shop as a ham repair tech from his house.  If  you want to reach Mel Wagner to request his services, please call his cell phone at 210-535-1278.

Here are some photos from Saturday’s happenings…  (Photos by Lee N5NTG or Andrew K5NNN)