Aug 30

Every year the members of the Boerne KARS Ham Club gather on the Saturday before Labor Day to work the staging area for the county fair’s parade.  KARS members coordinate the staging area, helping to direct entries to their proper line-up location, and figuring out what to do when someone put the entries too close together, or when they put the numbers on the wrong order facing the wrong way of the street.  Oops!

But sometimes “stuff happens”, and this year was no exception.  One street had the numbers in reverse order causing some confusion which was quickly straightened out by KARS.  And then there was that dead end street, E. Voygt, which had entries assigned to both sides, got filled up quickly, and this this huge gravel truck appears pulling a flatbed trailer with a backhoe on it, plus another huge semi truck.   Did they need to dig up the street?  No, they were one of the first time entries assigned to that block!  But they got there about 1 hour before the start of the parade, and there was no way possible to fit them into that dead end street and get them turned around facing the wrong way.  So we put them in a nearby parking lot, and simply inserted them into the proper order when the parade finally got started.

KARS Member jumps battery during Labor Day ParadeKARS Member jumps battery during Labor Day Parade

And then there was the taxi cab who was pretending to be a float.  Actually, she was pretending to have a dead battery, or was it real?  Boerne PD arrived with a patrol car and KARS members assisted with jumping the battery.  Shortly after,  a small pickup truck shows up and they changed out the battery in the taxi van.

Bottom line, fun event with a fun group of hams.

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Aug 18

Keep the 147.14 Repeater On The Air!

Says the banner!

Fund drive started by REACT Team

OperatorMembers of Hill Country REACT manned a booth at the 2008 Austin Summerfest event to raise funds to help with the anticipated repair needs for the 147.14 Canyon Lake Repeater. Water has been detected in the feedline leading up to the antenna which is 580′ up on the tower. At this time, it is unknown whether the existing feedline can be repaired and salvaged, or if it will need replaced. This repeater is owned by San Antonio Radio Organization (SARO) and REACT has been providing some funding for the past several years to help keep this important repeater on the air.

As of the conclusion of the Summerfest, REACT had raised nearly $750 from area hams, but this is only a fraction of what may be needed if the full 680′ of feedline needs replaced. All donations will be dedicated for this purpose, and you can use PayPal to make donations or mail checks to the REACT Team’s PO Box address.

Visit the REACT’s website for more details at www.hillcountryreact.org.

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Aug 18

August 18 , 2008 – MOU Signed between Texas MARS and Texas REACT

Operator

August is hurricane season but apparently it is also the season for cooperation between various radio communications agencies as well.  On August 18, 2008, Charles Land, president of the local San Antonio based Hill Country REACT Team, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the South Texas Navy – Marine Corps MARS (Military Affiliated Radio System).  Minutes later, Texas State REACTCouncil Secretary, Lee Besing, signed a similar agreement with the Texas Navy – Marine Corps MARS. The MARS signature was NOT that of Bob Hejl, W2IK, but rather that of a MARS officer higher up in the chain of command for Texas. See links at bottom of this article for PDF copies scanned with signatures of both agreements.

{Photo Left – Right; Charles Land (KC5NKK) signing as president of Hill Country REACT, Bob Hejl, (W2IK, NNN0GBY2) representing MARS, and Lee Besing (N5NTG) signing as the secretary for the Texas State REACT Council.} Read the rest of this entry »

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