communications.

Brandon Bauman KG7RWO at BSA Headquarters


Ham Radio Operators are known around the world for their help in the communities

where they live, providing assistance to groups like the Boy Scouts, the Red Cross,

and many other organizations that they serve without compensation in many ways

and different projects, not just in local and regional emergencies which they are well

known for.  They are expected to provide their own equipment, and come ready with

needed food, water,and shelter that they need for up to three days.  They also provide

their own power source, often solar panels and portable generators to keep their batteries

charged for around the clock operation if needed.

A Small band of Licensed Amateur Radio Operators in our Salt Lake Valley successfully used these

skills and equipment today with a relatively new Ham Radio Technology that they call BBHN or

Broad Band HamNet (we would call it Wi-Fi on Steroids!) for the first time in the Salt Lake Valley

 at the BSA Scouting For Food project.  BBHN uses equipment similar to that in your home that

provides your ordinary home Wi-Fi signal, but they make it go farther than we do in our homes  

- a whole lot of miles farther!  In this exercise today by the Hams as they are often called, they

covered a large portion of the valley, from high up on the East Bench near the Highland High "H"

north to the University of Utah area, and clear west to about the center of the valley! 

Now that is what I call some really fine Wi-Fi coverage! (More than 8 miles on just one link!)

This Skilled group of Amateur Radio Operators linked together thirteen separate units or Nodes 

as they call them, spread across the valley together to form a network that is like a mini private 

Internet. They then used a program called TeamTalk over this network to send live video pictures

and audio back to the BSAHeadquarters showing them live what was happening at  locations

including food drop off sites, and even the YRC (Yellow Freight) Headquarters - a huge step forward

in technology from the old Ham Radio days of the chirping and beeps of Morse Code!

This group of Hams led by Robert Jelf, a retired Pastor from Magna,  who has the FCC assigned

Amateur Radio Call Sign of KG7OHV, Set up their equipment at 8 AM in the morning, and continued

until things shut down later in the day. 

Some of the other Hams in the group with their Radio Call Signs were:

Eugene McWherter  (N7OVT)

Carol McWherter   (KC7LLW)
Scott McAllister  (W7OXZ)
Brandon Bauman (KG7RWO)
Jerry Spillman  (W7OHU)
Grant Gardner (KC7HOU)
John Hurst (KF7NQW)
Chachi Kruel  (KG7OHT)
Taylor Miller (KG7OHS)

Charles Gray  (KE6QZU)

Randy Ellefson (KD0BAW)

21 March 2015 by:
David T. Bauman
KF7MCF