Welcome to Cupertino ARES/RACES
This site is operated by and for Cupertino Amateur Radio Emergency Service (CARES) members interested in emergency preparedness and amateur radio communication. Visitors are welcome to check us out.
What's News!
Field Day / Preparedness Fair Mashup
Posted by Darryl KI6LDM (photos by KK6FPI), 24 Jun 2018
Field Day 2018 is now in the books. This year, we combined our Field Day with the City's Preparedness Fair which worked out quite well. We certainly did see more foot traffic this year than in previous years, with plenty of people interested in what CARES was about. Some even expressed interest in getting an amateur license, while others wanted to renew their license that had lapsed.Some of the highlights were:
--- We set up 3 HF antennas and 3 stations, a GOTA station, information table, the Comm 469 (City's Public Safety Comm van), and a MESH network.
--- We operated as K6KP, 3F SCV, making 53 contacts. Band conditions were decent for Field Day with 40 meter NVIS contacts as far as Oklahoma, Arkansas North Texas and even South Texas.
---- On 20 meters, we made contacts with Utah, Colorado, as far north as Alberta Canada, and as far west as Hawaii.
---- The MESH network was quite a hit as Sid KJ6ZKU and Sunny AG6GR demonstrated making Mesh phone calls from one IP phone to another.
---- We sent NTS traffic to the ARRL section manager and passed 14 additional NTS messages.
At the end of the day, our submitted ARRL Field Day score 1356!... not bad for a couple of hours of fun in the sun!
Thanks to the 19 CARES members who helped out with setup, operations, greeting the public, and tear down. Same time next year?
Setting the stage with a simulated wildland fire threat
Posted by Jim KN6PE, 13 May 2018
Given the incredibly tough wildland fire season that California experienced late last year and recognizing that such a risk is real given that Cupertino sits up against foothills that have not burned in over 100 years, it seemed like an obvious scenario to run as the backdrop for our Spring Field Communications Exercise.We deployed eight field teams made up of Cupertino ARES and CERT members into the field to perform a city-wide Ember/Smoke Watch. Cal Fire also deployed their COMM 1629 giving us a chance to see how we would interact with this key player in fighting wildland fires. Simulated reports of smoke and other fire threat-related events were passed into the EOC where a comprehensive SitStat was developed.
See the After Action Report for a summary of our findings. Also, special thanks to Santa Clara County Fire Department and Cal Fire for helping us develop the scenario and confirming our response assumptions.
Sunrise over the 2018 Big Bunny Fun Run!
Posted by Jim KN6PE, 31 Mar 2018
Well, it was that time of year again when Cupertino residents ran the 5km course in Cupertino's annual Big Bunny Fun Run! Twenty-five CARES and CERT members provided event support by keeping the City Staff informed on the progress of the 1000+ runners as well as the traffic conditions along the route.We actually see a practical application for the event. What if the city needed to move all occupants from one shelter to another? And it had to be on foot? And we couldn't lose anyone and everyone must make it to the destination? We would do it the Big Bunny way!
Wildland Fire Exercise Planning starts with SCCFD
1 Mar 2018
It was apparent that last year's wildland fires throughout California were a wake-up call that was hard to miss. So, with the Tubbs Fire and Thomas Fire still fresh in our minds, the CARES' Spring exercise will be a Wildland Urban Interface Fire that threatens our City.To kick off the first of 3 training events on this topic, Santa Clara County Fire Department Battalion Chief Jason Falarski lead an informative session on how wildfire works, the risks we face in Santa Clara County, and what we could expect if one did occur (See the presentation here). Both CARES and CERT joined in to hear the details, with an excellent Q&A session that went into further detail. In short, there is a risk, and we need to be prepared for it.
Upcoming Activities
1 May 2025, General Meeting
AHF Comm Drill Prep; St Jude Parish Hall,19:30 to 21:00
17 May 2025, AHF Comm Exercise
Staff Allied Health Facilities to pass SCCo Public Health Traffic. Local, 08:00 to 12:00
5 Jun 2025, General Meeting
Field Day Prep; St Jude Parish Hall,19:30 to 21:00
21 Jun 2025, ARRL Field Dsy
Tentative: Memorial Park | Parking lot behind Quinlan Center, 10185 N Stelling Rd. 08:00 to 17:00