Consisting of either full or half-day seminars, attendance is included at no additional cost with your DCHF registration. If you did not pre-register during early registration, walk-up registrations will be available on Friday morning where you can also purchase a lunch.

Bill Mader, K8TE
ARRL New Mexico Section Manager

First licensed in 1960 as WV2RBF, Bill started chasing DX when he became DX in 1974 as KZ5WA. He found contesting a great way to work DX from the Canal Zone, and later Canon AFB NM, especially on 10 meters during Cycle 22. He now chases DXpeditions with a vengeance since Cycle 25 has provided such good propagation.

Bill has been the ARRL New Mexico Section Manager since 2016.

Bill represents the Field Organization for ARRL Headquarters throughout the State.

A member and officer of the Albuquerque DX Association, he helps motivate members to get on the air, regardless of their antennas and equipment. He has worked over 100 countries in a weekend with just dipoles and a vertical and even worked DX running 5 Watts to a mobile antenna!

A prolific writer and presenter on many topics related to Amateur Radio, Bill is an enthusiastic representative of our great avocation.  His primary focus is to train and educate all current and prospective hams in the art of Amateur Radio to become better hams and have even more fun doing what they love to do.

RSVP Required

HF topics are expansive, regardless of one’s experience. For 2025, we have chosen the following:

• Correctly Using End-Fed and Off-Center Fed Antennas
• Ferrite is Your Friend
• The State QSO Party Challenge
• The First 100 DXCC Entities and More; USB—Your Friend or Foe
• Cycle 25’s Decline and Our Reactions
• Potluri Questions and Answers.

There will be many sub-topics covered during each presentation. They are especially useful for those whose experience is limited and those who have been licensed for decades.

Our presenter is experienced on a wide variety of ham radio-related subjects and has given talks at DX University, New Mexico TechFest, HamCom, the International DX Convention at Visalia CA, QuartzFest, and numerous more venues. You’ll be treated to professional presentations you will use from that day on. You won’t have any trouble hearing or seeing everything, all day long! All presentations will contain numerous references for your further study.

HF operating opens an unlimited number of possibilities from antenna experiments to passing message for a sailor broken down on his boat in a distant ocean. See what is possible. Bring an HF rig with an appropriate interface and we’ll show you how to connect it to a computer so you can digitally log your contacts. We’ll even point out good deals on HF rigs you could buy at the DCHF.

Questions? Contact Bill Mader, K8TE, Dean of Instruction, at  billamader@gmail.com for answers or just sign-up for HF University at the DCHF web site.

Gary Baker

I began my amateur radio experience as KN7VED in 1962. Broadcast engineering was a natural transition from amateur radio starting in 1964. I worked as Transmitter Engineering Supervisor at KWSU Radio-TV and then as Dir of Engineering at KSPS TV in Spokane, WA and then operated a Broadcast Engineering Consulting company for the last 28 years. My wife Carol and I have had the opportunity to build out several full power VHF and UHF TV stations (transmitter sites) and many low power TV stations around the US.

RSVP Required

HF without the hassle: smarter wire antennas and stronger signals, or as a wise person once said “From Tangle to Triumph: Designing Killer HF Wire Antennas”.

Gary will discuss various challenges when using TrueLadderLine and some tools to resolve them using the SimNec modeling software. He will further demonstrate using SimNec to model an antenna system and play a SimNec demo.

John Betz II, KI5YIF

I was born and raised in Rio Rancho, NM. I was introduced to radio at a younger age from my grandfather who was a Tech Sergeant in the USMC during WWII and Korea where he worked with the Code talkers. I am a very proud father of 5 children and married to the love of my life (who deals with my habit)

I was licensed in October 2022 with my Tech Upgraded to General in February 2023 and finally my Extra in April of 2024. I enjoy all modes of amateur radio from 915-HF. I especially love Digital communications from D-STAR, DMR, YSF, FT8, Wires-X, AllStarLink and EchoLink (openSPOT, Raspberry Pi Hotspots, etc.) I also enjoy building anything and everything.

I volunteer with SCARES, HDARC and STEM schools to help introduce and educate our youth with this wonder world amateur radio. Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know.

Dominic Tanner, KI5WTR

Hi, I’m Dominic Tanner, 44 years young, a dedicated husband and proud father of four amazing kids. My passion for communication began when I became a licensed GMRS operator in 2019-2020, which led me to discover the fascinating world of Amateur Radio. Since earning my Tech license in 2022 and upgrading to General in 2024, I’ve embraced this hobby wholeheartedly. With over 20 years of experience in healthcare, helping others has been the cornerstone of my career.

In my free time, I love camping, exploring nature, and connecting with fellow radio enthusiasts worldwide. Recently, I’ve been diving into Parks on the Air (POTA), and it’s been an exciting adventure. My favorite life motto is, “Life is like a garden—you gotta dig it.” I look forward to chatting on the air!

Paul Bouthillier, KBØWMA

I was born and raised in Hartford, VT. Moved to Thornton, CO in 1992. I was an active CB’er, but wanted more out of two-way communications. A couple of fellow co-worker Amateur operators introduced me into the hobby. I took my test in May 1996 and passed with my Technician class operator’s license. I have since moved to Albuquerque, NM in 2001 where I upgraded to General in 2023 and finally upgraded to Amateur Extra in 2024. I have also been recently inducted into the ARRL A-1 Operators Club Roster in 2024.

My Ham interests are in digital communications from D-STAR, DMR, YSF, FT8, Wires-X, AllStarLink and EchoLink. This includes hotspots like openSPOT and Pi-Star but also enjoy all modes of ham radio including analog VHF, UHF and HF.

I volunteer with BCARES, both LARC and ARRL as a VEC, and also being a Co-Chair for the Run For The Zoo.

RSVP Required

Do you want to talk with fellow hams clearly around the world?
How about participating in satellite communications?
Maybe you just want to kick back and rag chew?
Well look no further then digital communications. This presentation and workshop will get talking on the digital airwaves.
We will be reviewing multiple modes of digital including, DMR, D-Star, System Fusion and Hotspots. We will be doing hands on so bring your goodies. This will be a fun and relaxed workshop where we can all work together and have some fun while learning. Join me in jumping into the modern age of Digital Ham Radio.

Instructor: Scott Overpeck

Scott Overpeck is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist (WCM) for the NOAA/National Weather Service in Albuquerque NM. His main responsibilities involve working with emergency management and other federal, tribal, state and local agencies for weather preparedness and weather decision support. He also oversees the office’s outreach efforts with presentations for weather preparedness and the SkyWarn program for storm spotting. He started as the WCM in 2020 guiding the forecast office’s efforts to provide weather support during the response and recovery phases of the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon wildfire that became the largest in New Mexico history. Prior to being promoted to WCM at NWS Albuquerque, Scott served as a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Houston/Galveston TX for 13 years having provided weather support for Hurricanes Ike and Harvey along with several other major floods in Houston. Scott has nearly 20 years of experience in the NWS and holds both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Atmospheric Science. He, his wife and 4 kids live in northwest Albuquerque and plan to be here several years to come.

RSVP Required

The US National Weather Service’s SKYWARN® Program provides a valuable, accessible port of entry to the world of emergency communications, one of the pillars underpinning the Amateur Radio Service. And it does so with something that everyone is interested in following: weather.

The NWS’s Albuquerque forecast office will hold a free SKYWARN® training session at the Duke City Hamfest on Friday, September 19, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Registration for the course is required.

What is SKYWARN®? It’s a program that enlists and trains volunteers to become the eyes for local forecast offices during severe weather. Yes, even in this era of high-tech​forecasting tools and weather monitoring systems, human eyes in the field remain vital.

Reports from spotters help forecast offices decide when to issue severe-thunderstorm, tornado, or flash-flood warnings. Reports of storm totals for rain or snowfall feed official stream-flow or drought assessments and forecasts. Spotter information also provides additional data that can help NWS researchers improve forecasting tools.

SKYWARN® training isn’t just for newbies to emergency communication. If you move from one part of the country to another, retraining is important; information a local forecast office wants you to provide can vary by state or region. In New Mexico, where the flash-flood hazard is high, NWS forecasters are interested in rainfall rates of one inch an hour, measured at 15-minute intervals. In southern New England, forecasters ask to be notified if a spotter actually measures one inch of rain in one hour.

This September’s course will focus on the program’s background, how to report conditions, and most important, what to watch for so that your reports are accurate. You’ll learn how to distinguish between true severe-weather indicators and similar features that look like the real deal but aren’t.

If weather fascinates you and you are interested in turning that fascination into a valuable public service, this course is for you!

Last Update: 09/10/2025