VA4STC Site Visit

On April 2, 2026, Andrew VE4KL and Evan VE4EVN visited the VA4STC repeater site in the Sturgeon Creek area of Winnipeg to carry out site maintenance and system upgrades.

Controller Upgrade to ASL3

The primary task of the visit was upgrading the repeater controller from ASL2 to ASL3. ASL2 has reached end of life and is no longer receiving updates, so moving to ASL3 ensures the controller continues to benefit from ongoing security patches and software improvements. The upgrade went smoothly and the system was verified on the air following the work.

While on site, the crew also took the opportunity to ensure the configurations are in place to establish VE4CDN in Morris and VE4MAN in Starbuck as their own dedicated nodes on the AllStar network. This groundwork sets the stage for future linking activity between these sites.

Equipment and Site Inspection

A general visual inspection of the indoor equipment was carried out. Everything looked to be in good order, with no obvious concerns, and the cooling fans were sounding healthy.

The antenna systems at the site were also surveyed and photographed to support planning for future VA4WAN infrastructure work. The site hosts a triband vertical serving the club’s VHF repeater as well as a privately owned 220 MHz repeater. Two link yagis are installed to support the CDN and MAN links. The VA4WAN equipment at the site includes point-to-point links to Inkster, Osborne Village, and St. Vital, along with a 2.3 GHz omni antenna for wireless access.

Test QSO

A thank you goes out to Nolan VE4NOL for getting on the air to conduct a test QSO over the network while the crew was still on site, confirming the system was functioning correctly following the upgrade. After departing, a second test QSO with Dan VE4DRK was also successful, with good audio reported in both directions over the network.