John
Basilotto, "W5GI", began his radio interests in 1956, first as a
short wave listener, then as a CB’er, "2Q6383". He received
his Novice license, "WV2RIV", in January 1961. He quickly became
a Tech and earned his General class license in 1963; received his Advance
class in the 70's and Extra class soon after mastering the 20WPM code
requirement. John has held the following calls: WA2RIV, WB2AJZ, WA8ZAN,
KC2EH, DA1VJ, and HP1XUT.
John's
radio interests encompass all aspects of the hobby. He is particularly
passionate about hi-quality audio, restoring old equipment, and antenna
design and construction. He recently designed a number of high-performance
antennas. Information pertaining to his line of aerials can be found in the
Antenna Projects section. John can usually be heard on the low end of 20 M
most mornings, and 17 M in the afternoons. John has owned over 3000 radios
and is often asked to assist in new equipment development.
He
was a soldier/combat engineer for 26 years, retiring as a colonel. His
second career was as a maritime research scientist and lecturer at Texas
A&M University (TAMU) where he also served as Director, Center for
Ports and Waterways. He retired from TAMU in December, 2001. John recently
served as the President and General Manager (and Chief Engineer) for The
Catholic Radio Network of Central Texas.
He is currently president of his own business-GI Enterprises-a
business specializing in facilities engineering, organizational
effectiveness consulting; technical (Internet) research; and communications
and electronics design, repair and installation. John also teaches business and management courses at
DeVry University
in Austin.
John’s
professional accomplishments include command the 19th Engineer Combat
Battalion and the U.S. Army Engineer District-Galveston. Additionally, he
served as GM of an AM radio station-WVUH, which he started at 17, his
freshman year in college. In 1978, John served as Chairman,
Dayton Hamvention..
In 1998 he was selected for inclusion in Who’s Who Among
America’s Teachers.
W5GI
is also a sports car enthusiasts
[Corvettes, BMW, etc.] and an occasional autocross racer; a private pilot; a lousy golfer; once
upon a time a very competitive racquetball player and downhill skier; and,
a fitness buff.
John
and his family have lived in 23 locations and traveled extensively. John
has been married nearly 38 years. He has two sons, a daughter and 2
grandsons. His beautiful wife is a 4th grade school teacher.
Schools
attended include: Don Bosco Prep,'64, Ramsey, NJ; UN. of Dayton, BS
'68, MBA '74; Army Engineer School 1968 and 1972; Organizational
Effectiveness Consultant School,1978; Command and General Staff
College,1982; and US Army War College, 1991. John also took
electronics courses at Cleveland Institute of Electronics, National Radio
Institute, and Austin
Community College. He
is a Certified Broadcast Technologist.
