CJLO - The March to AM

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The Story Up 'til Now
Wednesday, April 23, 2008 @ 11:50 EST

Hello everyone,
This blog has fallen to the wayside over the past few months, and for that I apologize. I've included in this post a copy of an email I sent out to all the CJLO members back in December. It's still relevant today and offers some insight into what's been going on with the whole deal.
I'll be updating more regularly now that we're back into the full swing of things. Stay tuned for all the updates!

Chris' Original Email:
I thought I'd send you an update on the whole AM process. Sit down, lean back, and get ready for an epic read!
As you probably know, our land deal was approved this summer and we've had control of it since September. As soon as we got the land, I sat down with the contractor that I'd been speaking to for the last few months. The AM Consultant and I went through all the details and told the contractor what we needed. He said, "Okay!" and went off to prepare a quote. Originally, we were told that it would cost about $25-30,000 to build the antenna base and all that stuff. Imagine our surprise when the contractor came back with a quote up around three times that, not including taxes or the actual erection of the antenna (just covered the base and installation of the equipment.) It would have come up a ridiculous sum for the whole deal.
Needless to say, we weren't willing to pay that much for the project. As soon as we found out about the outrageous price, our AM consultant scrambled around himself finding various people that can build it all. He was able to put together a quote for the same work at a bit more than half the cost of the other contractor.
Finally, at the end of November, I was able to present a cheque to our AM consultant for the first phase of construction. Within 3 days, the hole was dug and a Hydro pole (which will be supplying our transmitter with delicious electricity) installed. On Friday, November 30th, they poured the first of the concrete which would take about a week to cure. We were on track and things were looking great for a Christmas on-air date. I jokingly said, "Barring a major snowstorm, things will be right on time." I should have kept my big mouth shut.
On Monday, December 3rd, the big snow storm hit. It buried our hole and promptly froze all the ground around the antenna base. Thankfully, precautions were taken to ensure that the curing process wasn't interrupted or ruined in any way. We've since cleaned out the hole of snow, filled it with fresh dirt, and have put the final piece of cement in place. The bad part is that the ground all around the base is frozen solid. The next big step in the process involved digging 100ish trenches in a radial pattern leading away from the antenna in every direction and laying copper wire therein. If the ground were thawed or even all muddy, this would be cake. However, since it is very very frozen, it is next to impossible to install these wires. I say next to impossible, as it can be done if we were to set up a large, heated tent and use specialized digging equipment (which often breaks under such conditions and would need to be replaced at our expense.) The solder that is used to connect the copper wires together and to the antenna requires a certain amount of ambient warmth during installation (hence the heated tent) and would likely become brittle if not set correctly. Since we don't want the copper wires coming loose in the winter, we don't want to risk it now. If we were to go ahead with it all right now, it would likely cost us between $15-20,000 extra. Unfortunately, we simply don't have that kind of money.
So here's our current situation. Our base is built and ready to go. We have a transmitter shed built off-site that is waiting for transportation and installation. Our electrician has bought all the equipment and parts that he needs to set it all up and is ready to go. Our antenna is still in Guelph in the antenna manufacturer's factory, ready for shipping. Our transmitter is in Asbestos (the town, not the mineral) and is ready for transportation to the transmitter shed, as soon as that's ready. As soon as the ground thaws enough to bury the copper wires, we will move swiftly and succinctly. Our AM Consultant says that it will take about 4 days to set everything up to the point that he can tune the antenna and start the testing period.
Now, I know this all sucks. I agree fully and am rather disappointed. We had planned on December being mild like the past three years, where there wasn't any major snow accumulation or ground freeze until towards the end of the month. Had we not received a full 30 centimeters of snow right at the beginning of December, we would be installing the copper wire today and setting up the antenna and transmitter shed this week.
During January, the AM consultant will be back in the CJLO studios setting up the final components we need on our end. The Bell lines running to the transmitter site will be installed (and operational, though there won't be anything at the other end to hear us) and the remote control unit and radio tuner set up in the DJ booth. The remote control is there so that we can check on the transmitter to make sure it's working fine without going to the site. The tuner is there so we can listen to our on-air signal and likewise make sure that our listeners are hearing what they're supposed to hear. He will also install a few other things, such as a bypass switch to the production studio and other neat things.
I absolutely hate having to go back on my word and say that there are more delays. I can only hope that you'll understand and will keep on believing in the CJLO. Once the weather gets warmer we'll have campouts and roast marshmallows over the transmitter. We'll fly a flag from our antenna (pirate-style) and yell at people over a 2,800 square kilometer area. If that number seems small, then just think that there will be 3,000,000 people in that area. The thaw (likely to be in March) isn't that far away. In that time we'll perfect ourselves and make sure that when we flip the switch, the listeners in the Montreal area hear nothing but the highest quality radio possible. We will put the other Montreal stations to shame by our professionalism, our musical selection, and our energy. Quebec has never heard anything like us before and we will blow their minds. The next time we're in the Rant Line, it will be, "I love CJLO! AM is the new FM!"