KILO


KILO is a radio station broadcasting in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, Colorado. It also streams online at its website.

History

KLST and KPIK-FM

94.3 signed on the air on August 22, 1962 as KLST, owned by Little London Broadcasting. Douglas W. Dailey served as the station's first President and General Manager. The studios were located at 802 1/2 E. Fillmore Avenue. The station was sold to the Western Broadcasting Company, owners of KPIK 1580, in 1966 and became KPIK-FM. The FM station simulcast KPIK, making it just the second all-country music station on FM in the United States. The AM and FM stations remained a simulcast through 1977, when the FM moved toward a more contemporary country sound as "Super K-94" while the AM station focused on more traditional country. That same year, station manager George James was elected to the Colorado Springs city council.
In 1978, George James bought KPIK, while the FM was sold separately to the KILO Broadcasting Corporation. The month before, it had adopted a metric system-themed moniker, KILO.

Active rock

By the 1980s, KILO had moved to an active rock format. The station is known for playing new bands well before many other stations will add them to their playlist and is usually one of the higher rated stations in Colorado Springs, always in the top five. Rich Hawk, who programmed the station for 27 years, was widely considered one of the "fathers of active rock". On March 7, 2013 Rich Hawk died after falling into a coma in February.

Additional information

The Pure Rock Panel is a "fan club" of sorts. It is used to inform its members of concerts and new releases, and to get feedback about the station.
During the winter months, the station organizes ski trips to the nearby Monarch Ski Area.