Biography

A few words about myself :

Born in 1946, I discovered the magic field of radio when being about 12 years old.

Often using the wavelength tuning knob of the family radio set, listening for many unknown foreign languages or differents kinds of music pieces, I discovered the wonderful radio world.

Then my first elmer, my cousin Gaby FA3JU/F3JU (SK) helped me discovering the shortwaves and amateur-radio activities.

A bit later, in 1962 I was introduced to François F2FI (SK), my second elmer who prepared me to the ham-radio license, including the study of the magic (for me) Morse code.

I was successful to the ham-radio ticket in october 1963 and received my F5DE callsign the 14th of april 1964.

I was so proud to make my first contacts on CW with my little 10 watts homebrew transmitter, receiving on a BC-348 connected to a 42 m Long-Wire antenna my father installed for me in the family garden.

Since my earlier days, my radio traffic was quite regular all over the years, mainly using CW on shortwaves bands and Phone on VHF or for some contests.

Never using more than a barefoot 100 Watts transceiver with simple antennas like a dipole or a ground plane, I am not a top DXCC hunter, but always glad to have radio contacts with other hams all over the world, long distances or not.

Nowadays, with the advantage of Internet, I like to continue contacts via the mail possibilities and have several friends in many countries with which I like to have some chats about our hobbies or activities, not only radio.

For a long time these exchanges made me and my wife opportunities to meet foreign hams and their family from a dozen or so of countries at home and vice versa, always for a real pleasure.

Some of my pleasures, after the radio traffic itself is to exchange QSL cards and to collect a few Morse keys from several countries, now I have about 110 differents models and they are occasionnaly used just for the pleasure to give them a new lease of life during a few contacts !

Thanks for reading and I hope to have yet many more radio contacts for years to come !

73 everybody,

Bernard
(updated text, april 2023)


My favourite clubs :

A-1 Operator Club

AGCW-DL #3383

NAQCC #5882

REF #13510

SKCC #6247S

TBDXC #1378

UFT #31


+ more than 100 awards...

Equipment

80 W, GP antenna on HF bands
80 W, 5 elements Yagi on 50 MHz band
80 W, 9 elements Yagi on 144 MHz band