Biography

I was born and raised in Upminster, Essex, England, now part of London. My parents and I emigrated in 1956, when I was 9 years old. I have lived in South Carolina, Alabama, Colorado, New Mexico, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.

I was first licensed as WN4PFQ in 1963 and subsequently as WA4PFQ. I have held the Amateur Extra Class license since 1970. I have held N4UP since 1977. I was off the air for many years until the spring of 2012.

I have degrees in Electrical Engineering ( 1970 ), Theoretical Physics ( 1973 ), and Management ( 1984 ). I served on active duty with the USAF for 11 years before converting to a senior civil service position within the Department of Defense ( Defense Nuclear Agency ) where I managed research in atmospheric radiation. I subsequently transferred to the US Department of Energy where I was Program Director for Atmospheric Radiation ( 1990-1997 ) and subsequently Program Director for Atmospheric Science ( 1997-2005 ). I retired in 2005.

My current home is near Victoria, Virginia, in Lunenburg County ( South Central Region of Virginia ), on almost 15 acres of land, where I have a 72' motorized crank-up tower and various antennas.

My favorite mode is CW. I enjoy casual contesting, DX, collecting prefixes, and running counties. I am a member of ARRL ( 1963 ), A-1 Operators Club ( 1964 ), CWOps ( 2014 ), PVRC ( 2014 ), Rubermont Radio Club ( 2014 ), and Desert Southwest Hams ( 2018 ).

I have traveled extensively, all over the world. My previous QSL Card showed a photo I took in Bruges ( Belgium ) in 2012, but my current QSL card shows a photo I took of the Nottoway Falls Reservoir near my QTH.

Worked DXCCs:

Equipment

1. Transceivers

Radio Room

Yaesu FTdx5000mp ( 1 )
Yaesu FTdx5000mp ( 2 ) Spare
Yaesu FT-1000-mp Mark V

Vintage Radio Room

Swan 350C
Yaesu FT-107M with FV-107 and FP-107E

Mobile Station

Kenwood TS-590-SG
Yaesu FT-991 Spare
Yaesu FT-450-D Spare


2. Transmitters

Collins 32-S1
Collins 32-S3
Drake T4XB
Drake T4XC
Heathkit TX-1 Apache
Heathkit DX-60A with HG-10B ( VFO )

3. Receivers

Collins 75S-1
Collins 75S-3
Drake 2-B
Drake R4B
Drake R4C
Hammarlund HQ-170
Heathkit RX-1 Mohawk
Heathkit HR-10B

4. Amplifiers

Radio Room

Alpha 9500
Tokyo Hy-Power HL-1.5KDX ( 1 )
Tokyo Hy-Power HL-1.5KDX ( 2 )

Vintage Radio Room

Collins 30L-1
Drake L-4-B
Heathkit HA-10 Warrior
Heathkit SB-220

Mobile Station

Ameritron ALS-500-M ( 1 )
Ameritron ALS-500-M ( 2 ) Spare

5. Antenna Tuners

MFJ-998 ( 1 )
MFJ-998 ( 2 )
Yaesu FC-107

6. Antennas

160 meters DX Engineering Monoband Thunderbolt Vertical with 76 x 130' radials
80-40-30 meters DX Engineering 8040 Thunderbolt Vertical with 64 x 65' radials
30-20-17-15-12-10 meters 10-element LPDA at 73 feet
6 meters 5 x 5-element yagis ( 2 are active, 3 are spare )

900' Reversible Beverage for NE and SW
575' Reversible Beverage for NW and SE
Wellbrook Magnetic Loop