Biography

Well...Les see...I was born August 25th, 1951 in Ardmore, Oklahoma. My Dad (SK) and God-Father (SK) were both Amateur Radio Operators. My Dad was an Advanced Class Operator and my God-Father was either and Advanced or Extra Class Operator (I'm not sure which). I remember back in the day, sitting on my Dad's lap while he participated on the various Nets he was a member of and while he "Rag chewed" with other Hams both at home and across the "pond". About in the mid 50's or so (I would guess), is when the "Ham Bug" bit me. since then, I have been interested in Radio Communications (Amateur Radio and Emergency Communications) and got into "CB" when I was in High School in the mid 60's. When I reached working age, I was employed in the Security Industry and would let my employers know that I had a great interest in Radio Communications and would like to be promoted into Dispatch or Patrol so I could keep up with my Radio Communication skills.

In the mid 90's, I decided to "buckle" down and go for my Novice (back when they had Novice), enrolled in a Novice Class and ended up taking the Technician + Code exam and passed them both (with the latter, being by the skin of my teeth). When I set up my first Ham Shack, I had a Yaesu Ft-101 HF rig and my Base antenna was the 11 Mtr. (CB) ground plane and I was able to qualify for the ARRL WAC Award with it. Also worked the world via RTTY as I remember. My Mobile rig was an Icom IC-27 45 Watt rig with a Larson 5/8 wave antenna. I tend to lean more towards SSB vs CW and I am anctious to learn all I can about Ft4 and Ft8 and add that to my RTTY experience. I like participating in Radio Nets. I am an ARES Member and also a member of a local Amateur Radio Club in the area where I reside and enjoy bot of those Nets.

Unfortunately, I had to put Amateur Radio on the "back burner" around 2011 or so as I was taking care of my elderly Mother and did not have the time to stay active. I never lost interest in Amateur Radio and I recently was able to get back into the hobby in February of 2025. I am currently studying for my General ticket (at 74 Yrs) and hope to ev go for my Amateur Extra (if it is the Lord's will).

Worked DXCCs:

Equipment

RADIOS:

Retevis RT-85 5 Watt Dual Band HT

Radtel RT-470X 5 Watt Dual Band HT

Radtel RT-4D (DMR) 5 Watt Dual Band HT

Baofeng UV-25Pro Max 10 Watt Dual Band HT

Kenwood TS-930S HF Transceiver / 160-10 Mtrs. / 150 Watts SSB - 100 Watts CW
ATU -130 HF Automatic Antenna Tuner

TYT TH-7900 Dual Band Mobile XCVR / 50 Watts VHF/40 Watts UHF

QYT KT-8900 Dual Band Mobile Transceiver / 25 Watts VHF / 20 Watts UHF (Dedicated to Ft4, Ft8, RTTY, etc.

ANTENNAS:

Diamond Dual Band Vertical Base Antenna (VHF/UHF)

Comet Dual Band Mobile Antenna (VHF/UHF) Bedroom Station

Dual Band Mobile Antenna (SECONDARY)/Comet CA-2x4SR Dual Band Antenna mounted on a Mobility Scooter

SWR/WATT METERS:

Daiwa CN-103 140-525 MHz.

Diamond SX240C HF-50 MHz. / VHF-UHF

Miscellaneous:

SignaLink Integrated USB Sound Card (for Ft4,FT8, RTTY)

Realistic Pro-2046 800 MHz Direct Entry Programmable Receiver