KC1ONM

I've come to Amateur Radio later in life ... but I'm learning a lot.

I got my Technician license in January of 2021 because a local club (Nashua Area Radio Society, Nashua, NH) offered a course via Zoom and it was something I could do during the pandemic.  After passing my Tech exam and getting my callsign, I purchased an inexpensive Baofeng handheld and spent time on the local repeaters.

I am a member of a makerspace in Nashua, NH (MakeIt Labs).  They put together a ham shack and I used that a few times.  Being approximately a half hour from my home, it wasn't exactly convenient and I began to think about a license upgrade.

In April of 2022, I passed my General exam so I could reach further and take advantage of the improving propagation.  Again, I took the class offered by NARS, but opted to take the exam in person rather than via Zoom.  New England SciTech in Natick, MA provided the opportunity.  I spent the summer trying to put together my HF station.  Finally, in November of 2022, I got the last piece in place and was able to get on the air from my home QTH.

It didn't take long for me to get annoyed with having to keep track of the sections of each band that a General-class licensee didn't have privileges and I vowed to upgrade to Extra.  A serious nudge came when New England SciTech offered registration to their Amateur-Extra Zoom class for free to anyone who was a member of a New England ham radio club.  Being a member of both NARS and the Billerica Area Radio Society, I jumped at the chance.  I passed my Amateur-Extra exam at an exam session run by BARS in person in February of 2023.

My station consists of:

• Icom 7300
• LDG Z-100A tuner
• TEKPOWER TP30SWI Power Supply
• PARADAN radio (automatic) Dual Antenna Disconnector
• BuryFlex feedline
• Radio Works Carolina Windom OCF dipole
  A fellow BARS club member gave me this antenna as it was collecting dust in his closet.  I didn't have room for the 160-meter version he gave me, so I shortened it to the dimensions Radio Works gave for their 80-meter version.  It was missing the feedline isolator, so I bought a Palomar Maxi-Choke to perform that function.  It is flat-topped at about 25 feet.  I'd like it to be higher, but it is what it is and I've been getting out pretty well.

I've done a little FT8, but I have been enjoying actually speaking with other operators around the world.  I've started dipping a toe in contests and think I might have fun doing that more.

Other interests ...

Since retiring in 2013, my wife and I have done quite a few motorcycle trips.  I have ridden a 1999 Kawasaki Concours since 2001 (and more than 100,000 miles).  In February of 2022, I finally bought a new motorcycle.  I chose my brand-new, 2022 Honda NC750X as it was considerably lighter and smaller than my "Connie."  I have had trouble with arthritis in my hips and the smaller, lighter bike seems to be a little less painful to ride.  I still love my Kawasaki, though.  I plan to keep her as she isn't worth much and she doesn't cost me that much each year in insurance and registration.  Oh, my wife rides a 2010 Honda NT700 (better known outside the US as a Deauville).

I have been a baseball fan since moving to Massachusetts and going to Fenway Park in Boston.  We got Red Sox season tickets (weekend series) in 1989, so my daughter has been attending Red Sox baseball games since before she was born!

I am a proud Eagle Scout.  I won't tell you when I became an Eagle Scout, but Richard Nixon signed my certificate! :-)