The antenna that won Field Day 2025

The antenna that won Field Day 2025

I’ve deployed a whole lot of different antennas in the 25 years that I’ve been an active participant of ARRL Field Day. Some have been utter duds and others have worked great. Some antennas seemingly should have worked well, but where the wrong choice for...
Lake Superior Calling …

Lake Superior Calling …

As a family we’ve vacationed up on Madeline island in Lake Superior’s Apostle Islands just about every summer for the last 25 years. The island in far northern Wisconsin has been a draw for us for as long I can remember and the place has made many fond...
13 Colonies Special Event

13 Colonies Special Event

One ham radio activity that I enjoy is chasing special events. Special events are when a station goes on the air to celebrate a historical or public event. You may find them on the air for a festival, commemorating some thing or some one, or even marking a moment in...
Submarines on the air

Submarines on the air

Operating from the USS Cobia, a WWII Gato class submarine has been a bucket list item for me. The Cobia is docked at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc, WI and I’ve long known that there is an active group of hams that put the sub on the air for the...
Testing the Radioddity HF-009 Vertical Antenna

Testing the Radioddity HF-009 Vertical Antenna

This week we put the Radioddity HF-009 Vertical Antenna on the air. The HF-009 is a portable, center loaded, antenna that is ideal for POTA and SOTA activations. Frequency range is variable between 5 and 50 Mhz and power handling capability is 150 watts sideband and...
On the road to Hamvention 2025

On the road to Hamvention 2025

We put on a lot of miles getting to Hamvention and back. Over 1,500 to be exact. While that’s certainly not the longest distance anyone has traveled to the world’s largest ham radio gathering, it does offer plenty of road tripping opportunities. This...
Wandering around Hamvention 2025

Wandering around Hamvention 2025

Hamvention is undoubtly the world’s largest amateur radio event, and for many it is more of a ham radio home coming than a vendor show and flea market. I wanted to know more about what others thought about Hamvention, so as Chris and I wandered around the...
The Story Behind the KJ6ER PERformer Antenna

The Story Behind the KJ6ER PERformer Antenna

I love origin stories. Stories that detail all the thinking and hard work that goes into a successful product. I always feel that this glimpse into the creative mind and how the process evolves tells us more about the person and product and gives us those deep...
500 Parks on the Air Activations!

500 Parks on the Air Activations!

In the little over five years that I have been active with the Parks on the Air program, I’ve just accomplished my 500th POTA activation (502 to be exact). There are many that have more activations under their belt. Program wide, I am in about 280th place of the...