Ham On A Bike

"You have to grow with the times or the times will outgrow you."  That is how my Music Director would sign off from his afternoon radio show back in the early 70's when I was Program Director at an AM radio station. I never would have imagined in 1956 when I was introduced to Amateur Radio that one day as I left a doctor's appointment in 2024, I could carry a Ham Radio station in a small backpack and ride my bicycle less than a mile to a Parks on the Air site and communicate to other operators around the world. The only way I would have believed that back in 1956; is if I were sitting with Marty McFly in a Delorean and a plutonium-powered nuclear fission reactor with a Flex Capacitor traveling ay 88 MPH and set the date for March 14, 2024.  March 14, 2024 You might wonder as why I mentioned my introduction to Ham Radio in 1956 and FT8 today. Well, in the early 1950's I remember Ice Boxes, not refrigerators. Ice Boxes. Several times a week The Ice Man riding in his...

  (Disclaimer) I do not claim to be knowledgeable in Space Weather (forecasting).  I consider myself a Space Weather enthusiast. The sun shines bright in my old Kentucky home as it does over most of the earth during Solar Cycle 25.  For several weeks now it seems no matter what region of the Sun is facing Earth, the Sun is having a hissy fit with solar flares, solar storms, CMEs and radio blackouts.  How has Solar Cycle 25 affected, if any your Amateur Radio operating? In anticipation of Solar Cycle25, during the Pandemic shutdown I delved  into areas of Amateur Radio that I was familiar with but wanted to expand my knowledge.  One area is Space Weather and the effects the sun has on Amateur Radio operating.    During the shutdown, I  probed the far reaches of the internet searching for any content, instructions, courses, papers, blogs, social media posts and videos for information on space weather.  I knew a little about how the su...

Baseball Double Play and POTA?   I know you are wondering what does a baseball double play have to do with (POTA) Parks on the Air.  Let me briefly explain my introduction into Parks on the Air.  During the Pandemic shutdown I stumbled upon Parks on the Air (POTA), Summits on the Air (SOTA) and shortly thereafter World Wide Flora & Fauna (WWFF).  Information on the first two were readily available as it related to me here in the U.S.  However, at face value, all I could conceive about WWFF from YouTube videos; that it was an organization dedicated to countries outside of the U.S.  What a HUGE MISCONCEPTION.  Once I delved further; I learned WWFF was Worldwide just as POTA and SOTA. Since becoming a POTA activator in 2021, there are few POTA sites near my QTH that are part of WWFF which I've included in my POTA activations. Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago while going through my YouTube Amateur Radio recommendations I came upon a video by Stuar...