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I was originally licensed by the FCC as an Amateur Radio Operator as a teenager in the late '60's. I was first a "Novice" under the call sign WN2DRA. I later upgraded my license to "General" class under the call sign WA2LIL. However, during my college years that license expired and I had to re-take my FCC exams (electrical theory, operating rules, FCC regulations, and Morse Code) in order to get a new license (thank you, Old Barney Amateur Radio Club for assisting me in getting a new license!) Amateur Radio is a not-for-profit hobby oriented activity. This page lists resources to current events in Amateur Radio and other interesting topics. One of the things that have re-kindled my interest in Ham Radio is the "Return of the Sunspots!" The sunspots have now returned along their 11 year cycle. The more sunspots, the better wave propagation is. The better propagation, (all else being equal) the farther you can communicate. When sunspots hit their 11 year maximum, it is easier to transmit and receive radio signals from great distances with comparatively little power and relatively small antennas.
I have achieved the WAS (Worked All States) Award, which means that I have been in radio contact with other amateur (ham) radio operators in each of the 50 states. You might think that toughest states to make contact with (at least from the North East Coast!) would be Hawaii and Alaska, but actually, they were pretty easy. The toughest states by far were Wyoming and Vermont. I don't think there are many ham radio operators in those states!
And, here is a local Special Event QSL card that confirms contact with the Old Barney Amateur Radio Club (OBARC) during National Lighthouse Day.
My very first Ham Radio station was very modest, consisting of a Heathkit DX-60B Transmitter and a Radio Shack general coverage receiver (DX-100). I then put together a more "complex" (by 1972 standards!) Heathkit, the famous HW-101 Transceiver (combination transmitter and receiver.)
For 10 years I used a Kenwood TS-140S and a Hustler 6BTV Vertical. However, I recently acquired another Kenwood radio (circa 1988, but still a solid radio!), the TS-940S/AT:
This radio may be over 10 years old, but it is one fine radio! I now use the Kenwood TS-940S/AT transceiver and a small multi-band vertical antenna (Cushcraft R5) on the roof. I am planning on putting up wire antennas ("dipoles") for the 80 and 40 meter ham bands in the near future.
LINKS For those interested in finding out more about Ham radio, check out: This is a great site for NJ hams and hams around the world, as well as an excellent source of links to other Amateur Radio pages. For a general Ham Radio site, try:
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I have also contacted (or
"worked") about 115 different countries around the world via ham radio. In the
Spring of 2000 I finally received my DXCC Award, which means proof of radio contact with
at least 100 different countries! For the purposes of awards and certificates, you might
wonder how someone can "prove" or document a contact with another ham. We do
this by exchanging personalized post cards (called "QSL" cards) by mail after
the contact is made.
The 
