After starting in amateur radio in 1961 with the call sign of WA8CEU then KB8KH to the present call, I have been active on all the bands from 80 meters through 10 Ghz. I guess I enjoy the 10 Ghz band for being able to make small antennas and get most of my antenna playing where you don't need 40 acres.

Lately I've been active 10 and 2 meters mobile thanks to John K8CCZ and Phil KA8EOW(SK 2005) and some great band openings. I'm using a quarter wave top loaded whip which I constructed and operate either with high power 17 watts or QRP 5 watts depending on the conditions and how I feel at the moment. My first QRP rig was was a couple hundred milliwatts transmitter built on a cigar box. Pretty much an oscillator with an antenna but it did make contacts. The past winter ('03-'04) has been the first year of running really high power (100 watts) mobile. If you would like find out more about amateur radio, click here.

I have to admit, making contact with Australia and New Zealand with 5 watts and a whip was a great feeling. I don't have anything against KW stations but the challenge just isn't there when you run that kind of power. The only reason I heard one DX (long distance) station give for his responding to being called by a W6 running a "KW" was to "get him off the air". Personally, I'd rather not have someone say that about me.

One other great challenge and ton of fun was to work through the amateur satellite as it came over the horizon and up over the pole. Granted the neighbors did look at me a bit strange with my 2 and 432 antennas moving in azimuth and elevation as I followed the satellite.

Interested in other types of challenges? How about bouncing a radio wave off the moon. Or, talk to someone after your transmitted signal bounces off the Aurora Borealis. It happens more often than you may think. There's no age limit and you'll meet great folks from the very young to the very......ok, me.

Dave