Original Post: December 31, 2012 KC9WZF
Well, another year about gone, well at least at the time of this post it is! It has been a while since my last post but I have been real busy with Ham radio interests and of course the Holidays have taken some time up as well. I would like to mention in this post that my sweet wife Lora bought me a radio for Christmas this year. This is my first radio and i have been learning all about since Christmas, which is why I have not been posting much here lately. My first radio is a Baofeng UV-5RA and it is a Handheld or HT as we call it and it was made in China. This radio has proven already to be a pretty nice little radio for the money. I have been able connect with other Hams in the area and have already used it in a Net Emergency Standby situation when the “Blizzard of 2012″ hit us the other day. Thanks to Ben Burris – KC9QEW for helping me learn how to program the radio through a computer software interface and USB cable. I now have my own software and cable and it is very easy to program the radio. Ben also has been so kind as to let me borrow a directional VHF antenna which I was able to temporarily install in my attic so I can hit repeaters a bit further away. At this time I have also ordered from China, a new longer antenna “Rubber Duck” that will be here in a couple of weeks. It will allow a bit more mobility and I’ll be able to get out a little further with my signal as well!
So with all this fun, I’m going to have to get back to the business of studying! Yes, I have a test to take in a couple weeks, to be exact.. it is the “Amateur Extra Class” exam and wow is there a lot to study and remember. So It may be a while before I post on here again. I have been studying a little but it is time to really get down to business. If I get passed this exam I’ll have full privileges on all the amateur radio bands and then I can really get down to learning more about this awesome hobby/craft! So if you are reading this, I wish you a Happy New Year and I hope 2013 is very kind to you! 73′s to you all.. this is KC9WZF, clear..
