Recent news (26 March 2012)

I am working on a Small Wonder Labs 30 m QRP CW transceiver kit at the moment. Other than that, I don't have any HF gear, except for a Sangean SWL receiver. I have a Yaesu dual-band HT, and an Alinco dual-band mobile rig, both of which I don't really use. I'm trying to figure out how to re-integrate ham radio into my busy life. I like the QRP idea ("less is more"). I'd love to get on 10 m / 6 m for Sporadic E skip, but don't have the gear. Maybe I'll have to do another gear swap pretty soon here. We'll see.

Biography:

I was first licensed in Chicago, Illinois in 1974 at age 13 as WN9PLI, then upgraded to General and Advanced as WB9PLI. I was active on CFMC 146.76 and SARA 146.88 repeaters until 1977, also on HF bands from our family QTH at 430 W. Roslyn Place, Chicago, Il 60614. I attended Francis W. Parker School.

Rigs in Chicago: Heathkit HW-16 (nice), Eico 753 (junk), Wilson 2 m. HT (nice), Heathkit HW-7 (junk), IC-215 2 m. portable (nice), Ten-Ten Argonaut 509 (nice). Why did I swap out my rigs so often ? Who knows, kids do irrational things. I should've kept the HW-16, and just added 2 m.

Our family relocated to Providence, RI in 1977, and my call changed to WB1FJT. I was active on 2m FM and QRP HF from 200 Blackstone Blvd., Providence, RI 02906. Graduating from Moses Brown School in 1979, I matriculated to Brown University, where I remained active on 2m FM and HF from club station K1AD. I was Brown Radio Club President, and graduated from Brown University in 1983 with an Sc.B. in Geology-Physics/Math.

Rigs in Providence: Ten-Tec Argonaut 509, IC-215, followed by Yaesu FRG-7 (good SWL, OK ham rvcr) and Heathkit DX-60 (old, kinda junky).

Immediately upon graduation, soon-to-be-XYL Leslie and I moved to Los Angeles to attend UCLA. I had a few QSOs on 2m FM, but lost HF capabilities.

In 1984, Leslie and I moved to Houston, TX. I graduated from the University of Houston (UH) in 1986 with an MS in Geophysics, and began a career in Geophysics with Amoco, returning to UH for an MBA degree in 1992. I moved to Paradigm Geophysical in 1994, Kelman Seismic Processing in 1997, Ecom Worldwide in 1999, Telxon Corporation in 1999, Dynamic Mobile Data in 2000, and finally Schlumberger in 2001. That two-year period 1999-2000 was really "interesting" because of all of those employment changes. Happily, I never went a day without earning a wage.

Radio silence was maintained throughout a variety of homes until October, 1997 when a Kenwood TS-830s and Texas Bugcatcher antenna were put into operation. The Kenwood has been replaced by an ICOM IC-706MkII and an 80 - 6 m. open-wire fed dipole, and a 2 m. coaxial J-pole in the attic. In early 1998, I upgraded to Extra Class, completing the goal of my youth; only 22 years later than originally intended. In the early 2000s I again sold the HF gear, and I haven't really been on the air since.

I am a Texas License Geoscientist (Geophysics Option), a Principal Geophysicist with Schlumberger. I am a bicycling activist.