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Cancer Survivor getting back on the trail and the air.
Activate with QRP HT. Currently using a Yaesu FT-70DR
Greetings,
I look forward to joining everyone on the air and in person in this exciting, adventurous hobby that is ever evolving.
Matt Strachan
Amateur Radio KE7EX
USAF WX (1999-2005)
Graduate, 50-Day Outdoor Leader Course, North Carolina Outward Bound School
Emergency Medical Technician NREMT #E3437527
Wilderness First Responder WMI/NOLS
Member, The Mountaineers (Seattle)
AT/PCT/PNT/CDT Section Hiker (1996-Present)
At present I am preparing to return to Washington State and look forward to portable operating in the near future. I have been a licensed amateur since 1993 (Ex: KE4DXE) and a long-distance backpacker since 1996 (having hiked half the PCT thru WA) but have yet to combine these two activities. Thanks in part to advances in ultralight gear, and in part to advances in QRP equipment, together we are exploring new territory, i.e., my most recent assembly included an FT-817 and W3FF "Buddipole;" with new developments I'm looking forward to deploying 1/4 wave verticals on 40/30/20m and portable quads for VHF, in combination with the same kit I used for long-distance section hikes, to operate CW and SSB atop some of the most remote, rugged, and scenic terrain the Pacific Northwest has to offer. 73, Matt KE7EX
Over 40 years designing and manufacturing fine jewelry with office in downtown Eugene for client consultations. I'm also an accredited trainer for McNeel's Rhinoceros 3D CAD application. I provide private instruction and scheduled on-line webinar classes. For fun I backpack and climb mountains, fly airplanes and travel.
Yaesu FT-2900 Baofeng BF-F8HP Currently Tech privileges. This seems like a great way to combine two fun activities.
I enjoy ham while traveling, and from our cabin near Mt Rainier in Washington state. I live in Seattle most of the time.
Beginner, but looking to host activations in and around Washington state.
Biography available on Amazon.
Mostly HF SSB, but I've been known to do quick and dirty VHF hit and runs.
Radio amateur since 2012
I was an activator for a few year but recently I have slowed down; hoping to come back as soon as possible. Current /P equipment is Xiegu X5105, a portable homebrew 40W amplifier and a vertical antenna.
Primarily a builder.
Mostly chase, home made buddy stick for HF and jpole for vhf/uhf
Grew up in Montana. Got my Amateur Radio license in 1988. Started activating summits in 2014. Worked with electronics my whole career with the Dept. of Defense.
I enjoy casual chasing and activating. I use an Elecraft KX3 feeding an end-fed vertical. All of my activations have been in Montana. I have enjoyed doing activations with a group here in Helena with each of us activating a different summit at the same time, always good for a S2S contact and a whole lot of fun.
If you know where Austin, Texas is, I grew up just north of there in what we now call a little ex-urban town Leander. I couldn’t get out of high school fast enough and essentially moved to Austin when I started at the University of Texas as a Liberal Arts major in 1990. I took the slow route to graduation and got out in 5 years with a great education but no idea of what I wanted to do professionally.
Through a friend, I got in with Apple Computer doing technical support on the phone. I made decent money for not a lot of effort and sort of coasted in life for a while. I moved to California as part of the new Apple Retail Store roll out in 2001. I had a great experience. I met my now wife Devon at a karaoke bar on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica two days before the grand opening on the first Apple Retail Stores. Shortly after meeting Devon I moved south from the San Francisco bay area and lived in Los Angeles with her for a couple of years.
In 2004, we moved to verdant Portland, Oregon and bought a house. I worked for a local Macintosh repair shop for a few years. After my 35th(-ish) round of professional burn out, I got inspired to go back to school and become a nurse. I graduated from the University of Portland in the summer of 2012 with my BSN (which makes me dual degreed in the worst way possible - 2 bachelors degrees). I worked at a hospital for 6 years and moved into Home Health Nursing in December of 2018.
Our daughter came into our life in 2009. Our son followed just a few years later in 2013. He still follows her around.
I’ve had too many hobbies. I had tabletop roleplaying games as my dearest hobby through high school. Then I switched to LARPing for a while. I was very into LARPing. I spent enough time that I learned how to sew (serviceably) and even earned a knight-hood. Yeah, I was *that* guy for a while.
Motorcycles found me soon after college. They stayed with me on and off until December 2017, when I caught a cable to the throat on the way to work one morning (that’s a whole ‘other story that I’m happy to tell over beers.) I have sold my motorcycle and gear. I miss it, but not enough to start riding again.
I began hiking and bicycling more seriously while I lived in Los Angeles and after I stopped smoking. When I moved to the Pacific Northwest, my hiking blossomed into some light mountaineering and backpacking. I began commuting by bike roughly 16 miles each day in 2005 and only stopped in 2012 because I need to drive to do my job as a home health nurse (though I’m scheming to change that). I also got into overnight bike camping in last three years and I’ve had almost a dozen trips, including one out to the coast.
Most recently, I got bitten by the amateur radio bug. I’ve earned my Amateur Extra license and I favor the idea of QRP operation for a couple of reasons; I’m cheap and the radios are more portable so I can combine radios with my other interests (bikes and backpacking). I have no idea where it will take me.
Current toys of note:
Surly Big Dummy long tail bike with Big Dummy bags
Surly Disc Trucker with 700c wheels
Yaesu FT 60R HT radio
Just starting. Interested in activating more than chasing. Learning CW. Want to leverage lightweight/ultralight strategies from backpacking for ham radio in the field.
see qrz.com
Just starting now (June 2019). Elecraft KX-3, te-ne-ke dual lever paddle, wire antennas, bioenno batteries. Learning CW.
After working a couple of decades as a computer technical support guy I figured it was time to enjoy a few of the things I had to put on hold. One of those things was getting back into Amateur Radio.
I passed my first hurdle by getting my Tech license in January 2017 and I passed my General Class examination 6 May 2017 and am actively working on gaining my Extra Class license.,
At home I have a Yaesu 7900 for VHF/UHF use. For HF I have a Icom IC-737, a Icom IC-7300 and a Yaesu 857D. I have several antennas such as a Hustler 6BVT, a fan dipole for 40 and 20 meter work and several vertical ones along with a Diamond X50A Dual Band antenna on a 30 foot mast.
I am a member of the ARRL,the Inland Empire VHF Radio Amateurs Club (IE VHF) and the Washington Digital Radio Enthusiasts amateur radio club where I enjoy both DStar and DMR radio communications with both a Icom ID-31A, a Icom ID-51A and a TYT 2017.
None to date but I like the idea and have a Toyota Tundra, Yaesu 857D, Deployment Antennas and significant battery power. I would probably start with chase activities (I have some SOTA QSO/QSL in my book).