David Voit – WB6TOU

dvoit1944@gmail.com

I have beem a ham since 1973 when I got my Novice. I upgraded to Advanced but did not have the code speed for Extra. A few years ago I upgraded to Extra when the code was no longer needed and also got my code speed up to 20 wpm. I had a few decades out of the hobby due to work, family, it’s and old story and I’m back

My shack is simple. An Icom ic-7300 HF rig with a trap vertical and a 2 meter rig using a j-pole mounted on two 2x4s bolted to a fence post. I use my rain gutter with a tuner to operate 160 when the propagation works. Humble but adequate. I usually operate cw but just for rag chewing. I have a pile of QSL cards but no DX awards or contests.

My biggest activity right now is pico ballooning. I work with Skip Chraft N6NFB and we are getting better and better. Those are party balloons filled with hydrogen and carrying a solar power beacon that generally weighs around 10 to 15 grams. They fly over 42,000 feet and send location and altitude using wspr so I know the location. My best performer is now at a bout 105 days flying and going for it’s 5 circumnavigation of the planet. The beacons are getting better and better and soon will carry sensors to make the event even more exciting.