WA1VRB
Ishmael
First licensed in the late '60s as WN3MEV, then upgrading to
Advanced Class as WA3MEV; changing to a New England area call sign
in the '70s to the current WA1VRB.
Started off operating CW ( Morse code )
on the 40m band, using borrowed Heathkit and then
modified ARC-5 gear from Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania.
Taught Morse Code and electronic theory while councilor-in-training at
Camp Skycrest near Honesdale in the Pocono region of Pennsylvania
during the summer of 1969 so that
the boys could take the Novice license exam.
Modified a surplus TBX-2 for operation in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, but mostly used the club station at
W1MX
- the MIT Radio Society while at school.
After a fallow period of other demands of life,
currently check into the
Boston area traffic nets
on 2m FM some nights
to handle messages into and out of the National Traffic System (NTS),
and listen to the
MIT Repeater while driving locally.
Looking forward to the annual
Field Day
exercise.
When able, I participate in Public Service events,
having provided communications assistance for the Y2K rollover
and the Boston Marathon 2000-2004.
Also do communications for the Monster Challenge Triathlon and
on a lifeguard boat for practice runs of Head of the Charles Regatta.
On Third Sundays during the warmer months I help out at the
MIT Swapfest
which is a combination museum, bazaar, antique show, and hi-tech party.
Do It Yourself
Those little rubber-ducky antennas on hand-held transcievers are compact
and convenient, but are not the best radiators. My signal into the
more distant repeaters and for local 2m simplex operation was improved
considerably when I assembled a twin-lead J-Pole antenna;
there are many instructions around the Web, these two are easy to
follow, in your choice of
graphical instructions.
or in
text with typewriter graphics.
Affiliations
-
MIT UHF Repeater Society, W1XM,
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Participating in Field Day and contest activity,
can be reached on the air "when the rig is on.";
give a call on 449.725 -R PL114.8
-
American Radio Relay League,
the US national organization promoting the interests of
amateur radio operators.
-
Radio Operator for the RACES station
at the
Cambridge Emergency Operations Center.
-
One of the founding members of the Lower Moreland High School
Amateur Radio Club,
WA3MVX, Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania. ( now defunct? )
This page is http://www.mit.edu/people/ijs/wa1vrb.html
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Original June, 2000.
Last modified: Nov 19 08:03 2004 /
Ishmael the Fiddler