I became a licensed HAM on June 6, 2020, the day I passed my Technician’s Test. Received the call sign KC1NGU on June 17, 2020. I applied for a vanity license on July 8, 2020, and received my vanity call sign, W1STJ 18 days later.

On September 11, 2021 I took my General Test and passed. That day, I went out with N1JUR (Eric) and activated my first park for Parks on the Air (POTA). N1JUR was the reason I got my General Ticket and has showed me the joys of Ham Radio. Along the way, we have become close friends.

Prior to getting my General Ticket, I had two experiences in the HF world. On November 11, 2020 I went with N1SFT (Craig) to New Castle New Hampshire with a bunch of other HAM’s, set up stations and made contacts. I was amazed at how awesome it was to talk to Italy with just a wire. This really made me interested in pursuing HAM Radio as a hobby.

I also participated in the 2021 Field Day and made my first HF contact using my local club’s call sign, N1QC, with the help of N1JUR. From that point on, I was determined to upgrade to General.

My interest in Ham Radio began as a child listening to the scanner and picking up nets and QSO’s. The reason I got my license was because my other hobby, RC Flying has FPV (First Person View) which is where you where goggles and get a video feed from a camera located on the aircraft. The video feed is transmitted on the Technician Band. COVID hit and I saw and app that was advertising to get licensed for $5.00. I bought the app, studied for the test, and the rest is history.