Yes, I knew Rick Hayner, WA8JQV. However, Rick is a few years younger than I
am, and he was not one of the original little group of guys that got their
ham tickets back in the late 1950's. I'm not sure, but I think Rick got his
ham ticket around 1969 or there about. 

So, tell me the inside story about WA8JQV. I suspect Steve probably knew him
better than I did.

Ron, K8HSY


-----Original Message-----
From: For blind amateur radio operators
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Phil Scovell
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 9:36 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: My view and memories about ham radio: was RE: Amateur Radio
Licensees in U.S.

Ron,

Very interesting to read.  It reminded me of my early days getting into the
hobby.  Did you know Rick from the MI school for the blind, WA8JQV?  If so,
I'll tell you a story about meeting him on the air one night as a novice.

Phil.
K0NX



----- Original Message -----
From: "Dr. Ronald E. Milliman" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 6:55 PM
Subject: Re: My view and memories about ham radio: was RE: Amateur Radio
Licensees in U.S.


> Some of my most enjoyable life experiences have been related to ham radio.
> When I was a very young boy, I loved to visit my Grandmother and sit 
> on the floor in front of her floor model Zenith radio. It was am and 
> shortwave and was one of those old radios that were considered a 
> valued piece of your living room furniture. It had a big round dial 
> that I could see even though my eyesight wasn't very good in those 
> days. I tuned in hams and listened to them and was totally mesmerized 
> with the idea of being able to hear ordinary guys talking to each 
> other from all over the country. I asked people what those guys were, 
> and when I learned they were called hams or amateur radio operators, I 
> did what I always did when I wanted to learn more about something, and 
> that was go to the library and research it. I checked out every book I 
> could find that dealt with ham radio. Then, I ordered a set of books 
> from the ARRL: "How to Become a Radio Amateur," The Radio Amateur's 
> License Manual," and another little booklet called: "Operating an 
> Amateur Radio Station." I also purchased a Knight Kit shortwave radio 
> called the Ocean Hopper and put it together with my Dad's assistance. 
> That was a very inexpensive, 3 tube, super regenerative receiver, but 
> it allowed me to stay awake many nights listening to hams and foreign 
> broadcast stations.
>
> A small group of us guys at the Michigan School for the Blind studied 
> together at a local ham's house to get prepared to take our Novice 
> license exam. We all passed, and at age 13, I became KN8HSY. My very 
> first station consisted of a homebrew transmitter loaned to me by 
> W8AJM, and old time ham who helped me get on the air, and a BC-454, 
> military surplus receiver that covered something like 6 to 9 Mhz. I 
> only had two crystals for the 40 meter novice band, 7176 and 7182, as 
> I recall, and so, I worked 40 meters almost exclusively as a novice. 
> Besides, my receiver only covered the 40 meter band. The first 
> Christmas after I received my novice ticket, my parents gave me a 
> Hallicrafter's SX-71 receiver, which was a huge step up for me, and 
> then, I passed my General license exam and became K8HSY. By then, I 
> had saved enough money to purchased a DX-40 with an outboard VF1 VFO. 
> At that point, I was really cooking with gas!
>
> I remember chasing DX into the wee hours of the night. While I worked 
> some AM, most of my contacts were on CW. That was also the days of the 
> AM/SSB wars.
>
> Since those early days full of fond memories, I've owned many pieces 
> of ham gear, Viking II, NCX-3, Hammarlund HQ-110, Drake R4b and T4b, 
> Galaxy Marc5, TS-520, TS-440, TenTec Paragon, Alpha 374, Among several 
> others. My favorite rigs were the Drake pair and the TS-440, and I 
> sure loved that Alpha linear.
> I've also earned the Extra Class ticket, and have held numerous calls 
> over the years including W7GPF, W5UVL, N5GSY, AC4HM, and now, I'm back 
> to my original K8HSY call. I've used lots of different antennas, but 
> for working
> 75 and 40 meters, I especially like the Double Bazooka, but for 
> working 20
> -10 bands, I like a quad, and my 5 element Tri-bander.
>
> Ham radio has really changed since my beginnings in 1957. The 
> equipment has become considerably more complicated and expensive, but 
> it also performs much better for the most part, e.g. selectivity and 
> sensitivity are both much better. The average age of the active hams 
> is pretty old, and the new hams don't seem to have the same level of 
> interest in the hobby and few ever become very active. I'm very 
> concerned about the future of our hobby. So, we all better enjoy it 
> while we can.
>
> 73,
> Ron, K8HSY
>