Ham radio family enjoys distant connections

by  Herman Fuselier,

Every Thursday night, Abbi and Kendra Wilson talk to friends who may be near Seattle or in the country of Belize. These teenage sisters make these faraway connections without a cell phone, text or email.

The Wilsons are controllers of a weekly Youth Net, an on-air gathering of amateur radio operators, who are sometimes called hams. With hand-held, FM radios or home stations, the sisters talk to their friends about music, movies or whatever comes to mind.

Abbi, 19, says ham radio cured her of any mic fright a long time ago.

“You get to know so many different people from so many walks of life,” said Abbi, a University of Louisiana at Lafayette student in visual arts and computer animation. “Ham radio has made me a lot more confident in talking to people.

“Once you start that conversation, you have to keep talking. It got me out of my shell. I credit it for my outgoing personality today.”

This weekend, the Wilsons will participate in ham radio’s biggest event, Field Day. Thousands of hams across the country set up portable stations and generators and talk to as many other hams as possible in a 24-hour period.

The Lafayette club, known as the Acadiana Amateur Radio Association, will operate a four-transmitter station Saturday and Sunday at the Horse Farm. The site is open to the public….READ MORE

More

TH-D74A KENWOOD D-STAR HT (144/220/430MHz) – Test Report

July 30, 2016 No comments

TH-D74A KENWOOD D-STAR HT (144/220/430MHz) KENWOOD D-STAR HT (144/220/430MHz) FCC Part15B(CSR) TEST REPORT FCC ID: K44440900 This device is certified;... Read more

Heil BM-10 Headset

December 08, 2014 No comments

The BM-10 headset was designed to be a lightweight (only 3 oz), articulate sounding boomset that is ideal for DXpeditions, mobile, and general rag che... Read more

Weird Ham Radios: Manpack Backpack HYS TG-G25W

October 23, 2020 No comments

SPECIFICATION:Built-in 6A Li-ion battery for 10W radio12A Li-ion battery for 25W radioRadioator FanMini size:210*152*44mmFrequency Range: 136-174/400-... Read more

IC-9700 Firmware Update

April 03, 2020 No comments

Download Type Firmware Model name IC-9700 Version Version 1.23 Update 2020/04/03 Major changes Changes from Version 1.21 Changed the screen drawing se... Read more

Youkits FG-01 1-72Mhz Antenna ANALYSER

December 01, 2015 No comments

  FG-01 1-72Mhz Antenna ANALYSER Assembed unit, tested and ready to use, Portable design easy to carry and operating, Comes with18650 battery pac... Read more

HAMlab 160-6 100W – SDR Transceiver

September 11, 2017 No comments

HAMlab 160-6 100W – SDR Transceiver Highlights SDR + measurement instruments rugged steel housing LDMOSFET 10W Linear amplifier (160M-6M) 1Gsps... Read more

PTRX-7300 Panorama Adaptor for the IC-7300

July 24, 2019 No comments

A panorama adapter for the IC-7300? What’s the point, you might ask, the IC-7300 has such a nice spectrum and waterfall display? Right, but unfo... Read more

ICOM America – HRO at Pacificon 2021

November 17, 2021 No comments

In this video from Pacificon 2021, Will Jourdain (AA4WJ) talks about all the fun gear at the ICOM America booth. Read more