Biography

I first became interested in ham radio when I was in high school. Not knowing anyone that was a ham radio operator, I decided to explore the radio service on my own. I think what really sparked my interest was that I saw it on one of the TV shows -- Saved by the Bell -- that my younger sister watched.

High school came and went but deep down I still had an interest in radio. While in college, I saw the movie "Frequency" and my interest in ham radio was reignited. After graduating from college, I put the interest on the back burner as I worked a lot and needed to pay off student loans. Then September 11th happened. The majority of the country was in a fog, as was I, and I wanted to know how I could actually "help" as opposed to just feeling powerless.

I decided to study for the amateur radio tech license. I passed the test in late February of 2002 and received the call KC0MMY in early March. My fascination with ham radio continued to grow and a year later I earned my General Class license. I played around with a couple of radios (a Yaesu VX-5R and a Yaesu FT-840) to at least listen, learn from other hams on the air, and tinker with. I was a fairly active member of the Black Hills Amateur Radio Club and helped out with a couple of Public Service Events ... mainly the Crazy Horse Volksmarch and a Centennial Bike Ride on the Mickelson Trail. Because I had to get several eye surgeries, I decided to sell the equipment that I owned and was basically inactive for a few years.

I moved out to New York from Rapid City, SD in March of 2007. I live here with my wife, and "bonus daughter." I was able to pick up ham radio again, and have a small -- yet decent -- antenna farm. In 2012, I earned my Extra Class License, which was much easier than I expected but I've always had had -- and still do -- maintain an interest in electronics and theory

My primary modes of interest is phone, though I would LOVE to get into CW, RTTY and SSTV. I've tried some of the digital modes, such as PSK31, but I don't particularly enjoy them. I have nothing against this or any other digital mode, however. They definitely have their place.

You can find me primarily on the HF bands. I like 40, 20, 17, and 15 meters. If 12 or 10 are open, I'll play around there, too. I usually like 80/75 for local/regional contacts. I have yet to make a 60 meter contact. Maybe someday ...

While I hold an Extra Class license, I don't know everything. I don't pretend to, either. I love learning, I love asking questions, and I like to share with others my experience with what works for me and what hasn't. After all, that's the beauty of ham radio, isn't it? To learn from each other? To help each other? To be a service to a community and have fun making contacts at the same time? Hey, what works for me may work for you -- and it may not -- but that's okay. It's always fun to experiment.

I hope to work you on the bands!

73 de Andre
KC0MMY

Equipment

Kenwood TS-440S/AT HF Radio
60 Meter Loop approx 15-20 feet off the ground.
AEA (now TimeWave) PAKRATT 232/PK-232MBX
AEA (now TimeWave) PK-88 Packet Controller
Radio Shack DSP Filter (Used for HF)
RigBlaster Nomic

Kenwood TM-D700A VHF/UHF Radio (Built-In TNC)
7 Element VHF/UHF Beam on rotor

Wouxun KG-UV3D Dual Band Handheld Transceiver
MFJ Roll-Up 2 Meter J-Pole Antenna
MFJ Dubl Band Telescoping HT Antenna
Hustler 2 Meter 5/8 Wave Mag Mount Antenna
Hustler 2 Meter/440 MHz Mag Mount Antenna
Radio Shack 2 Meter 35-Watt Amplifier

Late 2012 Apple Mac Mini
16 GB RAM
As of 2015-01-17 running the latest Version of OS X -- 10.10.1
MacLoggerDX -- Version 5.5.7
PlayOnMac to run Airmail 3.4x