[ADXA] "Tractor Therapy" and how it affects Ham Radio.

[BILL KENNAMER]

 Randy
I'm always enlightened by your posts. I too take Tractor Therapy at least once a week, sometimes as often as every five days. At this point, it hasn't helped with the TOG problem, nor with the monoband stack that's been on the ground for the last 25 years. Perhaps another dose of Weedwhacker Therapy or maybe Chain Saw Therapy would help immensely. But I am drawing the line at Hole Digger Therapy. I am reminded of my old  friend Jim Haney, W5JBP (SK), who always said, "I don't dig holes, I don't pour concrete".
FUV


    On Thursday, June 12, 2025 at 12:22:55 PM CDT, Randell Curtis, W5ZJ via ADXA <adxa at mailman.qth.net> wrote:  
 
 While mowing in the rain this morning, I was thinking about the phrase "Tractor Therapy", which I had read in an email from this group. While I have no proof, I do have a theory that "Tractor Therapy" aka mowing does have an effect on your ham radio station, or lack thereof. 
I have only been to two other station locations of ADXA members. One, was on a city lot, and the other was on some acreage. Both of these stations, I would consider Big guns, as compared to a third ADXA station which I am very familiar with. 
My theory is that, as the first round of "Tractor Therapy", aka mowing is made, a thought is created, and during the amount of  rounds it takes to complete mowing, the thought is developed and expanded. For example, round 1. I think there is room for a tower, Round 2 I think it will be a 50 foot tower. Round 3. I probably could make that an 80 foot tower, Round 4, I'll just put up a 100 foot tower. Round 5, I could probably put up 2, 100ft towers. You can see how this goes!
I feel that the amount of rounds of "Tractor Therapy" put in could assist with Big Gun development. However, you may ask about the person on the city lot. I feel sure that there was much thought during Tractor Therapy, on the one tower, but along with Tractor therapy, I feel there was some weed whacker therapy thrown in to optimize the amount of real estate available for radio. 
The third station I have mentioned, I am the most familiar with. Yet "they" are only a wannabe big gun, and may even pee like a puppy.  The problem with this person, is they mow too fast and think too slow, and are often distracted by other thoughts. By the time the yard is mowed at blazing speed, The dipole between 2 trees cannot be developed further than the existing loop between 4 trees. Tractor Therapy was once so bad, at this location, that a dipole became an inverted L which is like 1/2 a dipole with one end laying on the ground. 
So here we are after tractor therapy realizing that the reason the station is lacking, is because Tractor Therapy requires a sharp mind and a steady pace.  I suppose that is why ALL of my home brew amps fall well short of legal limit. Over the years 813's, 811's, gi7b's, 6kd6's, and mrf300 amps were built, I realize now that this was all because of the shortage of the needed quantity of Tractor Therapy. A few more rounds of Tractor Therapy each session I'm sure would have resulted  in pairs of 4-1000's or quad 3-500's  or at the minimum pairs of  BLF188XR;s being constructed. 
I know some my ask why weed whacker therapy can't assist in my big gun development. My answer to weed whacker therapy is that I always break out the round up, and visit the issue again in about 6 weeks. 
What I did realize during Tractor Therapy today is that 27 feet of tower height may be perfect, and an antenna at 100feet may be nearly as good, but both of those beat my YOG (Yagis on ground) and TOG(tower on on ground). 
Yes, I need to get this other tower up and the 6 meter yagi on it so I can turn it. Having read an amazing article on this, I'm goin to shoot for a height of about 35 or so feet. If it doesn't work well, I will have a couple loads of dirt dumped around the bottom of the tower to shorten the height to 27 feet, plus it will give me the advantage of having an antenna on a hill. 
Tractor Therapy. It really works!
Randy/W5ZJ
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