[Elecraft] Bumblebees -- actual mondo-sized bees, not just the RF variety

[Wayne Burdick]

I operated pedestrian mobile in Sunday’s /BB QRP event, using a KX2 with a prototype AX1 4’ whip (15/17/20 m) and a dragged 13’ counterpoise. 

The whip was attached directly to the back of my Patagonia Atom 8L sling bag, which turns out to have rugged, stretchy loops in exactly the right places, holding the antenna perfectly upright with no additional mounting hardware. The antenna is exactly the right length for this when the telescoping part and base are secured together. 

For control purposes, I just held the rig in my hand, with nothing but a coax cable running back to the pack. The rig weighs only one pound with batteries, so this turns out to work much better than putting the rig in the pack and trying to control everything with fancy firmware (something I reported on earlier). 

Later I operated a bit of /PM SSB, using the rig’s built-in mic and XMIT switch as PTT. The KX2 fits easily in one hand, so you might think of it as a mic on steroids, one that happens to have and all-band/all-mode radio built in :)  I think I’ve finally found the magic elixir -- pure HF Pack Light. The sling pack gives this lash-up a bit of Errol Flynn cache. 

As for operating, this was no walk in the park!

During one memorable QSO I was sending fast CW with the built-in keyer paddle while climbing a narrow 45-degree trail, praying my shoes had enough tread to grip the loose soil. The operator at the other end put up with a bit of dodgy sending as the trail’s slope hit a local maxima. 

Arriving at the top of the bluff, I found myself in a maze of imposing weeds sculpted by some evil California parks department employee. The plants were Vulcan in appearance, 7 to 8 feet tall, and simply irresistible to the local oversize bees. Dozens of them. I was ducking left and right to avoid the real bees while finishing my QSO with the contest “bee." About halfway through the maze, tuning the VFO knob with the thumb of my rig-holding hand, I found another /BB station to call. I’m guessing I now hold the all-San-Mateo-County record for in-maze pedestrian mobile CW contacts.

Overall, the experience was somewhere between Little Shop of Horrors and The Shining. But I didn’t get sunburned, stung, or ejected for public nerdiness. 

It doesn’t get much better than this.

Wayne
N6KR