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I am 45 years old and I have been a ham since I was 15. I was first licensed in Montana as KA7CGK. I later became N7HIK. After getting my advanced ticket in the early nineties, I got the vanity call, W7BTL, in honor of my Elmer, Max Roesner, the original W7BTL. Max passed away in the early eighties but I believe he would be happy that I revived his call. On 75 meter phone, he would always call himself, "W 7 Big Tough Lid." I ultimately got the extra ticket in 2000, a mere 22 years after getting my novice ticket.

W7BTL's mini-shack
This is my station.  I have a Yaesu 857D, an LDG Z100 mini-tuner and a Rigblaster Plus hooked up to an inverted vee. 

I have the same rig in my minivan hooked up to interchangeable hamsticks and a dual-band, UHF/VHF antenna.  Proving that you cannot have too many antennas, I added a 1.2 m monobander so I can use my VX-6 on the Condor net while mobile.  I am very amazed by the amount of DX I have been able to work as a mobile.  Since summer 2007, I have worked a lot of South American, Asian, Caribbean and European stations.  HF is easier when my four-year old son isn't around to tell me all about the Power Rangers.  I also have a Yaesu VX-6 that I use as an HT on my daily walks and with an Arrow II satellite antenna.  I have been using the sats only since the end of October 2007 but it is truly my new ham passion.  The easy sats remind me a lot of a DX pileup.

This is my powerful dipole hanging woefully off my long-abandoned TV antenna.

This is W7BTL's 2 meter/70 centimeter J-Pole.  I know it should be higher but it was just too easy to attach it to a flag holder.  Also, I only live about 2 miles from the K6CHE LB repeater. 

WE7WTF's , formerly KI6HPL, first radio was a Yaesu FT-60R.  She got this after getting her Technician ticket in January 2007.  Jamie passed the General exam in March 2007.  Jamie passed the Extra exam in May 2008.   Jamie lives in Golden Valley, Arizona - near Kingman.  Not being a butthead like me, she decided to get an area-appropriate call sign.  She became WE7WTF.  Jamie is the secretary for the Black Mountain Amateur Radio Club.  She has a Kenwood TS-480 SAT hooked up to an inverted vee.  Her first HF rig, another TS-480 SAT, was stolen from her place.  If anyone tries to sell you a like new TS-480 for cheap, be suspicious.  Jamie has been on the satellites lately.  The picture above is Jamie with her Arrow II in her cactus patch.  She also is really into DX.  She has worked a lot countries on 20 meters as well as 40 meters.  She is trying to get her WAS (worked all states).  I think she has talked to about 25 states so far.

If you work both of us, you can earn the coveted Worked Both Foots Award.  Contact us for more details.