Normally, I do a POTA activation with my KX-3 powered by a 9-Ahr battery. I run 15 W and mostly operate CW. I make plenty of contacts with this setup, but Paul, KW1L, one of my partners in crime, speculated if we’d do any better with a 100 W rig. Since I have access to an IC-7300, I suggested that we cart that out to K-3315, Island Lake Recreation Area next time.

Last week, Las Vegas was not on the site of DEFCON, but the American Poolplayer’s Association World Championships. And, on the Las Vegas Monorail, there were not only hackers with their cute DEFCON backpacks, but more pool players with small cases carrying their cue sticks.

One of the big items in amateur radio news the past couple of weeks is an FCC petition by a group calling itself the Shortwave Modernization Coalition (SMC). Basically, what they want to do is to use HF frequencies formerly reserved for broadcasting to send data using 20 kW transmitters at a bandwidth of 50 kHz. They’ve been doing this with an experimental license for several years now, and they are now petitioning the FCC to change the Part 90 rules.