I was first licensed in 1961 as KN5JBW while in high school. I was very active as a novice, working DX and all the states, but entry into the Army, college, and family needs put my operating on hold and my ticket expired. In 1973, while living in Chile, I decided to get back on the air and had the American embassy communications officer administer the test for a Conditional license and started operating as WB5LSU/CE3. When I returned to the states, I took the extra class exams. I have been active ever since working from various DX locations as well as several states.
I retired from the federal government in 2003 and began teaching about intelligence and diplomacy at the University of Oklahoma until 2015, when I retired a second time. I selected N3CI as a vanity call, reflecting my 35 years’ service around the world. I have always been a CW operator, working phone to catch a new country or in the big contests. My main rigs now are the KX3 and K3S from Elecraft. Antennas have varied depending on where I was living, but beams are now a thing of the past and I get by with simple wires, usually running QRP and always less than 100 watts.
In retirement, I continue to travel around the world. I usually carry a tiny QRP rig with me and try to make a contact or two. I am learning new things in radio all the time; having succeeded in doing a bit of digital work, I am now planning to figure out how to use the computer to send code and log my very unspectacular contest efforts.
This biography is what appeared in Solid Copy when the member joined CWops.