First, I would like to thank warmly Bud, AA3B, Jim N3JT, Mohamed CN8YR, Steve N2IC and Marvin N5AW. I hope I won’t disappoint their trust.
I was born and raised in Paris, France.
I was very lucky to meet Pierre F6BLZ and Philippe F1BYI (SK) who had founded my high school radio club (F6KIK), in the early 70s. They passed on to me the passion for radio, the taste of the smell of welding and the taste of the nights in front of the soft light of a HW101 transceiver in the attic of our high school. Then I met Thierry, F6FYZ (now SK), during my university studies. He and I were dreaming in front of the window of HeathKit’s French branch, which was located right in front of our faculty. Even in kit form, those transceivers were too expensive for us.
It was only later that I took the exams for the licence, first as a novice (CW only on the HF bands with 10 w) and then those for the full licence (1997).
Very quickly, the passion for CW took me, and it is now almost all of my activity on the air. I have also to confess to a certain amount of tension when I get “599 TU” QSOs…I
Thanks to CW, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting some wonderful people, caring and patient, who have helped me to progress.
My traffic conditions are modest, usually 100 watts and some really weird antennas, sometimes homemade. I hope to be able to improve all this soon, as I will be moving to Brittany, where I will be able to enjoy a large garden and thus create even more crazy antennas.
My wife Anne-Sophie has always had exceptional patience with my telegraphic frenzy. She also very often held and secured the ladders when I climbed up trees to hang up my antennas or to unhook those that had been sent in perilous branches by means of slingshots.
I am now semi-retired after a long career as a researcher in academia and then mainly in the pharmaceutical industry. My main field of interest is the pharmacology and toxicology of contrast agents used in radiological examinations (X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging), used, for example, for the diagnosis of cancer or vascular pathologies. I am also very interested in a developing discipline, interventional radiology.
One of the advantages of our hobby is that there is always a lot to learn. I try to keep up with technological developments, which is a constant lesson in humility.
I also participate in several CW contests. If I may suggest, don’t look for my callsign among the highest scores…
Finally, I am a member of ARRL, REF, the French Union Française des Télégraphistes (UFT) and the Argentinean GACW.
Whenever possible, I am very happy to help new CW operators, within my modest means.
I hope to have the pleasure of contacting you soon in CW, I’m on the air almost every day, if only for one or two QSOs.
This biography is what appeared in Solid Copy when the member joined CWops.