Isle of Mann 1995

Unknown to me at the time, this was to be my last ham radio expedition by motorbike.  

As you can see from the picture, I went back to my 1992 location in Peel, on the west coast, but the weather looked bad and I wasn't getting any younger.  I decided to participate in the "Fixed Station" class... inside the warm hotel.  Note: European Field Day is the first weekend in June, not the last weekend in June like in the states.

In 1995 I went indoors.  I was becomming a "sissy",  or "girlie boy" as Arnold Schwarzenegger calls it.

THE RIG HERE:

• Ten-Tec Scout
• MFJ Matchbox
• DSP Noise Filter
• Autronix Paddle
• 807 brewed on the IOM

The antenna, as seen in the previous picture, was a doublet fed with 300 Ohm openwire.  I threaded Kevlar rope through it so that there would be no strain directly on the feedline.  At high tide, the antenna is almost directly over salt water.  Nice!

In 1995 I did the IOM trip together with Reinhold, DF2BB.  His Beamer is on the right, mine is on the left.

The stuff on the back of mine is what I typically took with me on the day's outing where we would watch the Tourist Trophy motorbike races when they were running, or visit touristic sites on the off-days.  I took my small chair and stuff to make coffee.

GIRLIE BOY ?

Although it might appear I was becoming a sissy, on the way back to Germany, after taking the ferry overnight back to Liverpool, and riding to about 50 miles north of London, the next day I got up early, departed at 8am, rode down to Dover, took the ferry over to Belgium, and at 11pm I arrived home in Munich, Germany - on this naked bike. That was 14 hours of hard riding, mostly at 100 mph.

But... after arriving home, I spent the next two days on the livingroom couch, totally exhausted.  Girlie Boy?  Maybeeee!