Hello Guys,
With the Ultralight radio niche hobby now being
enjoyed throughout North America, Europe and many other areas of the world, some
enthusiasts may be curious how this whole craziness started. It actually
started on November 20, 2007 with some startling TP receptions on a humble
SRF-59, but was fueled by some amazing coincidences that gave the movement a
massive surge within just a month.
On November 19, 2007, I was shopping for a
Christmas present to give my son, Danny, an introduction to the joys of AM-DXing
(which I experienced as a kid, with a transistor radio). At the local
Fred Meyer store, I picked out an analog Sony Walkman, the SRF-59, which
looked a lot like the portables I used in the early 60's. Upon returning
home to ensure the radio worked properly, I gave it a quick test on AM and
FM. Everything worked OK-- but there was something very unusual
about the AM performance. A tiny, cheap transistor portable like this
wasn't supposed to be receiving California stations around noontime here in
western Washington, 500 miles to the north. This SRF-59 was a real
shocker! Feeling somewhat guilty, I asked Danny if Daddy could get him
another present instead of this one. To my relief, he quickly
agreed.
The daytime DX on this SRF-59 was astonishing, but
even more stunning was the complete freedom from image reception, and
almost complete freedom from spurious signals. On an $18 portable?
What was going on here? Why hadn't anyone else in the AM-DXing hobby
reported the outstanding performance of this tiny wonder?
But the big shocker was yet to come. Just
after local midnight on November 20, a couple of Japanese TP stations
(JOIB-747 and JOAK-594) made a decent appearance on this tiny SRF-59,
completely transforming my casual AM-DXing attitude. This was
revolutionary! Other AM-DXers had to experience this excitement.
Upon getting up after reduced sleep (a common
malady affecting TP chasers), I excitedly attempted to send a report
of the new SRF-59's performance to the IRCA list reflector.
But probably due to lack of concentration, the email was sent to Colin
Newell (of DXer.Ca) instead. This "mistake" was actually one of the major
reasons the Ultralight Radio boom got started, because Colin's support for the
ULR concept (and his encouragement of a formal SRF-59 review) helped spread the
Boom throughout North America.
A formal SRF-59 review posted on DXer.Ca caused
such a run on SRF-59's (in December) that even Amazon.com had trouble filling
orders at times. To show appreciation for Colin's support, various free
SRF-59 samples were sent to Canadians, including one to Rob Ross, who used it to
log over 300 stations in 30 days in January. In early December, the SRF-59
Boom was in full swing, and pocket radio DXing was catching on like
wildfire (with SRF-M37V's and DT-200VX units also popular). Also in early
December, Kevin Schanilec suggested that we designate a name for this new form
of AM-DXing, and by consensus, Kevin's suggestion of "Ultralight Radio" was
chosen. By late December, the Boom was the talk of AM-DXing circles, and
established DXer John Bryant was showing interest (along with many
others). A new AM-DXing phenomena had begun, which with John's
organizational talents, became the established, exciting niche hobby that we
enjoy today. Thanks to all who contributed, and "Happy Birthday"
to all Ultralight Radio enthusiasts!
73 and Best Wishes,
Gary
DeBock
.
