Re: [HCDX] Why I am an SWLer (and, why are you?)

["Bierwirth" <m99baa3@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> 1.  What was your first exposure to Shortwave Listening?  How old
> were you?
> 2.  What drew you into Shortwave Listening as a hobby?  How did you
> start out?
It was 1991, when I was 13. At school, the English language book had 
just a lesson about London, and it said, that Big Ben chimes can be 
heard worldwide on the BBC. Soon afterwards a coffee selling chain 
(Tchibo) which always has special offers had a small worldband receiver 
for some 20 deutschmarks (in those days - 14 Dollars), and I decided to 
buy it - yes, I wanted to hear Big Ben. I soon found the BBC on 6195 
and enjoyed the bells. How great shortwave is, I found out one morning 
when trying to get to 6195 I got stuck on 6205 instead, where someone 
talked in German, my mother tongue, about a carpet market. It sounded 
strange, so I thought "Where is it, boy?", and after some waiting it 
turned out to be in Quito, Ecuador...! Well, that's for it.
 My first QSLs were Radio Moscow and Radio Australia, in February 
resp.March 1992. BBC was earlier but without QSL. How could I miss 
USSR!!!!


> 
> 3.  What do you now do most in this hobby?  Tropical Band DX? 
> Medium Wave DX?  News Listening?  Can you list what you do most, to
> least, in some order of interest?
  a) Catching any wave from any place. Temporarily (in Russia) condx 
are very bad for MW and tropical bands, but back home I've done also 
some of those. I remember the days when I lived at my parents in the 
countryside and regularly catched stations like Eritrea, Malawi, Radio 
Reloj Costa Rica, Radio Chita (Siberia). In the 90's there were also 
still many cw coastal stations, like Panama, Martinique, Djibouti, 
Mauritius etc. Almost all those seem gone now.
 My QSL countries list is being expanded now mainly due to ham SWLing, 
only here there is still much to get. Here I got San Marino, British 
Virgins, Grenada, Spitsbergen, Athos, Andorra and some others. I've not 
been lucky for Ducie, alas.
  b) News listening, from home (Deutsche Welle) and anywhere. Sometimes 
even shows like news from Pyongyang.
  c) Keeping the sw schedule on my homepage up to date.

> 
> 4.  What do you wish you knew more about, in this hobby?
  How to get the best effiency out of a piece of wire in a 9-floor 
concrete building.

> 5.  What do you do during the summer, in this hobby?
  Depends. On some holiday I take my radio along - this way I got QSLs 
from most BBC locals, for example. On other occasions, for a few weeks 
I know nothing of the world. So I missed both riots in Moscow. Well, 
but holiday is still holiday..!
> 
> 6.  What part of the day do you do must of your listening?
  The most difficult part is between 02 and 06 o'clock local time, as 
you will easily understand, although it's generally a good dx time. The 
rest of the day is well penetrated with loggings.

> 
> 7.  Do you listen while mobile?
  Sometimes, if I happen to have batteries, a portable schedule, and 
nothing else to do on the walk. Usually, when heading into the plains 
at night, I take my telescope to catch some binary stars or Neptune or 
so.

73,
EiBi


**************
Eike Bierwirth
Rx=JRC-NRD525,wire
m99baa3@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
(aka capercaillie@xxxxxxx)
QTH for a year : Stary Petergof, RUS-78,
 St.Petersburg metropolitan oblast
Find all SW sked at http://www.eibi.de.vu/

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