Hi everyone, I’m Dan, N2DAN. I’ve been licensed since the 90s and am interested in all sorts of radio topics. I’m primarily interested in HF, although have dabbled with the digital modes, played around with mobile setups, direction finding, and more. Our family was pretty active in Scouting when my kids were younger and I served as both a Scoutmaster and a Merit Badge counselor for many years - of course Radio was one of my favorite Merit Badges to teach. It’s one of the least awarded Merit Badges, by the way. We packed up and moved to Bluffton after my youngest headed off to college and have been here full time since 2018. We live in the Crescent, and while I’m still working, I’m easing into retirement.
So… why a new website? Why a new club? I’ve searched around for radio groups in the area and have come up with two that are nearby - one in Beaufort and one in Sun City. I haven’t found one in Bluffton or Hilton Head, but what I did discover by screwing around on the FCC ULS site is that there are about 250 ”active” hams that live in the area and have been granted a license or an update in the last dozen years or so. That’s pretty much the target for this website. I’d like to cordially invite you to participate here, with the ultimate goal - if there’s interest - in putting together a club that eventually becomes an ARRL affiliated club and meets on a regular basis. It’s mostly for something to do, but to also share information amongst club members, help out one another in Elmer-type situations, and - ideally - introduce young people to amateur radio. If things take off, great, we can talk about having regular meetings and put together an agenda for the year that embraces all things radio. Maybe we’ll support the local community on field day, maybe we’ll participate in the Jamboree On The Air with the Scouts, and the list goes on.
It’s probably better to think of the ”club” for now as “like minded radio people maybe getting together every now and then”, although it was a lot easier to just get a domain that said “club”. Lol. It would be awesome if you’d respond to this post and introduce yourself and talk a little bit about what you like about ham radio, and if you’d be interested in participating in a club. We can call ourselves the “founders” of the Bluffton Radio Club.
We’ll eventually get to a point where we add more forums to this board to provide specific places for folks to discuss radio topics of interest, but as it’s just me at this point, probably kind of silly to come up with a bunch of different forums.
I’m going to setup the forum software where you don’t need to register to post (for now), but if you’re a ham, please do include your call in your note. If you register, you’ll receive updates when there are new posts. Welcome, and I look forward to getting to know you.
Best & 73,
dan
N2DAN
12/23/24 Update: So I've had this site up for about a year and change and haven't really publicized the site. It's more of a placeholder for my radio musings, and I'll probably continue with it for now. I've gotten off my rear and gone out and met the guys & gals at both the Beaufort Club and the Islander group, all great people. So maybe there isn't a need for a "new club" any longer. I think I'll keep this domain for awhile and use it to memorialize my radio activities - a lot easier to have a simple place to put everything that bounces around upstairs.
12/27/24 Update: Decided to change the domain name… welcome to the www.radiobum.com site. This will likely end up being my personal blog. We’ll see if I like RadioBum.com more than I liked BlufftonRadioClub.com.
So… why a new website? Why a new club? I’ve searched around for radio groups in the area and have come up with two that are nearby - one in Beaufort and one in Sun City. I haven’t found one in Bluffton or Hilton Head, but what I did discover by screwing around on the FCC ULS site is that there are about 250 ”active” hams that live in the area and have been granted a license or an update in the last dozen years or so. That’s pretty much the target for this website. I’d like to cordially invite you to participate here, with the ultimate goal - if there’s interest - in putting together a club that eventually becomes an ARRL affiliated club and meets on a regular basis. It’s mostly for something to do, but to also share information amongst club members, help out one another in Elmer-type situations, and - ideally - introduce young people to amateur radio. If things take off, great, we can talk about having regular meetings and put together an agenda for the year that embraces all things radio. Maybe we’ll support the local community on field day, maybe we’ll participate in the Jamboree On The Air with the Scouts, and the list goes on.
It’s probably better to think of the ”club” for now as “like minded radio people maybe getting together every now and then”, although it was a lot easier to just get a domain that said “club”. Lol. It would be awesome if you’d respond to this post and introduce yourself and talk a little bit about what you like about ham radio, and if you’d be interested in participating in a club. We can call ourselves the “founders” of the Bluffton Radio Club.
We’ll eventually get to a point where we add more forums to this board to provide specific places for folks to discuss radio topics of interest, but as it’s just me at this point, probably kind of silly to come up with a bunch of different forums.
I’m going to setup the forum software where you don’t need to register to post (for now), but if you’re a ham, please do include your call in your note. If you register, you’ll receive updates when there are new posts. Welcome, and I look forward to getting to know you.
Best & 73,
dan
N2DAN
12/23/24 Update: So I've had this site up for about a year and change and haven't really publicized the site. It's more of a placeholder for my radio musings, and I'll probably continue with it for now. I've gotten off my rear and gone out and met the guys & gals at both the Beaufort Club and the Islander group, all great people. So maybe there isn't a need for a "new club" any longer. I think I'll keep this domain for awhile and use it to memorialize my radio activities - a lot easier to have a simple place to put everything that bounces around upstairs.
12/27/24 Update: Decided to change the domain name… welcome to the www.radiobum.com site. This will likely end up being my personal blog. We’ll see if I like RadioBum.com more than I liked BlufftonRadioClub.com.
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