[NCC] WN8R is now K8AAV

[Rod]

FYI ALL! K8AAV is now my call sign, as of today, October 24, 2015. Having moved to a new residence, it was time for me to make the change. I was searching for a decent 1x3 and found K8AAV with help and encouragement from Bob Naumann, W5OV, so I applied and with no competition it was granted.  K8AAV is fast and unmistakable on CW, and it hasn’t been used since the 1990’s. The original holder of K8AAV, Gail Franklin Divan, renewed in 1995 and then was a SK in 1999 at age 94! I hope I last that long! I was originally licensed in 1974 as WN8RQX and was WB8RQX for 24 years, so it seemed to be pretty cool to obtain WN8R after upgrading to Extra class in 1999. However, over the years WN8R was constantly miscopied and repeated as W8NR in casual operating and it has resulted W? or N? and  “not in log” too many times in contests and DXing, much more so in recent years. I should have snagged a better 1x2 call sign back when or long since, but for most of us changing our call sign is like changing our name! Some hams NEVER do it. Over the past year I had six failed attempts at the “lottery” method of obtaining an Extra Class only 1x2 call sign in FCC application competitions with about a dozen other hams each time. As “luck” would have it, all but one of those 1x2s including excellent calls such as K8MD, K8DC and W8XM went to incredibly lucky, brand new hams who had earned Extra class weeks earlier. It seems like that FCC computer randomizer is broken but I suppose it was very odd chance. Someday I will try again for a really great 1x2 call sign (preferably from “8” call area) whenever one becomes available in the coming years. For those who have them it must have seemed easy, but 1x2 call signs with good letters are very rare, are highly sought after and seem to me to be nearly impossible to obtain. So, for now, 73 de Kilo-Eight-Alpha-Alpha-Victor Rod Ehrhart – K8AAV (ex-WN8R)