Topband: Early JA's at W4DR

[w4dr at mindspring.com]

I love this early history!  I was on 160 when it first opened after  the war
(early 50's) but only worked stations within several hundred miles.  I
started dx'ing on the band in 1970 as W4QCW and got DXCC #9 in 1977.  I
heard my first JA Jan 24, 1981, but had several JA swl cards for April of 79
when I was working a KL7 one morning around 0930z.  My first JA qso was with
JA3ONB on November 30, 1984 at 12:00z just 4 minutes before SR.  I was using
an Inverted Vee apex at 120 feet for the qso which was 559 both ways.  My
amp was a Alpha 76 which I now have on long term loan to DU9/N0NM.   The
irony of the story is that in my quest for JA on topband I stumbled across
VS6DO 12 days earlier and worked him using my phased verticals on the SW
pattern.  These were a pair of top loaded verticals from ColAtcho which I
used until 1996 when I installed a 4 square.  I still marvel that  I worked
zone 24 on 160 before zone 25.   When Rosalie and I went to Syria in 2001 I
knew that only several JA's had worked YK and the same was true of the USA
so I determined to make that a priority of my allotted operating time.  Out
of 1300 topband qsos approx 140 were with JA and 140 with the USA extending
as far west as KV0Q.   And to set the record straight I did NOT work JT1CO
on 160...that ultimate thrill still awaits me!