Ham radio has a strong legacy of mentoring. My path has been influenced heavily by many hams, but there are a few who stand out - and this page is dedicated to giving recognition where it is so richly deserved.

All of these gentlemen have one characteristic in common - they have taken valuable time out of their days to answer questions and guide me along - often when I had nearly no understanding of what I was embarking upon.  They are strong believers in "do your homework before asking me something."  But some are leaders in their area of interest. Steel sharpens steel and to get better, we need to be exposed to the best. But the best are demanding. So there is no television service in this QTH - but yes, we have a lot of books!  

Some thoughts about each gentlemen as I reflect on their influence.  We are defined by our experiences in life.  These gentlemen have helped to shape me into the ham - and into the man - I am now.  And their example sets an example of just how far I have to go in the future.

Bill Turney, WS4Y	I got into ham radio via Bill Turney.  Bill was the chief engineer of a local BC station and considered the "local electronics guru."  So at age 10, when I was unable get my Radio Shack kit SW receiver to work properly, I was eventually guided to Bill as the guy who could make it work.  One visit to his shack was all it took.  The glow of that home brew 3-500z next to a Collins 75 series receiver and a Hallicrafters HT-32 transmitter was just about the most beautyful thing I had seen.  A few months later I had a novice ticket.  And a couple of years after that, made Extra class.
John Saylor, USN (SK)	John was a friend of my grandfathers.  Not a ham, but he had somehow retired with an entire attic of WWII and a bit older gear.  John was kind enough to give it all to me.  It must have taken a month of trips to bring it all home.  A gold mine for a guy 12 years old and with no money.  John pounds brass in the sky now.  A kindly gentlemen that defined the unsung, humble elmer.
Larry Smith, WBØSSB	I spent a few summers with Larry in Junior High.  And maybe a million hours on the air chewing the rag.  Larry was good for me in a lot of ways, beyond just the ham business.  He was a part time elmer, big brother and father at a time when I needed one.  Larry helped me buy my first "real" rig - a TS520.
Charlie Mazoch, W5VIN	"Would you mind if I asked some questions about your findings with respect to the FT-2000's roofing filter?"  That's how it began.  Having done one of the first Dentron 2500 GI7B conversions, Charlie went on to encourage me to use the GI7B in what became the SB200 Sleeper project.  And he introduced me to the wonderful bench tool called the VNA.  We are still working together on the FT-2000 roofing filter project - and of course, the list of amp projects "gonna do that soon" is endless.  Charlie is ex-USN as well.  The USN sure does grow good elmers!
Rob Underwood, KØRU	Rob is "Mr. Wire Beam Antenna."  So when I was looking for an alternative to my first antenna, someone suggested I talk to Rob and he came up with the idea of using the delta loop.  There's been quite a few antenna projects since then.  And we enjoy working with the AVR microcontrollers now for a lot of shack projects.  Rob and I wrote code back when we were young and share a lot of passion for those things.  But at the core of it all, are dreams of antennas and more antennas and more antennas. Rob is a classic Elmer - patient with the young hams to a level beyond my comprehension.  I'm proud to call Rob my friend.
Jack Smith, K8ZOA	Jack is a professional engineer.  The book time required for each question I ask comes in at about 100:1 ratio.  I got acquainted with Jack initially from work with the Softrock SDR kits - Jack has an excellent buffer amp (Z1000) and his company provides contract engineering and evaluation services which later proved very helpful with the dual Si570 generator project.  Jack is also one of the experts on measuring crystal parameters - a subject dear to my heart.  Jack's steel is some of the hardest.  Thanks Jack for your patience and instruction.  I will study hard to catch up!
Bill Carver, W7AAZ	I had heard of Bill Carver before I met him having seen his work on a transverter for the N2PK VNA and also the high-performance IF from QST - and from his paper on high performance crystal filters.  It seemed that Bill has been involved in quite a number of projects to some level of contribution - a guy who was interested in the same kind of stuff that I was.  But it was only when Network Sciences recommended I call Bill to discuss filter ringing that I have had the chance to get to know the man.  Since then, he's answered a million emails and is reliable with an opinion - rare in a PC world where no one tells you really what they think.   If I can scrape about 1% of Bills knowledge into my head, I will be one of the smartest RF engineers around.