I am Kori Rahman, WX5KR. I live in the Houston, Texas area and became licensed in December 2020.
Radio and engineering
I am an aerospace engineer by education, with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Aerospace Engineering. My professional engineering experience includes project engineering for oil-and-gas sampling systems. That background affects the way I approach radio projects: I tend to think about the complete system, the operating requirements, the interfaces between components, and the details needed to make the equipment usable outside the workbench.
Amateur radio gave me a new technical field to learn. I understood circuits before becoming licensed, but RF adds its own set of complications. Antennas, feed lines, matching, propagation, filters, station separation, and the effect of physical layout all become part of the problem.
A hobby that became a community
I joined BVARC when I became licensed and began volunteering, operating events, and helping with club activities. Parks on the Air became a particularly important part of the hobby for me. Going to parks with friends eventually led to co-founding Houston POTA.
I still enjoy the simple version of amateur radio: turn on a radio, call someone, and see who answers. I also enjoy the version that requires a car full of equipment, a plan, several operators, and enough troubleshooting to make the first contact feel earned.