Well I’m not the kind to live in the past, The years run too short and the days too fast, The things you lean on are the things that don’t last, Well it’s just now and then my line gets cast into these, Time passages…

Living in Central Indiana, I’ve been a Indianapolis Colts fan since the day the moving vans arrived from Baltimore in 1984. There have been plenty of bad years, this season included, but there was a long stretch when the Colts were an elite NFL team. The “Manning Years” where they won more than ten games each season for a decade and made it to the playoffs annually during that period. They even made it to the Super Bowl twice and won it once. It was a magical era that has, sadly, passed. But during that long successful run I distinctly recall one of the TV sports talking heads saying, “Colts fans need to savor this, this much success isn’t normal, it’s special, and it won’t last forever”. And of course, it didn’t.

The same can be said for some of the special ham radio vendors who have come and gone. By the time I got into the hobby Hallicrafters was no more, but I never once considered a similar fate for those like CQ Magazine, TenTec, Heathkit, and others. No one thought it even possible for these stalwarts to call it quits. Until they did.

And now here we are, a quarter century into a new millennium and I’m watching a K4 update video when I’m reminded that Elecraft is more than 25 years old. That’s weird because it seems like only yesterday they released the amazing K2 transceiver. I built mine, #524, in August of 1999. And now, like that sports commentator, I’m reminded that this much success isn’t normal, it’s special, and it won’t last forever. Of course, I hope it lasts a whole lot longer, and it likely will, but more than a quarter century has passed.

Getting back to that video, I think it’s about three months old, hosted by one of the Elecraft co-founders, Eric WA6HHQ, who is delivering an update on the K4 transceiver. During the opening moments he summarized how the company began. I found it interesting having lived thru the entirety of this era (so far). And all I can think is that someone, probably sooner rather than later, is going to write a book titled, Elecraft - the First 25 Years.

Time passages…