You have to have something to drink while running FT8

Running FT8 requires time and timing.  You need enough time to manage the flow as software QSOs unfold and you have to have great timing for your machine to keep your transmissions and decoding synced with other stations.

And then you get thirsty!

I know some operators quaff coffee and some chug beer, at the risk of becoming too excitable or bordering on a stupor.

But I’m in the fourth year of a healthier diet that excludes caffeine and alcohol.  The alcohol abstinence was a challenge after many decades brewing my own beer, hard cider, mead and wine, as I lost the makers-side which had become a bit of a hobby.

So what could I make and drink?

Kombucha is my choice.  Fermented tea where the process also consumes the majority of the caffeine and later in the process consumes most of the alcohol.

Here is a picture from this weekend – the dark are Elderberry flavored and the amber are ginger flavored.

A bottled batch of K9ZW Kombucha

So when you see me on FT8 you can figure the human element is fired with Kombucha rather than coffee or beer!

73

Steve
K9ZW