OH2UA, Toni Linden

Born:   1979
Used calls:     CQ8X, CU2A, CU2X, CR2X, EA8ZS, OH0B, OH2BH, OH2HE, OH2U, OH8X, ZA1A,
I got first licensed in 1996 at the age of 15 and began contesting
just maybe a month after getting my license. Contesting from my small
home station with wires and 100W was nothing spectacular. But
fortunately in 1996 CQWW OH2BAH offered me an opportunity to try his
5el quad with amplifier. I operated a couple of hours and was hooked.

Next year it was time for my first serious CQWW operation. I got
invited to operate at OH2HE (later OH2U). It was a huge honor for 16
years old kid to be invited to operate with one of the best teams in
amateur radio contesting. That was also a year for my first CQWW
plaque. We had a great team and during next year’s we won European M/M
title multiple times and made CQWW CW European record that still
exists. We also operated from EA8ZS twice, once on CW and once on SSB
ending up winning the World M/M both times.

But I wanted to do SOAB as well. Fortunately I got an opportunity to
try some serious SOAB operating at OH0B and OH2BH and since those days
we’ve been doing quite lot things together with Martti. Not only
operating at OH0B and at OH2BH

, but also having long conversations
about contesting, building stations and so on.

It was around 2002/2003 when Martti and I began thinking that would it
be possible to find a QTH were one could win Europe in CQWW SOAB
category no matter if it’s solar minimum or maximum. In 2003 CQWW CW I
had an honor to be a part of multinational team operating from ZA1A.
Albania was considered as one possible QTH for future SOAB station.
Some further investigations were made and (fortunately) we ended up at
the other side of Europe

, in Azores.

My first operation from Azores was 2005 and with a first try I won
CQWW CW SOAB European championship with new European record. One of my
dreams became true. Since 2005 I’ve mostly operated from Azores

,
especially in CQWW contests.

At 2007 the new amateur radio project was established when Radio
Arcala and Arcala Xtremes was founded. CU2X and OH8X became “sister
stations” and we’ll see if we’re able to challenge our own records
from Polar circle when propagation peaks up.

Maybe the best know stations I’ve been operating from are CU2A, CU2X,
CR2X, EA8ZS, OH0B, OH2BAH, OH2BH, OH2HE, OH2U, OH8X and ZA1A.