Antenna Savant K2TR on Building Stations That Win

Fred Lass K2TR is a legend by reputation and by record—once dubbed “King Fred” during the founding days of YCCC, a title he wears with his usual self-effacing humor. From a modest childhood in Niagara Falls to a career in broadcast engineering, Fred built a life around RF. A licensed ham since the 1960s, he’s revered for his antenna mastery with technical talks that still pack rooms at Dayton Hamvention and Northeast HamX. He’s an original Murphy’s Marauder and a founding voice of what became the powerhouse Yankee Clipper Contest Club. Fred's technical chops aren’t just theoretical. As chief engineer at a broadcast station in the 1970s, he saved his employer hundreds of thousands of dollars by designing a circularly polarized antenna upgrade that required no new tower—a feat of RF and mechanical design rooted in skills honed through ham radio and a degree from RPI. Today, he’s still pushing boundaries, planning an ambitious VU4 Andaman Islands DXpedition with antenna arrays designed for the unique circumstances of that location—challenging propagation paths, remote logistics, and in-band station isolation. And, you'll find him contesting with the multi-multi titan, K3LR. Thanks to Icom for sponsoring Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio—because legendary QSOs deserve legendary radios. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio.