By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor

This week, Surfin' visits museums and the halls of fame of the baseball and ham radio variety.

Being a baseball fan, I made the 230-mile trek and visited the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York, on four occasions. My first visit was most memorable because I was a youngster and in awe of the heroes of the game. To see their plaques hanging in the Hall of Fame and to view their memorabilia in the Museum was a thrill to this member of the Red Sox Village (my first visit was back in the early 1960s, long before Red Sox fandom achieved nation status).

Being a ham radio fan, I made the 20 mile trek and visited the ARRL's museum in Newington, Connecticut, countless times before it was shut down to make room for ARRL Headquarters office expansion. The memorabilia at the ARRL museum was just as fascinating as what I saw in Cooperstown; I clearly recall my first visit because I was so surprised that much of the old radio equipment was made of wood! All my ham radio equipment up until then was made of metal. Although the museum in Newington is no more, you can see some of the radio "woodies" on display at W1AW, the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station.

There was no Hall of Fame in Newington, but CQ Magazine created one in 2001 "to recognize those individuals, whether licensed radio amateurs or not, who significantly affected the course of amateur radio; and radio amateurs who, in the course of their professional lives, had a significant impact on their professions or on world affairs."

Unlike the Baseball Hall of Fame -- whose members I admired from afar -- the CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame contains some people I have actually met on the air and/or in person. I am on even on a first name basis with a few of the inductees (I sure can't say that about Carlton Fisk or Jim Rice).

You can view the complete list of Hall of Fame inductees here. Peruse the list and see which makers and shakers of ham radio have made it into the Hall. Also, consider who is missing and deserving, because nominations are now open for the 2010 class of inductees.

For those you feel are deserving yet missing, there is a nomination form here that you can submit by mail to CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame, 25 Newbridge Rd, Hicksville, NY 11801 or via e-mail.

Until next time, keep on surfin'!

Editor's note: Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, has is curator of own ham radio museum known as "The Garage." To contact Stan, send him e-mail or add comments to his blog.