Field Operating - Convenience and Comfort

As I’ve expanded my field operating experience, I’ve acquired a number of items which, while not strictly radio related, are nevertheless great additions to my POTA activation activities.

Chairs

Long ago, I bought a TravelChair Joey Chair to use for portable operating. It’s a good example of a field chair which superficially looks like a great solution but is not quite right.

The difficulties with the Joey Chair are that it’s something of a pain to set up (I always get the fabric the wrong way ’round as I set the chair up, so it takes two attempts to get it right), it’s difficult to pack into the zipper case that comes with it, and as such chairs go, it’s relatively heavy.

I like my Helinox Chair Zero Highback much better. The high back makes it much more comfortable, it’s a snap to set up and pack away, and it’s so astonishingly light that it unless you put weight on it, it will blow over in a light breeze (and I mean a very light breeze). The downside is that it’s relatively expensive. But it’s just so well made, so comfortable, and so convenient that I think it’s a great value.

The one downside to the Chair Zero Highback is that, if the ground is soft, the legs will penetrate the soil, make a mess, make the chair less stable, and generally be a hassle. The solution is to buy the little base that fits over the legs and makes a broad surface - again not cheap but well worth the investment if you plan to put the chair on soft soil.

Tables

I also have two tables - one is a TravelChair table, and the other is a Helinox Table One.

The TravelChair table is very nice, offering a surface that is large enough to set up an entire portable station, including a laptop, full size radio, CW key, and battery. It’s a great choice if you’re setting up right out of the back of your car or truck.

The Helinox Table 1 is also very nicely made, but with a smaller work surface and a non-adjustable height which would be awkward if you intended to sit in front of it with all your gear on the table. I find it perfect to set up as sort of an end table next to the Chair Zero Highback. I set it up next to the chair so that it’s to my right, and it’s plenty big enough to hold even a full sized radio, battery, and key. With it off to the right and my laptop on my lap, it makes for an efficient and comfortable operating position. Like the Chair Zero Highback, the Helinox table was expensive, but it sets up and breaks down very quickly, packs away easily, and is very lightweight but also very stable when set up.

Picnic Table Mat

I have a thin silicone rubber mat that I use when I’m setting up at a picnic table. Picnic tables are great and offer a lot of room to set up, but they’re often wet, or covered in moss, twigs, leaves, needles, or bird droppings, and having a mat means I can just unfold/unroll the mat onto the tabletop, and set my gear up on the mat without worrying about that stuff. When I’m packing up, I just fold the mat down into quarters and then roll it up so that it fits easily and neatly into my EDC bag.

Waffle Seat Mat

I also have a Nemo “Chipper” seat cushion made out of recycled plastic foam. It folds up neatly and fits fairly easily into my EDC pack, and it offers both some insulation from a cold bench when the weather is cold, protection from a wet bench if it’s been raining, and a bit of padding.

Sticky Pad

I like my CW key to not move at all when I’m keying, so I generally take along a 5.1” x 6.3” sticky silicone rubber mat intended to go on a car dashboard to keep a cell phone from sliding off. They come in various sizes and from various manufacturers, and work very well to keep your key from wandering around on the table.

Thermos and cup

I’m fond of having a cup of coffee or tea while doing an activation, so I have a small Zojirushi thermos bottle, and a Toaks titanium double wall cup that weighs next to nothing.
In cold weather I’ll fill the thermos with boiling water, throw the thermos, cup, and some tea bags into my EDC bag, and then I’ll take a tea/coffee break during the activation if I start to get cold.

Mitts and handwarmers

I’m afflicted with Reynaud’s Syndrom, which means my hands get cold easily, and get stiff and painful when they’re cold. I have a pair of woolen mittens with open fingers, which keep my hands warm but leave my fingers exposed well enough to type on a keyboard and operate CW paddles.

When the mittens are not quite enough, I supplement them with chemical handwarmers of the ‘tear open the package/air activated’ variety, and a pair of hand warmer undermittens that hold the handwarmers in contact with the back of my hands, and then wear the mittens over that arrangement. I use HotHands handwarmers, but other brands would presumably work just as well, since they all use the same chemical process.

Hat

I have a Tilley hat that I wear if I’m out in a field and need to protect my face and neck from the sun, or if it’s damp.

I have a several SmartWool brand beanies/toques which get deployed if it’s even slightly cold, as I keep my hair cropped short and my head gets cold easily.