Thoughts on 2007 and 2008
I’m still happy that the morse code requirement was (finally!) dropped. That action was about 20 years overdue. I also still question the timing (at the bottom of a solar cycle), but I’ll take the access to HF without complaint. Have I made any contacts on any of the HF bands? Nope. I’ve needed a new microphone for my IC-735 for a while now, and haven’t found one at the same time I had money for one. (Hopefully soon.) I also haven’t learned the code yet; it’s easy to say that it only takes 15 minutes of practice a day, but finding the 15 minutes is hard with two jobs and school competing for time. (I am still fiddling with receiving CW and RTTY with help from a computer.)
As far as getting people interested in ham radio, someone needs to produce a 25 watt 10 meter mobile rig that sells for $149.95 at Wal-Mart. Then they need to convince Hannah Montana to get licensed and on the air, and endorse the rig.
(You heard it here first.)
I didn’t get to do as much in the area of emergency communications in 2007 as I’d hoped. Classes had to take precedence over meetings and nets once school started again. I might try to participate in Field Day this year, since I’ll actually have battery power to work with (I have a deep cycle marine battery, but I’m still working on powerpoles for everything). The state ARES conference was again scheduled on a Saturday when the Badgers were playing at home, so I missed that again… sigh.
So what about 2008? I’m making a trip to AES to get a microphone within the next couple of weeks, so I can experiment on 10 meter phone. I’d like to say this is the year I’ll get going with the code, but I have Spanish and Trigonometry to worry about this spring. I’ll be at the next Dane County ARES/RACES meeting (17 January 2008), so I can get updated and official, as well as the next Midwest SSTRC meeting (21 Jan 2008). Other than that, I’m going to be busy with school until May, so the best I can do is make it a resolution for 2008 to get on the air a little more. Best I can do for now!
Happy New Year, all!
