Foundations of Amateur Radio

In our hobby we regularly talk about its purpose, its need, its usefulness and other potentially abstract notions. Often there's a nod towards science, learning, self-discovery, challenge, emergency service or some other higher order concept. I know I've discussed many of those over the years and encouraged you to find what the hobby means to you.

There is one aspect of our hobby that's pretty much left unsaid. It's left unsaid because it's obvious, since radio is about communication at its heart, the idea that we use our radios for communication is ingrained and unheralded. You might find a few new amateurs talking about how they made their first contact on the local repeater, or how they want to use the hobby to stay in touch when they're out and about.

It occurred to me the other day that much of the world is subject to travel restrictions and social or physical distancing requirements. There's places that are in total lock-down and whilst there are strong recommendations for people over 70 to stay completely isolated, that's not yet a requirement where I live. It might come to that, but at the moment the COVID-19 pandemic is changing habits and communities on an hourly basis.

Technology is often sought as a solution. There's plenty of video-conferences being held. Local amateur clubs are going online to stay in touch with members while face-to-face meetings are off the menu. Then there's the ongoing access to social media, blogs, discussion groups, mailing lists and the like.

There are a few brave radio clubs using something a little less technical. The radio. Shock, horror, imagine that, an amateur radio club using an actual, you know radio, to talk to each other. I must admit that communication via radio, as obvious as that sounds isn't always the first thing that comes to mind. I've lost count of the number of times when at the local club one member stood outside yelling back into the shack which way the rotator on the Yagi was pointing whilst adjustments were being made - turns out that the rotator was spinning on the mast in the wind. Took a concerted effort, seriously, to actually turn on a hand-held radio and talk to each other, like civilised people.

On the weekend during F-troop, a weekly net for new and returning amateurs, I also asked how people were doing given the social isolation that is pervasive.

I also started toying with the idea of running an F-troop every day, then I scaled it back to every Wednesday and Saturday and then it occurred to me that the power to host a net is in the thumb of any amateur clicking their push to talk button and I finally settled on continuing the normal activity of hosting F-troop on Saturday morning at 00:00 UTC for an hour.

I understand that in a technically connected world with cheap internet and fully functional gadgets like smart phones, the idea of going back to radio might seem like a step backwards, but I'd like to point out that we're radio amateurs. That's like being a chef and ordering take-out when you have a fully stocked kitchen.

If you're experienced in this hobby you'll know that nobody needs to grant you permission to host a net, but if you're new here you might not. So, to you I say: "You don't need permission to host a net, so get to it."

There are some things I've learnt since starting F-troop nearly a decade ago. Start small. Depending on the skill-level of the participants, choose an option for hosting it. F-troop is run with a single net-controller, often that's me, and the role of net-control directs who's next to talk. If you're just playing around, the tried and true version is a round-robin net. You'll need to pay attention a little better because you'll need to know who comes after you so you can hand the call to them. There are also variations on this, but again, start small.

I track contacts in a spreadsheet, but a piece of paper is just fine. Writing down all the stations you hear is a great idea, since it helps you keep track of who's said what. You can add information as it comes to hand. If the net is on HF you might record the signal strength you see when you're listening to each station, as well as the name and location or QTH.

Pro-Tip, use a new piece of paper for each net and put a date on it. Future you will love you for it.

My point is that there should be absolutely no impediment to getting on air, making noise and breaking isolation from the comfort of your own shack.

I'm Onno VK6FLAB