Not your Father's Oldsmobile... Ham Radio

http://www.ab0pc.org/gen_info.htm#qsigs - QSL?

Plain language is generally preferred, and is required for emergency communications for interoperability.

jf1acai do you operate much HF?

I usually operate 2 meter simplex, 80 and 20 meter SSB and 10 meter ssb. I try to check into the 2m SSB net on monday nights and the 430 ssb activity night on wednesdays- if I can remember.

I probably spend most my time on 80.

I have not done much with HF. I recently installed an HF vertical antenna (Eagle One) and plan to get more involved in HF as the weather curtails my outside activities

I primarily use 2 meter simplex/repeater and crossband on 440.300 to access the PCRC net on Wednesday nights.

How about the 9 codes?

Not sure what you mean by the 9 codes. If you are referring to the medical 9 codes, most medical information is transmitted digitally rather than by voice for both security and accuracy purposes.

As might be inferred from the above posts, one of the great things about Amateur Radio is the multitude of operating modes/frequencies/activities which are available.

There is truly something for everyone.

You should have some fun with that vertical. Sounds like you need a tuner to get it to work on 80 though.

I don't know how much room you have- are you in Park County or Golden? 80 meters is an interesting band during the day- with a dipole you can cover a good 400-600 miles around you on a pretty regular basis- I don't know why more of the emergency preparedness guys are not using that band.

I play around alot with building my own antennas- over the last 30 years I have built quite a few antenna's. My next project is going to be a giant loop antenna - probably around 1000 or more feet in length.

There's a group of guys spread all over Colorado that run 80 meters during the day- they hang out on 3.868. It's interesting to see 40 over signals from the western slope and southern co on a regular basis.

Yes there's about 1000 different facets of Amateur Radio - somthing for everyone. Many people are not aware- you can run up to 1500 watts of power- you can even have your own TV station.

I experimented with slow scan TV back in the 80's - had alot of fun with that.

We should try 2m simplex between our stations some time.

I do have a tuner, the LDG AT-897, which with the LDG RBA 4:1 Balun is supposed to give me coverage from 160 through 6 meters. I am starting with minimal radials, and plan to add a couple at a time as I play with it to see what difference it makes. Another thing I like about Amateur Radio - the opportunity to experiment! . The main limitation is time

I have built several 2m/70cm dual band antennas, but my primary antenna for that purpose is now a Diamond X50A - a great antenna!

I am in Golden, and have limited space for antennas, which is why I decided to try the vertical. ARES D6 used an HF NVIS antenna on 80m to provide communications between Jefferson Lake and Breckenridge for the Colorado Relay Race this summer, and it worked well.

We should try 2m simplex between our stations some time.

Good idea. I will PM you after the holiday to make arrangements.

Another interesting use of Ham Radio, brought to my attention by W0JEK:

Summits on the Air (SOTA) is an award scheme for radio amateurs and shortwave listeners that encourages portable operation in mountainous areas. SOTA has been carefully designed to make participation possible for everyone - this is not just for mountaineers! There are awards for activators (those who ascend to the summits) and chasers (who either operate from home, a local hilltop or are even Activators on other summits).

http://www.sota.org.uk/

A video made in our own back yard around 9/30/10:

[youtube:sf5z2lk2][/youtube:sf5z2lk2]

Thanks for the link, jf1acai. Some questions for you.

What is the point of climbing to the top and talking? Because he can? I thought he was going to set up a minitower or something with the goats carrying supplies.

What were all the little supplies for? Making his own ham radio or tower to link? Rather confusing to me.

Enjoyed his walk up the mountain.

Came back to ask another question. If you are interested in learning about ham radio what do you recommend?