POTA's Big Announcement: NEW Parks on the Air Plaque Event

Have any of you read over the (The Considerate Operator’s Frequency Guide ) I am sure the true ham radio operators have but many that have gotten there amateur radio license in the last 10 years may have not heard of it or read it. It is an written agreement between courteous operators that laid out how we share the frequencies' Now it is not a rule, not set in stone, but a gentleman's agreement. In that agreement it shows what portions of a band is used by a particular mode, Phone, Ditigatal, and CW. It does also states these are not regulations and occasionally during high activity , an emergency response, Dxpeditions and contests may result in operators operating out of the prescribed areas. The word Occasionally, what does that mean, does it mean once a year, once a month, once a week? We are having contests now at least once a week and sometimes more than that. Many more contests than they were when this agreement was written.

We have so many contests they have on occasion interfered with emergency communications, and emergency communications is the number one priority of Amateur radio, and it is that reason alone the FCC is allowing us to exist.

Some of you are thinking the number one reason for Amateur radio is for a hobby, for contesting, well sorry to inform you it is not.

We have been able to get by with this agreement for many years, but now with constant contesting going on and some contesters are not being courteous and transmitting where they please it does cause undue interference to normal operations. If we do not change our ways the FCC may step in and reallocate the frequencies for us and it will possibly be a decision no one will be happy with.

This is the reason I feel we have more than enough contests and if we keep adding more it will be to our detriment.

https://www.arrl.org/files/file/conop.pdf

 

Nonsense. Public service is but one of the five stated purposes of amateur radio, according to Part 97. Public service is not specified or implied as being of greater or lesser purpose that the other four.

 

POTA are worse than the Contesters !!!

 

POTA are worse than the Contesters

 

That is all we need. Clog the bands up even more with additional contests. NOT!

 

I wonder what the FCC thinks of 7.200 mhz, many nights, versus what they think of contests? And yet no one at the FCC reins the 7.200 crowd in, apparently. I would say they act like frat boys but I'm pretty sure most of those hams wouldn't have passed the entry exams for any university.
As long as those guys are on the air, I'd say slightly discourteous contesters are fairly safe!!

 

You mean, I've been cleaning people's windshields for free at traffic lights all these years, for nothing?!

 

You make a good point.

 

THIS. Couldn't have said it any better.

 

I agree with the basic premise, but this:

is far from it's 'purpose'. In fact, it's but a small, small part of the big picture.

And the big picture is that Amateur Radio no longer has any 'real' purpose. Let's face the facts.

So, let's just have fun while it lasts, however you like to.

 

An inconvenient truth. Once in a great while a ham saves the day, but it's extremely rare. It isn't 1955 anymore.

 

I bring mine in through the water hose port. No holes to drill, no worries about messing things up.

 

Right........just a weekend!! No big deal at all!!

 

That is great for anyone interested in participating!

I helped volunteer to set up a massive mast next to our Air Force radio unit for Radio Day back around 1996 and 1997 for Snohomish County participants. I was not licensed at the time, but I was happy to help in their efforts.

For those naysayers who feel this new idea and opportunity is not worth posting, that is all you.

Thank you for providing an opportunity to those that are seeking recognition!

73
AK2WA (Hal)

 

When activating I always TRY to work the weaker signals and ignore the 5/9+20's if I can, until I can't hear the weaker ones any more. But... Sometimes you have to acknowledge those big boomer stations first just to get them to stop splattering everyone else. 1500w from Tennessee to get Ohio is a bit much. I don't not like the higher power, it's just most hunters are 100w or less, and most, not all, P2P are QRP.