I see a lot of people smitten with the concept of ham radio as a novelty or as something incredibly simple. And it is - but it also isn't. The proliferation of cheap, almost disposable, Chi-Com radios has brought a lot of people to the hobby (guilty) but it also has served to discredit the technical aspects.
I give to you a recent event as an example. I have a guy that I know from another forum, a ham radio forum (not plugging it here). I live out north of Phoenix and he was travelling to a ranch just 6 miles north of the Mexican border with the US near Bisbee. He got into ham because this particular area of the state is much the same as it was when the first Winchester 1873 came riding through town in a saddle scabbard. No cell phone coverage - AT ALL. No dial up at the ranch. Only a ham radio. The people here live every day in a world that you and I only consider possible after a TEOTWAWKI event. And it is normal for them.
So this guy... He's worried about being able to call for help or what we call EmComm (EMergency COMMunications).
Over the course of a week, prior to his trip, he and I coordinate with the help of other hams to pick a set of repeaters that will work together. When he got into town, I reached out to hit the K7EAR 2 Meter Releater on Mt. Lemmon in Tucson - 114 miles from my home. He got on another K7EAR 2 Meter Repeater near Bisbee / Mule Mountain. That repeater was 100 miles from my repeater and another 25 to 30 miles to him. He and I were able to talk back and forth as though he was sitting next to me. No harsh signal. No static. No fading audio. Just 200+ miles of clean, clear, crisp two meter FM transmission.
I benefitted greatly from the exercise because I learned about antennas, altitude and linked repeaters in my area. He learned that not only could he reach the repeater in Bisbee (Population 5,000) for assistance if he needed it, but that his signal could be bounced into Eastern Phoenix / Scottsdale / Mesa and reach about a million people.
Now I know that not all of those 1 million people are hams. Only about 0.3% of the population are. But he is able to hit a number of fire, search and rescue outfits and if the ham population really is 0.3%, wouldn't you have a better chance in hitting one in a population of 1M (probably 30 hams) versus 5k (maybe 3 hams)?
So this is the reason I tell people, don't just buy a ham radio and think you will start using it when the SHTF. Get your license. Study the concepts. Understand what the equipment does - not just your equipment but the equipment that you can "borrow" via repeater networks. Anyone can pick up a radio, key the mic and start calling for help - but that's like 911 having an unlisted 9 digit telephone number. You can keep dialing until you get the police. Or you can know the number for 911, pick up the phone and call them on the first try - that's knowing how ham radio works.
I give to you a recent event as an example. I have a guy that I know from another forum, a ham radio forum (not plugging it here). I live out north of Phoenix and he was travelling to a ranch just 6 miles north of the Mexican border with the US near Bisbee. He got into ham because this particular area of the state is much the same as it was when the first Winchester 1873 came riding through town in a saddle scabbard. No cell phone coverage - AT ALL. No dial up at the ranch. Only a ham radio. The people here live every day in a world that you and I only consider possible after a TEOTWAWKI event. And it is normal for them.
So this guy... He's worried about being able to call for help or what we call EmComm (EMergency COMMunications).
Over the course of a week, prior to his trip, he and I coordinate with the help of other hams to pick a set of repeaters that will work together. When he got into town, I reached out to hit the K7EAR 2 Meter Releater on Mt. Lemmon in Tucson - 114 miles from my home. He got on another K7EAR 2 Meter Repeater near Bisbee / Mule Mountain. That repeater was 100 miles from my repeater and another 25 to 30 miles to him. He and I were able to talk back and forth as though he was sitting next to me. No harsh signal. No static. No fading audio. Just 200+ miles of clean, clear, crisp two meter FM transmission.
I benefitted greatly from the exercise because I learned about antennas, altitude and linked repeaters in my area. He learned that not only could he reach the repeater in Bisbee (Population 5,000) for assistance if he needed it, but that his signal could be bounced into Eastern Phoenix / Scottsdale / Mesa and reach about a million people.
Now I know that not all of those 1 million people are hams. Only about 0.3% of the population are. But he is able to hit a number of fire, search and rescue outfits and if the ham population really is 0.3%, wouldn't you have a better chance in hitting one in a population of 1M (probably 30 hams) versus 5k (maybe 3 hams)?
So this is the reason I tell people, don't just buy a ham radio and think you will start using it when the SHTF. Get your license. Study the concepts. Understand what the equipment does - not just your equipment but the equipment that you can "borrow" via repeater networks. Anyone can pick up a radio, key the mic and start calling for help - but that's like 911 having an unlisted 9 digit telephone number. You can keep dialing until you get the police. Or you can know the number for 911, pick up the phone and call them on the first try - that's knowing how ham radio works.
...and if I can do it - ANYONE can do it...
Seriously, people. I ain't that sharp.
Seriously, people. I ain't that sharp.
