[50mhz] A leter to President Haynie concerning entry level proposal

peter markavage manualman at juno.com
Wed Jan 11 12:21:40 EST 2006


It may or may not make any difference. He comes up for reelection in less
than 2 weeks. An entry level license that allows access to more of the HF
bands is a good thing. Settling in to only the VHF/UHF region of the
amateur spectrum can lead to a blurred vision of the entire amateur radio
service.

Pete, wa2cwa

On Wed, 11 Jan 2006 09:54:38 -0600 "John  Geiger (NE0P)" <ne0p at lcisp.com>
writes:
> Here is a letter I just email to ARRL President Haynie concerning his 
> recent comments about the need for an entry level HF license.  If 
> you feel the same as me, maybe you could drop his a line as well.  
> 
> Dear President Haynie,
> 
> I am writing you regarding some comments of yours about proposing an 
> entry level HF license which were reprinted in Worldradio.  Since I 
> am reading the Worldradio copy of them, I apologize in advance if I 
> am misstating something you said since I am getting them from a 
> secondhand source.
> 
> You refer to a "Two-meter ghetto" which I fully agree with, as 2 
> meter FM is a very segregated and limiting mode of operation.  I 
> agree that limiting oneself to 2 meter FM quickly causes many new 
> amateurs to lose interest and leave the hobby.
> 
> However, you also state "to only open the door ajar to allow for 2M 
> operations for new licensees doesn't go far enough".  This is the 
> statement which I take issue with.  Last time I checked the FCC 
> rules, Technician licensees were allow to operate on all frequencies 
> above 50mhz, at up to 1.5KW PEP output.  I believe that the problem 
> is not with the privileges given the Technician class license, but 
> how we advertise and promote the license.  There is no reason why 
> any Technician licensee should limit themself to 2 meter FM, except 
> out of ignorance.
> 
> I have held an Extra class license since 1984, but in the past few 
> years, 75% of my operating is on frequencies available to the 
> technician class license, and I don't feel that I am being limited 
> in any way.  This has been by choice instead.  I have 2 friends 
> locally (1 a general class and 1 an extra class) who show similar 
> patterns of operating.  The frequencies available to the Technician 
> class ham show a wonderful variety of operating activities and 
> opportunities.  My preference recently has been for 6 meter SSB and 
> satellite operation, both of which are available for Technician 
> class hams.  Getting on either one of these operating modes is less 
> expensive and easier than getting on HF.
> 
> I have worked all states on 6 meters from my current location in 
> Lawton, OK, and have worked 49 states on 6 from my previous QTH in 
> Iowa (lacking KH6).  I have worked around 425 grid squares on 6 from 
> this QTH, and have 29 DXCC countries worked on this band.  On 
> satellites I have worked 45 states, 130 grids, and 9 DXCC countries. 
>  On 2 meters I have worked 39 states, and have my 2 meter VUCC with 
> a 125 grid endorsement.  So you see that Technician privileges do 
> not limit one in terms of working beyond the line of sight, or even 
> for DX.  Last year (2005) I worked 8 different DXCC countries on 6 
> meters.
> 
> My station is not something that is beyond the reach of any newcomer 
> to ham radio.  I am using a Yaesu FT100D with a 2 element mini 
> products Miniquad on 6, a Cushcraft 10 element yagi on 2 meters, and 
> a Cushcraft 19 element yagi on 70cm.  All antennas are mounted on 
> radio shack tripods using radio shack TV rotors.  I have never run 
> more than 180 watts on 2 meters, and more than 100 watts on 6 or 
> 70cm.  My total investiment in this setup is around $1000.  
> 
> I help teach an amateur licensing course once or twice a year, and I 
> always try to promote what you can do with a Technician license, and 
> cite some of the above accomplishments I have made on those 
> frequencies.  I find that the "Now You're Talking" book which most 
> hams use as a study guide is slanted much too heavily towards 2 
> meter FM.  That is probably a large part of the problem for too many 
> new hams believing that they are limited to 2 meter FM or as you put 
> it "only opening the door ajar."  We need to educate these hams on 
> what they can do with a Technician class license, rather than what 
> they can't do with it.  We need to more effectively promote how easy 
> it is to get on amateur satellites, and the weak signal VHF/UHF 
> modes.  I have been very successful on the amateur satellites 
> WITHOUT using elevation rotors, circularly polarized antennas, or 
> rotors interfaced with software for automatic tracking.  In fact, I 
> have worked many hams on AO51, AO27, and SO50 who are using 
>  HTs. We need to make this known to new hams who may feel 
> intimidated by some of the setups they see for satellite operation, 
> and believe that a large complicated setup is needed. 
> 
> In closing, I also find it interesting that the ARRL now is 
> interested in bringing back a Novice license.  We had a Novice 
> license up until 2000, and from 1991-2000 the ARRL virtually ignored 
> it as a point of entry in favor of the Technician license.  I always 
> felt that that was a mistake on the ARRL's part, and still feel that 
> way.
> 
> 73s John Geiger NE0P 


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