[QCWA] 14 POINTS INFO:

[Paul L Schmidt]

Gene A. Nailon wrote:
> 
> First I'm going to post a QCWA numbers list.  It gives the start
> and stop number for each year back the the start of QCWA.  The
> main thing it shows is the number of new members signed up each
> year.

Interesting data.  Just curious - is there any corresponding
data about the average age of new hams for 25 years before
each of those years?

I was a kid when I was first licensed (1969), but a few years
after that was when CB's became the popular attraction for
many of the younger potential hams, followed by home computers.
During the '70s was also the time when things shifted from
U.S. manufacturers to nearly all imported radios, and homebrewing
nearly disappeared.`I don't remember when it was, but at some
point during those years, the ARRL seemed to conciously make a
point of shifting their recruiting from kids (with no money)
to those who had already raised their kids and had more
disposable income (to spend on those factory-built radios).

Is the decreased QCWA growth due, at least in part, to the
increased age of new hams during the last 35 years?  And if
so, is it an indication that recruiting should be shifted
back to the people instead of their money?