Amateur Radio is Alive and Well, and That is Good News For You
"The reports of my death," Mark Twain once famously quipped, "are greatly exaggerated."
If you listen and read the comments offered in recent years, you'd swear that amateur radio is on life support, or worse. Kids just aren't interested anymore, so the story goes, and why should they be? With the internet, cell phones, and computer games, young people have too many other "fun" things to do and can communicate with just about anyone in the world instantaneously. Where in the world does amateur radio fit anymore?
Good question. True, the hobby has gone through great changes in recent years. The advent of sophisticated equipment has eliminated the need for building one's own station. Plug and play is the norm today. (Although many amateur radio operators-"hams" to us-still build their own mini radios, antennas, and other equipment.)
No, the days when a young boy-and it often was a boy back then-built his simple Morse code radio, tossed a wire in the nearby tree, and sent his dits and dashes all over the country are pretty much over. But amazingly many young people, boys and girls alike, are getting into the hobby. Sure, they still tinker at home, but these spirited young people also contribute to their communities, and in the process derive as much or more satisfaction as before. As a result, there has been a slight uptick in licenses issued in recent months. There are more than 660,000 ham radio operators in the United States today.
Public service is extremely important to amateur radio operators, who regularly volunteer to help their fellow citizens. They provide much-needed communications support for charity walks and runs. But where hams really shine is during crises; those catastrophic events that so devastate a community or region as to tax its every resource. Amateur radio operators stand ready to respond any time of day, seven days a week. Among the more recent disasters, hams have provided additional communication support during:
• Hurricane Katrina
• Hurricanes that hit Texas in 2008
Most recently they assisted in and around Fargo, N.D., as that area struggled to deal with horrific flooding caused by the Red River.
How do they fit in? Recall that ham radio operators have their own equipment and the necessary frequency bands. A disaster, natural or manmade, requires a great influx of manpower and material. Amateur radio operators offer both. They bring their radios and other equipment, and by teaming with officials from the Red Cross, Salvation Army, or other relief agencies, are able to offer a tremendous amount of assistance to those running emergency operations.
While most of the radio communications is devoted to local needs, during larger events like Katrina some hams will forward messages to family members outside the affected zone. This helps bring relief to loved ones living in other parts of the country.
The next time you're riding your bike to raise money for cancer research or some other noble cause, tip your helmet to the many ham radio operators who selflessly give of their time to help make your event a successful one. Look around: You may even spot a young person at the rest stop or finish line. They represent the future-yes, the future-of amateur radio.
By: Tom Fuszard
About the Author:
If you listen and read the comments offered in recent years, you'd swear that amateur radio is on life support, or worse. Kids just aren't interested anymore, so the story goes, and why should they be? With the internet, cell phones, and computer games, young people have too many other "fun" things to do and can communicate with just about anyone in the world instantaneously. Where in the world does amateur radio fit anymore?
Good question. True, the hobby has gone through great changes in recent years. The advent of sophisticated equipment has eliminated the need for building one's own station. Plug and play is the norm today. (Although many amateur radio operators-"hams" to us-still build their own mini radios, antennas, and other equipment.)
No, the days when a young boy-and it often was a boy back then-built his simple Morse code radio, tossed a wire in the nearby tree, and sent his dits and dashes all over the country are pretty much over. But amazingly many young people, boys and girls alike, are getting into the hobby. Sure, they still tinker at home, but these spirited young people also contribute to their communities, and in the process derive as much or more satisfaction as before. As a result, there has been a slight uptick in licenses issued in recent months. There are more than 660,000 ham radio operators in the United States today.
Public service is extremely important to amateur radio operators, who regularly volunteer to help their fellow citizens. They provide much-needed communications support for charity walks and runs. But where hams really shine is during crises; those catastrophic events that so devastate a community or region as to tax its every resource. Amateur radio operators stand ready to respond any time of day, seven days a week. Among the more recent disasters, hams have provided additional communication support during:
• Hurricane Katrina
• Hurricanes that hit Texas in 2008
Most recently they assisted in and around Fargo, N.D., as that area struggled to deal with horrific flooding caused by the Red River.
How do they fit in? Recall that ham radio operators have their own equipment and the necessary frequency bands. A disaster, natural or manmade, requires a great influx of manpower and material. Amateur radio operators offer both. They bring their radios and other equipment, and by teaming with officials from the Red Cross, Salvation Army, or other relief agencies, are able to offer a tremendous amount of assistance to those running emergency operations.
While most of the radio communications is devoted to local needs, during larger events like Katrina some hams will forward messages to family members outside the affected zone. This helps bring relief to loved ones living in other parts of the country.
The next time you're riding your bike to raise money for cancer research or some other noble cause, tip your helmet to the many ham radio operators who selflessly give of their time to help make your event a successful one. Look around: You may even spot a young person at the rest stop or finish line. They represent the future-yes, the future-of amateur radio.
By: Tom Fuszard
About the Author:
Tom Fuszard, KF9PU, has been a ham radio operator for more than 15 years. He regularly participates in charity rides in the greater Milwaukee area. Tom blogs frequently at Squidoo.com; this column is based upon a lens, http://www.squidoo.com/amateur-radio-and-you, he wrote recently.