I've been here a few years now, and listened to a lot that has been
said and done.

I've come up with some ideas about how we might attract people to the
ARS. What I think will work, and what won't work.

What won't work:

Bitch, Bitch, Bitch! There are a number of hams that have an amazing,
big chip on their shoulders. Everything is going to be the downfall of
Amateur radio. We eliminate Element one, and pretty soon we're all
worshiping Satan and registered Democrats. Yeah, that's a way to attract
new people! If your that unhappy, turn your license in and then you'll
finally be satisfied. But it's kind of like Abe Lincon said "people are
just about as happy as they make up their minds to be". Your anger is
your addiction.

If we can only make it simple enough! Want to attract kids? Make the
tests so simple that anyone can pass them. Well this worked well with
the Citizens band didn't it? The world is full of examples of things
that have been improved by making them really easy, isn't it? Want to
see a kid get rid of a video game? Give him or her one that is real easy
to beat. It will be traded in in no time. A game that is just difficult
enough will keep 'em busy for a long time. If there is no intellectual
investment in the hobby, then there is no intellectual investment in the
hobby. A challenge is not a bad thing.


The Freakin' Sky is Fallin' Man! Get the wagons in a circle, and man
the phasers! Mixed metaphors on purpose. If a prospective ham looks into
the hobby, and they see a multitude of ARRL and others crying wolf, they
just might decide they want to spend their time on an avocation that has
a future. I'm glad I didn't see the "overwhelming band threats" when I
was getting started. That there are threats, inadvertent and purposeful
is not the issue. The stridency and panic factor is.


I am the Great TEchNoDwEEb!!!! I remember when I was a rank General, I
almost gave up on ever putting together a station because I was pretty
well convinced it was impossible. After all, Those dipoles suck they
don't work DX and you have to have them up a hundred feet in the air the
Verticals suck because they aren't efficient and you have to be crazy to
put in a ground rod because radials are the only way to go and you have
to dig up your whole yard to put in radials and if you don't have at
least 120 of the darn things at a quarter wavelength the antenna won't
work for a darn and you have to use coax because ladderline is sensitive
to moisture and you'll lose all your power in the tuner and besides it's
so old school but the coax sucks because you have to make an antenna for
the specific band but traps suck because they don't use all the wire in
an antennas and who the heck ever thought you could put a stinkin' hf
antenna on a car and ever hope to work anyone with it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh..... G5RV's suck and are great too!

Now what I think will work. I have to say think, because I haven't seen
much of it lately.

Show a newbie that it is fun. Let them make a DX contact with you as a
control op. If they are shy to talk, maybe that keyboard and PSK31 might
be a catalyst!

Hmm, PSK31? Let them see that the ARS is involved with computers. Not
just logging and antenna design programs, but they can work the world
with 'em! Show them the multitude of modes available, but not
everything. You want them to be able to discover some stuff by
themselves. Give 'em a few links to good websites that have

Show them you're proud of being an amateur. Let them get a sense of the
excitement of talking around the world on a few watts, or even the joy
of putting out a big signal with that linear and the glowing tubes in it.

Maybe they have a competitive streak. Let them work in a contest if you
can. One of the greatest things done for me as a neophyte was for the
club I belong to to let me do a lot of operating in a contest or two
when I was still a technician. It took me a while to realize that the
control op was a lot better than me, and I was dragging the scoring down
a bit, but I was hooked, and now am reasonably proficient as well as
having gone for the higher level licenses. That is one reason why I am
happy to spend the daytime operating at field day as the control op for
the GOTA station. I want to repay the kindness.

But most importantly, they need you to let them know how much fun it
is, and to not belabor them with the complaining that we so often fall
into "Those darn people that want to eliminate the Morse code test will
be the downfall of Amateur radio" is not something the prospective ham
wants to hear, as well as " We're going to get rid of that stupid code
test, and those old fuddy duddies are just going to have to live with
it" isn't going to help either.

Be enthusiastic, friendly and do good work.

- Mike KB3EIA -