I just got through reading the comments on eHam.net regarding the dropping of the CW requirement for HF priviledges. At first, I thought it was a step backwards, but I’m over that. Now, I think it’s probably a step forward. It will attract new hams, and that can’t be bad for the hobby.
Not only that, I think that many “no coders” will find their way onto the CW portion of the bands. Without an amp, phone operation is going to be less than satisfying, and using an amp is both an expense that not everyone can afford and a hassle (increased chance of TVI, etc.) Besides, CW really can be fun!
That being the case, it’s going to be up to the current crop of CW ops — including me — to both welcome the new guys and help them along as they get their feet wet. I don’t know exactly how we’re going to do that, but it will be worth the effort.
A couple of months ago, I worked a guy on 20m CW and he was kind of slow, but we had a nice chat. He made some sending mistakes, but I tried to stay patient and encouraging.
A couple days later, I got a QSL from him that really made my day. It read:
“Dan, Been a ham for 13 years and have never made a CW contact. I have hated it, but for some reason just really started to fall in love with it. I am still very sloppy, but continue to try. This is my first CW QSL card, and I will cherish yours. I don’t keep many, but yours in on the wall.”
How cool, eh?
The point is that we’re going to need to be patient with these ops and encourage them. Slow down to whatever speed they’re capable of receiving and make it a good QSO for them. If we can do that, we’ll win over at least some new CW ops, if not many of them.
Leave a Reply