[CQ-Contest] Important Issues

[Jim Smith]

VE7FO's no-ticket newbies will be out in full force, well, LP force into 
a TH3, in CQ WW SSB.  At the moment, of the 7 scheduled newbie ops from 
my club's Basic Licence class, 6 are women.  See 
http://members.shaw.ca/jimsmith/Index.htm if you're interested in seeing 
what we're doing.

73, Jim   VE7FO

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

>What I rarely hear is why ham radio seems to be so unattractive to women 
>in the 50-80 year old age brackets.  I'm certain that less than 2% of those
>making contest contacts are women, and yet women in the 50-80 year old 
>age bracket should have all the same life circumstances as the men that 
>are attracted to radio at that age.  Fundamentally, I don't see why women of
>that age couldn't have as much fun in ham radio as at bridge tournaments or
>cook-offs or any of a number of other competitive activities.
>
>I think attracting women to radio and contesting would be a more effective 
>way to increase the ranks than trying to appeal to kids who generally 
>cannot afford the expense of the hobby.
>
>  
>