[CQ-Contest] MMSN and keeping 14.300 clear

[VR2BrettGraham]

The yachtie net 5B4AIZ described in R1 is similar to what we have
here in R3.  14320 is the frequency used & from having been involved
with them off & on over the years (I used to sail a lot, friends then
were sailing around the region, I also used to share a flat with the
bloke in charge of search & rescue for a good chunk of the South
China Sea, of course many hams are R/Os & we have a very busy
container port so I've had a little exposure to some of the players in
the safety-at-sea radio game over past 20 years) & what goes on there
is exactly like what 5B4AIZ described.

Except that everyone on the net isn't a licensed ham, based on how
they operate or their self-assigned TI or HP call signs.  Some would
even use those calls on the hard - we even had a no-code VS6 who
did this from home.  The only regular who was a real ham was one of
the net controls.

Now that point might explain something - out here, at least when I
was still active, this lot didn't think 14320 was theirs or that what
they're doing is so important that everybody else needs to give way.

Are the yachties in R2 largely licensed amateurs?  Or is it that the
licensed amateurs who are involved with the yachties in R2 have got it
into their heads that they're part of this emcom thing that has become
the latest hot topic in the world of ham radio politics?

Because of its North American origin, the R2 emcom type dominates
this web site, but at least one was found in R1 (see piece dated
2005-08-20 at http://www.hamsexy.com/week14.html ;^).

73, ex-VR2BG/p.