[CQ-Contest] Will there be anyone to work in 20 years?

Thu May 30 10:28:40 EDT 2013

Similar Situation.

Go figure the guy (ME) that has limited income, what does he do? He has 
TWO hobbies that can be and now days mostly are expensive to do.

Radio, & Astronomy.

These two hobbies are very similar in nature. for the most part they are 
indeed hobbies one does alone.

And entry level Radios, and Telescopes are priced similar a few hundred 
bucks.

Then the top of the line stuff can be very expensive. Telescopes can 
make Radio equipment look like garage sale prices. Like $20,000.00 
bucks! And just like radio  that is just the scope. you still can spend 
thousands on prerferial support equipment. Like top of the line 
Eyepieces. Without them the scope can not be used. You look through the 
eyepiece. Top of the line ones can easily cost several hundred dollars 
just for one. And you need many to fully utilize the capabilities of the 
scope.

Analogy  Radio = Antenns,,  Telescope = Eyepieces.

And everything is similar ya got radios and telescopes,  ya got Towers 
and antennas,  and outside shelters for the telescopes. computers for 
both. as well as tons of other perferial support equipments.

I fount the two hobbies are complimentary, daytime play radio, cloudy 
nights play radio, clear nights use telescope.

There are clubs for each.
There are organizations that support and promote both like the ARRL for 
Amateur Radio, and the Astronomical League for Astronomy.

Thing is even tho the estimated population of Amateur Astronomers is 
hard to determine, (no license required and able to track) the latest 
estimate from the Astronomical league say that the population in the USA 
is between 300,000 and 400,000 people are interested in Astronomy, as a 
hobby more than just the casual interest, in other words just like the 
level of interest of someone interested in radio and was interested 
enough to get their license.

Even more similarities are
Amateur Radio has "HOA's" and CC&R's that restrict their ability to do 
the hobby,
Astronomy has Light pollution.

But there is one BIG difference that i see between the two.

Amateur Radio has more licensed in the hobby than it has ever had in 
history, yet all ya hear is how it is a dead hobby, and need to get more 
people involved. or it will surely die soon. 700,000+ licenced in USA alone

Astronomy maybe only has 300,000 to 400,000 in the hobby in the USA,  
yet the hobby is thriving and you never ever hear about it dieing. The 
only thing you hear is to be really serious about it you have to now 
either live where there are no lights, or spend hours driving to one 
hoping for good weather.

Imagine having to every time you wanted to use your radios having to do 
it AKA Field Day style! Where you can't do it where you live and you 
have to drive 500 miles to set up and play radio, thats what probably 
90% of amateur astronomers now have to do.

Yet I have yet to hear one compliant about the hobby dieing and needing 
to get more people interested.

Interesting huh?

Joe WB9SBD

On 5/29/2013 12:11 PM, David Gilbert wrote:
>
> Ham radio had that kind of appeal fifty years ago because for most of 
> us it was the best way to get something done (i.e., communicate around 
> the world).  That no longer is even close to being true, and ham radio 
> now falls into the category of a niche hobby like model boat building, 
> fly tying, crossword puzzles, bird watching, quilting, guitar playing, 
> or fishing.  The problem is that thousands of those exist and most 
> even offer competition in one form or another.  Your description is 
> completely accurate for most of us, but it is not just "dated" ... 
> it's ancient history and your premise that it offers appeal for newer 
> generations doesn't hold at all.  It would be like somebody telling us 
> we should use oiled paper for windows because it lets in so much more 
> light than does a solid wall, and how "magic" it is when the light is 
> right so that we can actually make out the landscape outside ... when 
> glass gets the job done so much better in almost all conditions. 
> People who want to communicate want to communicate, not put in a lot 
> of effort and pay a lot of money for the meager possibility to do it 
> poorly.
>
> I think that's where a lot of hams go wrong ... they don't realize 
> that the majority of the younger generations actually want to 
> communicate and interact in depth and couldn't care less about the 
> mechanism of doing so.
>
> In all reality, that probably is more the case with us than we tend to 
> recognize.  I will bet that the average amateur radio operator spends 
> far more time communicating via other means (cell phone, texting, 
> email, etc) than they do by ham radio, and I'll even bet that the 
> average subscriber to this reflector spends more aggregate hours each 
> year reading and responding to these posts than they do actually 
> operating in a contest.  A wisp of a signal emerging from the 
> background noise is magic to us, but other media that allow 
> simultaneous sharing of voice, pictures, and music in real time in 
> conversational quality with anyone in the world are going to win out 
> every time.  And when you consider the relative depth, visual 
> environment, richness of competition, and cost of participation for 
> video games versus a ham radio contest, there is simply no comparison.
>
> I truly love radiosport, but at least I recognize that it is a legacy 
> infliction that wouldn't even exist if I were a generation or two 
> younger.  When I was a teen, nobody had to recruit me to ham radio.  I 
> was technically inclined and fascinated by the possibility to 
> communicate with the world.  For us to think that today's teens ... 
> with the mountains of information available to them ... are too lazy, 
> ignorant, or ill informed to make similar choices just seems illogical 
> to me.  We may acquire a few converts, but they're going to be in the 
> same category as those drawn to clock making or classic car restoring.
>
> 73,
> Dave   AB7E
>
>
>
> On 5/28/2013 2:42 PM, Radio K0HB wrote:
>> Here is something that I wrote a couple decades back --- it's a tad 
>> "dated"
>> now, but I think the central premise holds...
>>
>> Dit dit,
>>
>> Hans, K0HB
>>
>> -------------------------------------------------------11
>>
>>
>> What is Ham Radio, and How do I get started?
>>
>> - A short introduction by Hans Brakob, K0HB
>>
>> (I have to explain something you might not have realized. In doing 
>> so, I'm
>> going to paraphrase something written by Steve Ford, WB8IMY, in his
>> introduction to a book entitled "The ARRL Operating Manual".)
>>
>> In case you didn't know, belief in magic is a necessary requirement 
>> for all
>> Amateur Radio operators. Of course, you won't see a question concerning
>> magic or metaphysics on the test you take to obtain your license, but in
>> your heart you will come to believe in that powerful, intangible force.
> <snip>
>
>
>
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