[UK-CONTEST] Re Decline in VHF/UHF contest activity

[Andy Cunningham]

Tim H
> We have terrible problems with M3/M6's using FM in the beacon bands 
> because they are not taught or just don't care about weak signal work, 
> if you ask them to move all you get is verbal abuse, its almost made me 
> inoperative apart from reading the RSGB news...
>
> Tim M0AFJ/G8GGP
>   
Not taught - almost certainly.  Don't care - yeah, there's a minority 
that spoil it for everyone.

The problem with the Foundation Licence is that in an effort to make it 
easy enough to attract newcomers it doesn't give you everything you need 
to be a good operator without either good self-learning skills or a 
local mentor.  There's something to be said for the US licence terms 
where operation in compliance with the band plan is a legal licence 
requirement and not just a best practice.

I can't comment on the standard of Foundation Licence tuition; I read 
the book and turned up and did the assessment and exam.  That was in 
January this year, and I start the M0 course on Monday.  I'm not the 
only person on that course who didn't have a callsign on 1st January 
this year, and the entire 2E0 course group at RADARC in the summer were 
co-operative and technically motivated - the characteristics of a good 
amateur in many eyes.   I can comment on the standard and attitude of 
the tutors around here in general, which is as good as, if not better 
than, most professional tuition I've received in my career.

I don't have a problem with M3s who stay at the level because they don't 
have the ability/confidence to progress, or who only want to work a bit 
of QRP, or even chat on the local repeaters - they're underused for the 
most part.  But when you hear stories of people being told "we don't let 
M3s use this repeater" you have to realise that the "bollocks to you 
mate" attitude pervades all levels of the hobby (and life in general, 
but that's for a debate over a beer in the pub some time), and it's not 
just the M3 fraternity.

Until Ofcom grow some teeth you'll always have people who abuse the 
rules, and the only recourse is to deal with them as best you can.  I 
expect to be told to "F*** off" if I challege a bunch of yobs kicking a 
shop window in, and if the same people get on the air then they're going 
to behave the same way.

What's this got to do with the decline in activity?  Not much, I 
suspect.  I'm not going to let a bunch of yobs spoil my hobby, but if I 
can't get the authorities to take them away in chains then I'll do it 
some place else until they've got bored.

Andy