Growing up, I watched my Dad's enthusiasm for Amateur Radio with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension. Whilst I was interested, I never imagined that I could participate myself, and I think that my lack of enthusiasm disappointed him. My congenital hearing loss made it difficult to follow conversations, and the thought of struggling to understand others on the airwaves felt daunting. However, over recent years my perspective has changed significantly, leading to me passing the Foundation Licence exam and getting my call sign this summer.
We had the internet at home from my mid-late teens, and I found it hard to find radios interesting when we have all this cool shit a few modem beeps away. When Skype came along any chance of playing radios went out of the window, it was obviously far superior. However, now in my mid-40s and in the middle of a career where I solve fun problems using web technologies, I do not want to sit at my desk and play with the same things when I am trying to relax at then end of the day. I also remember a time before we had the internet in our homes, let alone our pockets, and I would love to roll the clock back, but this is a topic for another day. So at this stage in life playing around with older technology actually sounds quite fun. I finally understand the appeal challenging myself to make contacts with people over long distances, preferably using gear that I have built myself.
One of the pivotal moments in my journey is discovering that CW (Morse Code) has recently become more popular, not less. This mode of communication, with its distinctive audible tones, requires a much narrower bandwidth than voice transmission. For someone like me, who faces challenges with auditory clarity, this is a game changer. The simplicity and clarity of CW signals mean that I can decode them much more easily than spoken words buried under the hiss of an RF signal.
Another aspect of Amateur Radio that interests me is portable operations. I love the great outdoors, and we holiday in the Lake District every year. It seems so obvious to combine these two interests at the same time. There are organised activities like Parks on the Air (POTA) and Summits on the Air (SOTA) which will help me get started. Again, it is particularly appealing that when we operate away from the hustle and bustle of civilization, we also minimise noise. The further we are from electrical interference, the less noisy the airwaves become, thus allowing me to (hopefully) better hear the signals when receiving.
The technical side of amateur radio is another area that interests me. This hobby aligns perfectly with my previous interests like building guitar distortion pedals. I find it peaceful to break out my soldering iron and assemble a kit project, similarly to those that find puzzles or sudoku relaxing. The long-term goal of designing and building a multi-band transceiver from scratch is an aspiration that feels both thrilling and, frankly, a bit ridiculous given my current lack of knowledge. I have a lot to learn, and this hobby is a continuous learning experience.
I am excited about where this journey will take me next.