Its ALL about fun!

[NightOwl3261]

Here is a post I have been wanting to post for some time. Its for CBers and Hammers alike.
The nature of radio is for one purpose and one purpose alone, its about fun. Some get there ticket and turn up there nose at CBers ( and most never do). But many of us started on 11 meters and many still venture there. Why for me? Its because 11 meters is still the wild wild west, and I love the wild wild west still to this day. For many it is cheap price of entry. A 2nd hand CB and an Antron strung in a tree and your good to go! I adore that this brings people into radio. When I was 14 years old in the 70's I asked for a base station for my birthday and off my love went for radio. It for me has been an on and off hobby that I continue to return to. My first base station in retrospect was a bare bones bottom end radio, but it was my radio. Now I can afford more, and on desk sits Icoms, Kenwoods, LDGs and yet sits an RCI right by their side. They all for me are fun in their own way. Yep my RCI has an echo, why not it makes it more fun.

I will never ever look down on 11 meters as I know that is where I came from. I Iove 11 meters for its simple ability to provide fun.
Yet I have state of the art equipment for more serious operations. And that too is fun just in other ways. The point of this post is not to remind anyone of anything, not to infer those with tickets are snobs because most are not, its meant to state one thing and one thing alone! "Its all about fun"! So turn on what you have and spin the dial and enjoy the simple act of an adult having fun. And for 11 meters let the wild wild west never die!


11 meters ROCK ON FOREVER...Y'all

 

[w9cll]

CB was fun and I did come from 11meters but I got seriously bored with it after 20 yesrs. It was nice talking to friends around town. I moved up and have never looked back, I don't like the wild West atmosphere of 11 meters. Too many over driven amps, audio cranked up way above distortion and just the general craziness.
11 meters has its place but not for me anymore

 

[357magnum]

What works for some ( Maybe Chris ) doesn't always work for all . Anyone that knows me , I have the utmost respect for w9 , he helped me here when I was a " Freshman " But I must mention this again ( & have recently in a thread ) maybe it's just RI ? Seems here a lot of Ham Op's still use 11m ? I don't get it ? Just had a QSO yesterday w/ a local , he's had his " Ticket " over 12 years , told me , He has more fun on 11M ? From what I monitor , it's just too " Clicky " here ? This is what stops me from taking the test . imo Stay Healthy & Safe ! 73 & God Bless ! Leo

 

[NightOwl3261]

What works for some ( Maybe Chris ) doesn't always work for all . Anyone that knows me , I have the utmost respect for w9 , he helped me here when I was a " Freshman " But I must mention this again ( & have recently in a thread ) maybe it's just RI ? Seems here a lot of Ham Op's still use 11m ? I don't get it ? Just had a QSO yesterday w/ a local , he's had his " Ticket " over 12 years , told me , He has more fun on 11M ? From what I monitor , it's just too " Clicky " here ? This is what stops me from taking the test . imo Stay Healthy & Safe ! 73 & God Bless ! Leo

Sometimes less formal is refreshing

 

[Slowmover]

The fun comes a variety of ways.

My “favorite” is in receiving the distant news of a serious traffic problem out ahead. (WM ClearSpeech Speaker has pair for itself. AGAIN). The clock is now running a count-down till other drivers get the message in one or more ways, meaning I’ve got to act fast if I want avoidance in the most complete sense.

Losing 2-3 hours happens. And it may mean you can’t get that good load you wanted two days from now. Buh-bye $200 off that paycheck. So if you can work your way around the problems . . . .

Choices:

1). Nearest truck stop. I can stop the clock for an hour or two. Take a nap. Get fuel. Whatever. Let the problem out ahead go away without losing time en-route (trapped in a back-up). That truck stop will choke with traffic in moments.

2). An alternate route. Everyone’s favorite. But not all alternates are big truck-approved, so half the battle is Atlas analysis, and the other half is finding locals familiar with routing around the problem. But ya can’t do it too soon, else ever dumb wheel holder gets ahead of ya.

There’s usually AT LEAST one other savvy driver with a good radio, and the desire to bypass a fatal wreck not on the same route the Highway Patrol will put everyone onto.

That’s where the fun of relaying info back and forth takes over. There’s a window before state, county and city will try to funnel everyone into ONE route on/off the Interstate. Waypoints & landmarks are the trades. No one will be writing speeding tickets (elbow room). Emergency equipment en route. School zones. Etc.

3). More than once I’ve made a U’ee on an overpass to head back the other way. Pause a moment at the apex and crank the juice, “Hey, y’all missed the Mile Marker 147 turnaround FOR THE LAST EXIT to get onto US-82 since westbound IH-20 up ahead is closed!”

Lemme tell ya, that’ll fry some fish.

.

 

[r carl]

The fun comes a variety of ways.

My “favorite” is in receiving the distant news of a serious traffic problem out ahead. (WM ClearSpeech Speaker has pair for itself. AGAIN). The clock is now running a count-down till other drivers get the message in one or more ways, meaning I’ve got to act fast if I want avoidance in the most complete sense.

Losing 2-3 hours happens. And it may mean you can’t get that good load you wanted two days from now. Buh-bye $200 off that paycheck. So if you can work your way around the problems . . . .

Choices:

1). Nearest truck stop. I can stop the clock for an hour or two. Take a nap. Get fuel. Whatever. Let the problem out ahead go away without losing time en-route (trapped in a back-up). That truck stop will choke with traffic in moments.

2). An alternate route. Everyone’s favorite. But not all alternates are big truck-approved, so half the battle is Atlas analysis, and the other half is finding locals familiar with routing around the problem. But ya can’t do it too soon, else ever dumb wheel holder gets ahead of ya.

There’s usually AT LEAST one other savvy driver with a good radio, and the desire to bypass a fatal wreck not on the same route the Highway Patrol will put everyone onto.

That’s where the fun of relaying info back and forth takes over. There’s a window before state, county and city will try to funnel everyone into ONE route on/off the Interstate. Waypoints & landmarks are the trades. No one will be writing speeding tickets (elbow room). Emergency equipment en route. School zones. Etc.

3). More than once I’ve made a U’ee on an overpass to head back the other way. Pause a moment at the apex and crank the juice, “Hey, y’all missed the Mile Marker 147 turnaround FOR THE LAST EXIT to get onto US-82 since westbound IH-20 up ahead is closed!”

Lemme tell ya, that’ll fry some fish.

.

Your radio can actually pay for itself.

 

[Slowmover]

Your radio can actually pay for itself.

The pains with Radio + Install is worthwhile. Once one understands he’s paying himself!

.

 

[r carl]

Can a trucker write off a radio?

 

[Slowmover]

Can a trucker write off a radio?

It’s a business tool like any other. For an employee the IRS rules now suck. Pay more in tax, but prices on-road keep rising (“nights away” used to be a good deduction. Many paid no Federal tax . . . and yet were ineligible to deduct ALL nights; no tax credit as with welfare despite hardships. It’s designed to drive Americans out).

For a lease or owner-operator, it’s easier. Purchase, install; maintenance, etc., are all legitimate deductions. Given that it might be hard to get much above $1,000, it’s a one-year thing. Like a phone every 3-5 years.

A HAM owner-op would be better to answer these questions. I could see not wanting radios included as business equipment.

.

.

 

[144inBama]

Most of the Hams around here, "forget where they came from". It's like high-school click 90% of the time. Then they like down talking the very people they came up with talking on 11 meter with. The very equipment they were running is now "dirty garbage" and "I don't know why anyone would run that". People like that are just band whores/snobs trying to fit in with the "in crowd". There's a few around here that love sitting around just talking radio in general. They don't care what you run, just that you share the radio hobby with them and will share knowledge and experience with you. To me that's what the hobby is about, talking to people and sharing stories.

 

[kaos513]

Can a trucker write off a radio?

Yes if they own the company

 

[Slowmover]

Yes if they own the company

No, that’s not exact.
It’s a tool any driver could deduct.

Same as a mechanic employed by a shop deducting his tools and other unreimbursed expenses.

.

 

[NightOwl3261]

Most of the Hams around here, "forget where they came from". It's like high-school click 90% of the time. Then they like down talking the very people they came up with talking on 11 meter with. The very equipment they were running is now "dirty garbage" and "I don't know why anyone would run that". People like that are just band whores/snobs trying to fit in with the "in crowd". There's a few around here that love sitting around just talking radio in general. They don't care what you run, just that you share the radio hobby with them and will share knowledge and experience with you. To me that's what the hobby is about, talking to people and sharing stories.

I find in really cool to see that people on 11 meters today run equipment that was around in the early days of CB. Many of these radios had been radios I dreamed about but a junior high student could never afford. Now I see them posted and it's great to see them still in operation today.