We're still 2 or 3 years away from the bottom of Solar Cycle 24, which has been the weakest in recent times. As we go into the summer, there will be occasional Sporadic E 10-11 meter skip openings, of the type being described, but long-term band openings above 14 Mhz will be very scarce for the next several years. CB around this part of the midwest is almost non-existant, except for truck traffic on Ch 19, which is actually fine with me. I have CBs mounted in my cars for situational awareness, particularly in bad weather. All I want is to hear what's happening 5-15 miles ahead of me, which I'm able to do. My wife and I are both hams (I've been one for 54 years), and we have VHF/UHF mobile rigs in both are cars, but even the local repeaters are pretty quiet, and I mainly use those radios to monitor the public service channels. In the pre-cellphone days, CB or 2-meters were the only alternatives for local base-to-mobile, or mobile-to-mobile contact,(2 meter autopatch was revolutionary back in the 70s) but that was then, and this is now, and the result is greatly diminished local activity. For those who want DX action, ham radio is still the way to go. As I type this, I'm watching signals from Slovenia, Germany, Ukraine, Denmark, and England on 30 meters. Of course, to work them you need to know CW, as voice is prohibited there, but I'm seeing DX Cluster spots for most of those same countries up on 20 meter SSB. Working stateside stations is always possible on any of the lower bands.
Rick, W0FG
