Raise your hand if you have never transmitted on 20 meters.
OK, I see a few hands out there. You may not have license privileges for 20 meters, and some of you might be afraid to make that first long distance, DX, contact. This one-minute recording shows you how simple it can be. Scroll (way down) for transcript.
I had never talked to John before this, and we just said "hello" and "goodbye", yet I have a new friend now that I didn't have the day before. We have exchanged a few emails since then (I asked him for permission to post this, and he enthusiastically agreed). Who knows - some day we may meet, or we may not. But either way, ham radio comes through again.
With everything that is wrong in the world today, amateur radio builds bridges between countries and cultures.
73,
Dave
Show notes
John's page on QRZ.COM (people never look like they sound - thanks John for the picture!)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Transcript, with explanations in [square brackets]:
CQ CQ DX CQ David Xray [phonetics for DX] echo alpha one whisky xray echo america one whisky xray, qrz dx
[I call him]
kilo zanzibar one ocean [ = kz1o ] thank you for the call good aft... good evening, thank you for the call, you are 5 and 7 [means perfectly readable signal, strong], fifty seven, QRM on the frequency [interference at his end while receiving]. The handle here is John, Juliet Ocean Honolulu November [phonetics for J-O-H-N], John. QSL? [Did you receive it?]
[I transmit my information back to him: name, signal report, location]
QSL [I received everything)], Dave, thank you for New Hampshire, near Boston, thank you for the QSO [conversation], our first QSO. Kilo Zulu one Ocean, echo alpha one whisky xray. Hope to meet you. bye bye.
[I transmit]
See you.
QRZ QRZ DX [who's next?]
Echo Alpha one Whisky Xray
Echo America one Whisky Xray
[end]
