What would or should you call S7 noise then? Just drop the "floor" part? So S7 noise?

I'm a some years older Bavarian. Oh no, Spätzle without sauce 🙈 Send me your QSL card 1 month before christmas and I'll send you Bavarian farmer's smoked sausages, and your turkey will live one year longer. 😊

If you are a new ham, or just new to POTA, please ignore this video. The "huge hate on for POTA" does not exist. Clickbait videos such as this are a disservice to the POTA community and to the amateur service in general.

November 2024 and you just posted it?

Excellent video again. Beautiful Lady also. Hourra

Hi Stuart, maybe a little off topic but my english is not that good. Sorry... But I built a lot of qrp-transceivers myself back then and I learned that the RF controller is there for a reason. Many new transceivers have a sensitivity that you don't actually need, depending on the antenna and band. I also use my FT891 on a 60m long wire in the evenings to transmit on the low bands without any problems. The RFgain does it for me. Find a free frequency and pull out the antenna cable, then adjust the RF gain so that the noise floor is the same with the antenna plugged in... something like that... 73 Klaus

Hi Stuart, very nice! And that Erdinger is a nice beer. tasty😂 greetings from bavaria.Klaus

Looking great! Making me want something to eat myself.

good stuff brothaaa, learn something daily

They hate POTA for the same reason they aren't much fun at family reunions and parties, they hate to see people enjoying themselves where they aren't the center of attention. They are, in effect, your drunk uncles who no one wants to invite but you kind of have to because they are family. They are the type of people who would not show up at a party, even though they were invited, just so they could sit on the other side of the fence and complain about how much fun the people who did show up were having. The good thing is that they are a small minority, they are just loud and get noticed more than normal, good, polite operators. POTA on.

I agree %100 phonetics are important to make sure both parties get credit for the contact and it also keeps things rolling at a faster pace , I'm guilty of using United instead of Uniform some will call me out on it lol 73 VICTOR ECHO 3 INDIA MIKE UNITED

Great video what the black box stuck in the tree ?

Is that $12 USD? 🤣

Dude, I could live there. What a gorgeous Area. And Erdinger Wheat Beer ...yummy 💯👍

Next time you are in the States, you should try to make it to Helen, Georgia. It's a Bavarian themed mountain town. Slightly "touristy" but all sorts of German cuisine to choose from. Thanks for the Winter Field Day contact!

POTA is terrific fun, no hate in this ham!

No need to travel great distances to activate a new to you POTA park. Chasers can work the same person at the same park (or a different park) over and over again and get credit. I have an award here for making 50 multiple, non-duplicate, QSOs with the same activator, Kent O'Sell K7CAR. 73 Paul AA1SU

Phonetics are being way over used. Some people never use anything but phonetics. Even on VHF and UHF people continuously use them. It is not necessary all of the time. In a pile up, yes. Once the person on the other end gets your call down it is not necessary. Maybe on VHF you should use them when the person does not get you call sign. If that is the case they will ask for your call sign again, then use phonetics. If you have just busted a pile up on HF, and worked a POTA station, you may feel like you need to sign off, but there is no need to use phonetics if you are moving on. Use them when necessary but not all of the time. JMO.

Where is this hate coming from? This is my speculation since I haven't activated yet. If it is other HAMs, it is likely due to using the same frequencies as them. If it is from the visitors to the park, they are upset about you using tech in a naturalist area and disrupting their society free sanctuary. If they are the paranoid conspiracy theorists, is that you are trying to manipulate the masses with your radio equipment and give them cancer.

Completely agree, Stuart! 73 de AB1F

Got to use phonetics. I use standard ones until the person can’t understand me still.. Then I’ll use alternatives…. Usually Japan Radio Zanzibar is my go-to after standard ones don’t work.

I was on a net, bragging aboot my first activation. I was stepped on and covered up. Guys literally said, let's get this net moving. They literally only wanted numbers. Numbers are for FT8er's lol. MoFos hate QRP too. Common denominator, people just need to hate to feel good about their useless existence.

I killed it on 40 here in Delaware, WFD was fun! Good grief folks, use ‘em . I find my ears better tuned to the standard ones, but yes, anything is better than not using them.

I've already been watching...

Ive been misunderstood alot with KZ4BU, so i switched to KM4AT.. was worse. Got a sequential KZ4OY. They all have challenges around the world. OY sounds great in CW. 73/44

Hey Stuart it was a pleasure working you on my recent POTA activation. Thanks for the contact Kg5uei 73s

I tried for 10 minutes to get in the pile up! I could not do it. 😞 The little G90 did not have enough to compete with the flame throwers you all are running...

Phonetics are a must in a pileup... and anywhere on HF, for that matter. I'm sure that Leonidas Calomiris was just being used as an example in you video, since they are a Tech...LOL

A big yes to phonetics! What drives me nuts is when someone doesn't mention his call sign often enough. I hate trying to figure out someone's call sign in a pileup because he says QRZ half a dozen times. What's also upsetting is when someone calls two or three times, without even listening for the other station responding. What's also annoying is when someone calls so late that he covers up an entire exchange of reports. During the WWA activity this month there is someone who always gives his call sign twice (one of the top three in the US ranking).

Worked you this weekend. We were. W5W in north Texas

Yes to phonetics

That tells me that those hams spend a lot of time on FM v/uhf de Victor Echo Seven Kilowatt Kilowatt Quebec.

I'm all about the phonetics! I even use them on 2m repeaters because it's the way to ensure you can understand call signs. I heard people over the weekend not using phonetics and it hurt my brain lol

Stuart, It was a pleasure to get you in the log. Too bad about the Bills :( '73! W2ELS

Hams complain the hobby is dying, then complain when new modes and activities like FT8 and POTA get more people interested, licensed, and on the air. You'll go crazy trying to figure it out, but my guess is people are afraid of change.

Phonetics 100%. I prefer standard phonetics. My simple brain gets thrown for a loop when someone uses a non-standard phonetic. On the other hand, if someone is having a hard time reading me, especially a specific letter, I’ll change that one to see if that help them pick me up more easily.

I agree that there was a huge lack of phonetics over the weekend. I made 1,000 qsos and had quite a few non-phonetic calls tossed at me, but I think a lot of it is less experienced operators or new operators that don't understand the need for it. A lot of less seasoned hams are on the air during these events so I get it. But it does frustrate me though when people throw calls non phonetically though because S sounds like F, M sounds like N, D sounds like E, you know what I'm saying lol. Just use some sort of phonetics. It helps so much lol

HF is not crystal clear like YSF. Definitely need phonetics.

Thanks for the 10m contact today!! KI5OEB

I don't see much of this phenomenon working digital modes -- which is where my personal operating tends toward. If it's occurring on the air, it's likely in the phone segment -- where anything other than random ragchew contacts and nets seems to be met with endless complaints from some quarters. Someone else posted a response to this question, in which they were admonished by an unnamed operator for working POTA on 30m CW. To be clear: POTA is *not* a contest, so the *gentleman's agreement* to refrain from contesting on the WARC bands simply does not apply.

Yes to phonetics, and slow down. If you are trying to log the contact, we want to be accurate. Use common sense and courtesy. 73!

Agree

Yes to phonetics 🎉

Not really sure what KB9UDK's issue is... I am in my mid 70's and an old man ( I guess) and paper log also Whenever anyone answers me at a slower rate than I am sending I slow down to try and match their sending rate. While this may not happen 100% of the time with all POTA activators the vast majority follow that practice... plus you can always ask them to slow down and again almost all activators will gladly do so... NA9M

VK3 is the State of Victoria, Australia

Been looking at this hex beam for over a year now. Just trying to figure out if I mount to a tripod on my roof or buy a tower as well.

Generally, the hate I see for POTA is on certain parts the QRZ forums...........and some yokels on 17m. I do a ton of POTA, SOTA, etc. but I operate almost entirely CW, so I generally don't have to listen to people complain (it takes WAY too long to complain on CW LOL). Sure, there's the random tuner-upper every once in a while, but I just keep chugging along at 25wpm until they get bored and go bother someone else. I don't get why people have to hate what they chose not to do. I don't hate rag chews, or rag chewers.........but I rarely rag chew. I don't hate FT8........and I don't use it much. I just don't get it. Different strokes for different folks. Just let people do what they enjoy. If the band is too busy, move, change modes, change bands, etc. Most radios have a VFO..............use it LOL

This afternoon I saw a comment on a post in a ham radio group on Facebook regarding POTA. The commenter stated he is boycotting POTA because the program doesn't recognize large municipal parks such as Central Park in New York City which is 843 acres. They also mentioned four NYC area municipal parks that are between 1,400 acres and 2,800 acres. I can kind of understand the frustration since there are many POTA parks that are far smaller than those municipal parks. However I also understand that they had to draw a line somewhere. Using national and state/provincial managed parks was probably the easiest way for the volunteer mapping representatives to add parks to the program. The program was born from the year long ARRL National Parks On The Air special event so to me it makes sense to use national level and state level management to determine if a park should be included in the program. Sure that means some people might have to travel more to get to a park, but that can be part of the fun. I know not everyone can live within a 5 mile drive from a POTA park or pass by a POTA park on their commute to and from work. I also know that there are operators who plan multi park roves over a weekend and plan their vacation trips to accomplish their goals.

'Hate' is nothing new to amateur radio. I know one lad who hates to ragchew, another who bemoans the fact that no-one ragchews anymore. CW guys often hate any other mode. Some people hate anything JT, me included. Somes hate the prepper community, the preppers give as good as they get. The AM guys hated SSB when it was first introduced, the homebrew guys hate the black-boxers, everyone hates the 'hola, hola, hoooooola" bunch. Some hate the Chinese rigs and what they've brought to the table and others hate the big 3 for their black boxes. QRO ops often hate QRP'ers and the list goes on... it's just part of who we are. We like what we like and often fear that others liking something different is somehow a threat to us. They're not. There's room for us all. Me? I like building things, being kind and respectful on the air and working POTA and SOTA when I can.

I have not come across any hate for POTA or SOTA. Quite the opposite - people seem to be very keen to hunt stations. I'd be interested to know more. It's like all the videos about "sad hams" and arguments on the air. I just haven't heard anything like this.