"How to get younger people into ham radio to replace us OT's?" is a
common question these days. Probably because of when we OT's joined the
hobby, most discussion seems to center around what attracted us ...
often decades ago. I'll suggest that the world has changed and if you
want to increase the number of new folks entering the hobby, you should
first ask, "Who are the candidates?"
In the US at least, the rate of new FCC license grants has held more or
less steady for the last decade or two. There really are new hams
already with calls ... lots of them ... but close to none of the
discussion ever focuses on them.
As a teenage ham in the mid 50's, I was very active in NTS and traffic
handling, and enjoyed it a great deal. It's an anachronism now, the
only traffic is "Congrats on your new license," service messages about
them, and net reports. Out of nostalgia, 15 or 20 years ago I joined
the NorCal net [3533 @ 1900 Pacific] and began delivering such traffic
to new hams in NE Calif and most of Nevada.
The nostalgia finally faded, and I'm usually watching a Giants game at
1900 PT now but a little wrinkle showed up that I didn't expect -- when
delivering the Congrats via the telephone, about 60-70% of the time I
found myself talking to a real, no fooling, NEW HAM! During my
nostalgic period, I got to chat with something close to 250 or so. Who
are they? What propelled them to sit for an exam and obtain a license?
I can assure you they are not teenagers. They are mainly in their 30's
and 40's. They're employed, they have careers and families [background
kid-noises were common in our chats]. I call them "established adults."
They mainly got their licenses at VE sessions run by clubs, and for a
variety of reasons. Most of those reasons are utilitarian rather than
driven by interest in a cool new hobby. They already have a variety of
recreational activities, many of which are outdoor related. Most
already have their $40 Chinese HT programmed onto the club's repeaters.
Very few care much about anything ham-ish beyond that. Not that they
couldn't or wouldn't find other aspects of ham radio interesting if
exposed to it, that's just not where they are right now. Business 101
tells us, "Know what your customer wants and sell it to him." If in the
process you slip in information about some other products he's never
asked for, maybe he'll give them a try ... that would be Advertising
101. So the Plan To Attract New Folks To Ham Radio starts out:
1. Find out who they are and what they use ham radio for now.
2. Build "products" [web sites, publications, support for their clubs,
etc] that satisfy their needs, improve their utilitarian use of ham
radio, and keep them close. Celebrate them in ham radio.
3. Acquaint them with all the other joys of ham radio but do it slowly,
quietly, and without suggestion that they're not "doing ham radio
right."
Note that there is very little on ARRL's or any other ham website
directed at brand new hams and their use of their radios. In fact, it's
common for older hams to disparage that ... "shack on the belt" ... and
the like. I have one friend who began with the obligatory HT, found out
about SOTA and POTA, got a little rig, and is now on HF and having a
blast. Another, also an amateur author, found out about DX-peditions
while unsuccessfully looking for some VHF FM answers on ARRL's site, and
now chases them. Not a DX-hound or contester, just expeditions, using
them as fodder for his adventure stories.
If preserving the amateur radio hobby is important, we have to approach
it's evolution smartly and with some planning and science. Just trying
random things isn't going to do it.
73,
Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
Sparks NV DM09dn
Washoe County
PS: I'll bet Elecraft has a pretty good idea of the distribution of K4
customers ... how many were already K2, K3, KX3 users and how many are
brand new to the brand.
------ Original Message ------
From "David Gilbert via Elecraft" <[email protected]>
To [email protected]
Date 8/30/2025 11:04:57 PM
Subject Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Digest, Vol 256, Issue 20
Great post!
Except that I'll differ on one point. We COULD come up with other ways to use ham radio
that might ... I say might ... be interesting to folks who aren't predisposed to have an
interest in it as it is now. Over the past few years I have publicly suggested two or
three ways we might do that (don't worry, I won't bore everyone by repeating them here)
and the answer I ALWAYS got from almost everyone was along the lines of "that isn't
really ham radio".
We're dinosaurs that aren't wiling to evolve enough to survive.
Dave AB7E
On 8/30/2025 10:42 PM, KJ7SOY via Elecraft wrote:
I’m going to disagree with you completely. While I still enjoy SSB and CW, FT8
has supercharged my interest in radio. I find the study of propagation
fascinating now that I can watch pipelines around the globe open and close in
real time through digital communications. Watching WSJT-X streams and seeing
the propagation paths on different bands and matching that to atmospheric
conditions has given me a new appreciation for what’s happening over my head,
and I never get tired of observing and trying to figure out exactly what’s
making the bands open and close as I watch digital calls appear and disappear.
I don’t believe the existence of digital technologies has anything to do with
the decline in radio popularity. I think it’s far more likely that the growth
in instant digital communications mediums using cell phones has a lot to do
with it. I also firmly believe that, like any other human endeavor, it’s not
possible to interest people in radio unless they already have a predisposition
to it. They have to have that spark in them (no pun intended). All we can do is
show them an outlet for their interest.
73, Adrian
K7RJS
On Aug 30, 2025, at 10:13 PM, dyno lab via Elecraft <[email protected]>
wrote:
FT8 and some other modes have made it too easy to sit on our backsides and let
the computer do the work while we gradually lose interest.
It takes the excitement out of making contacts the hard way.
No wonder so many are giving up.
There was a time when we built our own equipment and could not wait to put it
on the air.
We need something that makes it hard and interesting again.
I thank the Ol Man Upstairs that I still find it really fun and interesting to
see a problem and go about building something to fix it.
73,
Hal
W7YNC
DynoLab.com
On 08/30/2025 6:51 PM PDT Glenn Maclean via Elecraft <[email protected]>
wrote:
I have to say. The on going Morse Code Class I teach at a local bar because the
owner is a ham and welcomes the class. I am little by little getting more
students that see our table and are curious. I give them my spiel about ham
radio and why Morse Code. Which is when boom boom the lights go out Morse Code
will always come through! Then the next thing I know I end up with a new
student who wants to become a ham! The new students are in their 20’s - 30’s
Glenn Maclean WA7SPY
Sent from my iPhone
On Aug 30, 2025, at 09:03, [email protected] wrote:
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Today's Topics:
1. Re: Effective ways to introduce amateur radio to newcomers?
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Sat, 30 Aug 2025 11:12:55 -0400
From: email <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Effective ways to introduce amateur radio to
newcomers?
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
Why ?? (Why is it necessary that we talk other people into ham radio in
the first place??)? WELL, In the USA, the average age (determined by my
browser) is 65 years old.? That means in 20-30 years, that 800K number
will be 400K without adding new (younger hams) ???
My kids are in there 30's (and have let the license lapse - but plan on
renewing ??)
My wife is not active...
I know a number of hams in retirement communities that are not active.
How many of the 800K are active ??
I have a friend (Scout admin I work with/for) that had a novice in grade
school, she let it lapse a number of years ago.? I have been giving her
Tech class info and she may have time to do the zoom class...? She did
like CW (still knows it).? I may give/lend her my "old" NorCal 40.? It
would be nice to have a kit again ??? for new hams.? The NorCal 40 is
simple to use and a single band dipole is simple to "throw" into a tree...
73, Steve WB3LGC
On 7/26/25 18:57, David Gilbert via Elecraft wrote:
Exactly.
Trying to talk people into being interested in things we're interested
in for the reasons we're interested in them is a foolish endeavor.?
Evangelism is boring and off-putting.? The best we can do is describe
what ham radio can offer and let people decide if that has any
interest for them.
If we have to convince somebody that ham radio is interesting to them,
then it probably isn't and even if they go along it won't last.
Which brings me to this question:
*
Why is it necessary that we talk other people into ham radio in the
first place?? * There are supposedly close to 800,000 licensed hams in
the U.S., which is a bigger market and a bigger pool of like minds
than LOTS of other activities.? Is there some sort of collective
insecurity complex going on every time this comes up? And it comes up
with annoying frequency on almost every forum.
Dave? ?AB7E
On 7/26/2025 2:27 PM, Fred Jensen via Elecraft wrote:
They almost all view ham radio from a utilitarian perspective, not as
a hobby ... they have hobbies and interests. Probably the largest
non-work interests were in the outdoors.
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