By Teri KO4WFP
As I end 2024, it’s time to stay up for and set ham radio targets for 2025. Why even set targets? All of us want challenges not solely to take care of our expertise but additionally progress with them. Challenges inspire us, “gamifying” our pursuits. Additionally, they’re enjoyable, the last word objective with ham radio as it’s a passion.
When setting targets, one wants to bear in mind the acronym S.M.A.R.T. Targets ought to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. From a giant image perspective, targets ought to excite but additionally scare one a bit. In the event that they don’t scare you, then you definitely aren’t difficult your self.
So what are my ham radio targets for 2025 given what I’ve realized this 12 months.
30 new POTA activations
This will not sound like a lot of a problem on condition that my objective for 2024 was 60 new activations. In accordance with the POTA web site, there are 77 parks (46 in Georgia and 32 in South Carolina) which can be inside a 100-mile radius of my dwelling QTH. Of these parks, I’ve activated 23. That leaves 54 parks inside a doable driving distance for brand spanking new activations.
Along with the parks I’ll activate near dwelling, I’ve, as of proper now, 4 journeys already on the calendar for 2025: a tenting journey with Daisy to southeast Georgia the primary week of January, a brief tenting journey to a close-by state park with my son throughout his spring break, a brief journey to Camden, South Carolina with Glenn, and a visit to Canada (New Brunswick, Quebec, and Prince Edward’s Island) in July.
Between the POTA websites nonetheless accessible near dwelling and the journeys I’m planning, I feel a objective of 30 new legitimate park activations is an attainable objective by the top of 2025.
A kilo award for the Savannah Nationwide Wildlife Refuge
Simply as it’s good to push myself and expertise new parks, I additionally wish to expertise POTA in a relaxed and simple method. Activating the identical park again and again could sound boring; however I suggest it doesn’t must be. Experiencing a park over the course of the 12 months permits you to develop into intimate with that panorama. I consider Aldo Leopold’s guide “A Sand County Almanac.”
For these of you that don’t like math, you possibly can skip this and the following paragraph. For jollies, I sat down and found out that for the 47 activations this 12 months, I had 1,193 QSOs and spent roughly 2,780 minutes on the air attaining these QSOs. Which means every QSO took on common 2.33 minutes. After all, these of you who activate know that how lengthy an activation takes will rely on propagation, how simply and rapidly you see your self, whether or not you’re operating a frequency or additionally searching different activators (the latter takes extra time), and distractions.
I want 1,000 QSOs for a kilo award. If on common it takes 2.33 minutes per QSO (what it took this previous 12 months for the parks I activated), a kilo could take 39 hours. Let’s say I’m lucky sufficient to activate this refuge twice a month. In that case, I’ll have to spend, on common, an hour and a half on the air throughout every activation to succeed in my objective. Given this park’s shut proximity and my schedule, this objective is attainable although it received’t be straightforward.
On the air with my straight key, cootie, bug, and paddle every weekly
Lots of you already know I don’t have a ham shack at my dwelling anymore due to antenna restrictions. I’m blessed to have a shack at my mother and father’ home. However, as it’s a 15-minute drive one-way, I discover it a problem to get on the air frequently all through the week.
I now have 4 keys in my shack – a Frattini Magnetic Evolution bug, a CW Morse camelback (straight) key, a W1SFR Titan Cootie, and a VK3IL-design strain paddle. The pursuit of the Straight Key Century Membership’s (SKCC) Triple Key award (I’m #193 of those that have obtained this award) motivated me to study all three mechanical keys along with utilizing my paddle for POTA. I aspire to develop into comfy with every of those keys and meaning utilizing them on a daily and constant foundation.
There are such a lot of methods to do that. For the paddle, I hope to activate POTA weekly. I additionally normally use my paddle for my weekly code buddy QSOs with Caryn KD2GUT.
As for my mechanical keys, there are QSOs with my different two code buddies – Charles W4CLW and Gary K4IIG. For QSOs with hams new to CW, I normally use my cootie or straight key as I can run slower extra simply with these keys. There are additionally SKCC month-to-month occasions and particular occasions – Straight Key Evening (January 1st), K3Y month for SKCC (your complete month of January), K2D for Worldwide Canine Day (August), the NAQCC anniversary week in October – during which to take part. And when all else fails, there’s the outdated standby of calling CQ.
Enhance my consolation degree in headcopying QSOs
Velocity shouldn’t be all the things. The truth is, accuracy trumps velocity any day. Most conversational QSOs happen at 20 wpm and below, therefore I’ve chosen 20 wpm as my typical velocity on the air and can most likely keep there for the majority of my QSOs. I routinely head copy my conversational (ragchew) QSOs. Nonetheless, I’d like to extend my consolation degree and talent in doing so (don’t all of us?). What’s my plan for doing so?
Earlier than Glenn moved to Savannah, he and I have been code buddies and simply starting to run our QSOs at 25 wpm. Now that we dwell in the identical space, we stopped these QSOs. We might be code buddies over vband or Zoom; nevertheless, each of us choose to be on the air as that’s the reason we’ve got a ham radio license and neither vband or Zoom QSOs are legitimate QSOs we could put in our log. We’re engaged on a UHF/VHF bands resolution we realized about from a CW Improvements‘ alum not too long ago. I hope to share that in a QRPer article sooner or later.
My objective is to have code buddy QSOs with Glenn once more, at the very least as soon as however hopefully twice per week. Common apply coupled with some ICR coaching (32 wpm character velocity) will knock the rust off my code expertise from a scarcity of constant apply over the course of this previous 12 months. I additionally plan to examine into the 3905 Century Membership internet or OMIK internet a number of instances a month as that on-the-air expertise is completely different from the majority of my QSOs.
Properly, I feel that provides this POTA Babe loads to chew on for 2025. A further, unspoken however most vital problem will likely be to take care of stability. To make sure I’m driving the targets and the targets are NOT driving me. To remember the fact that the journey, not the vacation spot, is what in the end issues.
I’m curious as to your targets for subsequent 12 months. Please be at liberty to depart them within the feedback beneath. I stay up for sharing with you my persevering with journey in 2025. Finest needs for a protected and enjoyable finish of the 12 months for all of you! As to the adventures forward, keep tuned…
