Previously, I wrote about being the first QSO for new ham KD0YRD. Well, the same thing happened last night. I was monitoring the HandiHam UHF .650, when KD0YFX (Thaddeus) threw out his sign on the network and announced it was his first QSO. He was over in St. Paul with a dual-band (?) J-pole on two metres, with a readable signal mixed with noise. I gave him a signal report and told him about the UHF .650 because it was closer to him, since he was using at HT with the J-pole. He wasn't particularly chatty, but there's plenty of time to get to know him.
The HandiHam network seems to be where new hams go. Why is that? I mean, there was no activity on the network at that time, but Thaddeus chose that machine to throw out his sign for his first QSO, much like KD0YRD (Julie).
Didn't these two new hams want the opportunity to get the blessing of our elite elders holding court on some other repeaters? Apparently, they were attracted to a machine with reliable activity and similarly-minded patrons. Who would have anticipated that?
I'm hopeful that, as these new people figure out the HandiHam cross-band arrangement, they will discover that there is life beyond two metres. While the VHF .450 has a great site and respectable coverage, it's probably easier for most to access the network through the UHF side. And then they might discover some of the other UHF machines out there.
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