HAM Radio -- Off Roaders Dream

Several members of my club, the Motherlode Rockcrawlers, just passed our HAM license test (yesterday). That's Stacie and me in the middle. Yea, I know, I have on the wrong hat. :)

HAM is THE way to go in radio communications if you want to be prepared for an emergency, or just ensure you have good commo over long distance where your CB just won't cut it.

Now don't get me wrong, I'll still have a CB because I believe they are better suited for convoys and bs sessions. I'll run both in my rigs. CB's have no rules, so yea, that is a drawback when an idiot gets on line. But for the most part, the CB is a good tool for 4x4 rides and club events. However, if you want to up it a notch, take the time to study for the test, ensure you can have emergency commuications (enough to bring in a medivac helicopter), then HAM is the way to go. Add it to your inventory.

HAM radios can hit repeaters that allow you to literally talk all over the world pretty much.

You can get a dual-band handheld guy for a couple hundred bucks and do most everything you need to do. There are plenty of websites to help you choose equipment. And a good place to start studying for the test is http://www.qrz.com/. We spent about a week studying, a couple hours a day.

Del -- the new HAM (my call sign will be issued in a few days).