In teaching Tech classes, I encounter many people who think this way. They just want to push buttons and talk on the radio. They say, “I’m only going to use it when I go off-roading with friends,” or “I’m only going to use it when my CERT team is activated.”

I always ask them what they’re going to do when something goes wrong—and we know that at some point, something is going to wrong. Without some basic knowledge of how radio works, how are they going to fix the problem or work around it? If they can’t do that, then they’re useless as a communicator and the experience is going to be very frustrating. So, the first thing that I try to get across that they’ll have a lot more fun with ham radio if they understand how the technology works.

Normally, I do a POTA activation with my KX-3 powered by a 9-Ahr battery. I run 15 W and mostly operate CW. I make plenty of contacts with this setup, but Paul, KW1L, one of my partners in crime, speculated if we’d do any better with a 100 W rig. Since I have access to an IC-7300, I suggested that we cart that out to K-3315, Island Lake Recreation Area next time.

Last week, Las Vegas was not on the site of DEFCON, but the American Poolplayer’s Association World Championships. And, on the Las Vegas Monorail, there were not only hackers with their cute DEFCON backpacks, but more pool players with small cases carrying their cue sticks.