The purpose of the Ham Radio course is to provide Hope R&G members or guests with a licence for emergency communications in remote areas, such as when they are hiking, hunting or fishing. A Ham licence is also of value to the community, for emergency preparedness. In a large emergency, cell-phones are usually the first thing to go down, quickly followed by land-lines. Ham radio has long been a key part of communications in emergencies and disasters, when normal modes of communications are down. The fires, floods, washouts and Rogers “outage” over the last year are all examples of where Ham radio can play an important role maintaining communications.
The importance of the Ham course is not just the licence, but what the person learns about radio, in order to achieve the Ham licence. The exam for Ham radio is similar for Hams around the world; it covers Rules and Regulations, Operating Procedures, Station Assembly, Circuit Components, Basic Electronics, Antenna Systems, Radio Wave Propagation and Radio Interference. The course being offered this year is about 30 hours of class time, scheduled for 5 Saturdays. Since the course material is not what most people have studied, it will be necessary for participants to do at least 30 hours of homework. While almost everyone is capable of completing this course, homework is the key to a successful outcome.
The course will conclude with an ISED Canada exam, of 100 questions. Candidates must achieve 70% for a Basic level or 80% for a Basic+ level licence. The Basic is for VHF (local communications only), while the Basic+ is for VHF and HF (local and long distance communications). There is no longer a requirement for Morse code, although a code exam is available. There is a third level of qualification, which is required for people wanting to build their own transmitters. This is the Advanced course, requiring a 70% exam mark to pass. The Advanced exam is more technical in electronics and radio, however, the exam itself is only 50 questions. The Advanced qualification does not stand on its’ own, a person must have the Basic licence to be a Ham Radio operator.
The Basic course is being offered by Hope R&G Club at no cost to members or guests on 4 Saturdays in November, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The final review and exam, again at no cost, will be on the first Saturday in December. There is a cost of $30, for the study manual, however, the main cost to a student is the time commitment. While there are no age limitations on getting a Ham Radio licence, it is difficult to include people under the age 18 in an adult course. A parent or guardian wishing to include someone under the age of 18 will need to attend the course, in its entirety, with their young student(s).
The Basic course will be followed by an Operating day, once licences are received and at a time convenient to those wishing to participate, when the class can put a station on the air and make some long distance contacts.
If you are interested in taking the Ham Radio course this November, please contact hamradio@hbcrgc.org or alternatively eventshoperng@gmail.com
