Gus,
I have a modest Satellite Station at home and I've worked many Countries and many Grids with it. It's very enjoyable.
But, I also have equipment and antennas that I take on Grid Expeditions to hand out rare Grids to the folks that need them and would otherwise probably not get them. I drive hundreds of miles to accomplish this on trips where I'm seeing things on my Bucket List - a twofold endeavor.
And yes, I've been out in the rain and snow with a handheld antenna which I now have on a tripod. I've done this in almost 80 Grids in both the US and Canada. I've been to some very remote locations and seen things many folks will never have the opportunity to see. It has been some of the most fun I've ever had in 53 years as a Ham. I love helping other Hams reach long held objectives. I happily do this all on my own, as do others.
You can see a photo of me and my Grid Expedition setup in Nova Scotia in action on my QRZ(dot)com page.
You may think it's stupid, but you are in the vast minority. Maybe there some different words that would be better to describe an activity that you yourself would prefer not doing. I hope next time you'll do a better job finding some.
73, Bob K8BL
(AMSAT Member since 1979)
________________________________ From: Gus gus@8p6sm.net To: amsat-bb@amsat.org Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2014 1:39 PM Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Inclusion
On 07/22/2014 11:54 AM, Kevin M wrote:
I've heard comments that basically imply anyone who wants to go outside with an HT and wave a yagi around is stupid.
I will respond to this because of comments I've made in the past, which may have been misunderstood.
Standing outside with a yagi in hand and the monsoon trickling down my neck isn't for me. It is demonstrably a valid way to make contacts and an excellent way to demonstrate how satellite operation can occur with minimalist equipment. But as far as I'm concerned, it IS NOT the ultimate objective of a satellite operator. It is the BARE MINIMUM of satellite operation, and there is no way I'm going to be satisfied with that for more than one or two passes.
To imply to the uneducated observer and potential future satellite operator, that standing in the rain is the pinnacle of hamsat ground station technology is (in my opinion) counter productive and, yes, stupid. As would be implying that a single-band, rock-bound QRP CW rig is the ultimate in ham HF technology. There is nothing wrong with QRP or broomstick-waving, far from it. And to those who enjoy it, more power to you! But if broomstick-waving is all I can hope to achieve in satellite operation, then I'll be very disappointed.