Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Brownies and Venture Scouts soon will take to the airwaves in an effort to communicate with each other via Amateur Radio. It's the annual event we call JOTA--Jamboree On The Air. But you don't have to be a scout to enjoy JOTA, which this year takes place Saturday October 19 through Sunday October 20 (local time and always the third weekend of October).

As many as 400,000 Scouts, scouters and other youth have participated in Jamboree On the Air in the past. It is the largest scouting event in the world!

JOTA is not a contest. The idea behind JOTA is to expose youth to Amateur Radio by showing them a great time as well as helping them to meet new friends, share stories of past scout experiences, and, ultimately, to light the spark that inspires them to pursue their own Amateur Radio licenses.

Stations participating should call "CQ Jamboree" or "CQ JOTA" and/or seek and answer other stations doing the same. Any frequency for which the control operator at hand has privileges may be used for JOTA, and several HF calling frequencies have been established to help in getting JOTA stations together. Remember: Once you establish a contact on one of these frequencies, QSY to another clear frequency to hold your actual QSO. Please be courteous and lead by example.

Notes:

¹Not authorized for SSB in the United States (Region 2); however, you may listen or work split-frequency if the DX station indicates it is listening in the US phone band.

²While 7.290 MHz has been the "official" JOTA calling frequency in the past, US JOTA participants are advised to use 7.270 MHz to avoid AM activity on 7.290 MHz.

³14.070 MHz has become the unofficial gathering place for PSK31 activity on 20 meters; JOTA operators may want to shift 5 kHz down to avoid causing QRM.

⁴This frequency allows US Novice ops to participate in JOTA on phone.

JOTA Needs Youth Participants, Club and Individual Involvement

You can get involved with JOTA in your area by first calling either your Scout council office (or equivalent) or nearby ham radio club and asking if they plan to host a JOTA event in your area. (Of course, you also might want to suggest JOTA to your own club, if it's not already on the program.)

If your local club is not planning to be active during JOTA, tell them about it and ask if members might be willing to put together a program for you and any other scout unit or youth you know. On the other hand, if your local club is planning for JOTA, let the club know you'll be there with all of your friends for a great time.

The official JOTA 2002 logo and patch.

By the way, for those of you who enjoy collecting and trading patches, the traditional JOTA patch is available for ordering (within the US only) from the Boy Scouts of America. Each patch is $3.25 (plus local sales tax) and can only be ordered after the event by sending a request and check to Jamboree-on-the-Air Patches, S221, 1325 W Walnut Hill Lane, PO Box 152079, Irving, TX 75015-2079.

What about club sponsorship of a JOTA activity? While many hams and ham clubs talk about the need for more youth, they don't always "walk the walk." JOTA represents one of best opportunities to put the idea of youth recruitment into action--and it's also one of the easiest. Every ham and every ham club should actively promote our hobby to youth in their area, and JOTA is a perfect opportunity to do just that.

Clubs or individuals can (and should) start today to plan a JOTA weekend for local scouts and youth. Decide on a convenient location, which can either be at your ham shack, at your club station or at a Field Day-type setup. Then begin putting together activities that will be held during JOTA. These can include a little presentation about ham radio and how it's used for fun as well as for emergency communication during times of need. Plan to let your young participants get on the ham bands to make contacts (keeping in mind that you must follow third-party traffic rules if working DX stations while unlicensed individuals are at the mike). You might also want to show off satellite operations, transmitter hunts, ATV, APRS and digital modes, and more, but don't try to fit in too many activities. Focus on those you or your club can demonstrate best.

If a Scout leader is on hand, let him sign off Radio merit badge requirements for any Boy scouts on hand. To take it all a step further, offer a weekend ham radio class sometime shortly after JOTA, so those fired-up youth can learn what they need to know to get their own Amateur Radio licenses.

No matter what you or your club decides to do, capturing the interest of younger prospective hams means keeping it fun, upbeat and interesting. Rein in the windy lectures and war stories, explain any ham radio jargon you might use, and be sure that the youngsters are the ones actually getting on the air. Remain in the background to be the control operator (as legal and necessary) and to help them make the best of this unique Amateur Radio event. Step in where needed, but for the most part just sit back and enjoy.

The next--and perhaps most important--step is to promote, promote, promote! Extend an invitation to any young person you know. Visit scouting units and other youth groups in your area and tell them about the fun they will have at JOTA. You may have planned an excellent JOTA program, but nobody will show up without good promotion. The official Jamboree On The Air information packet is available from ARRL Field and Educational Services, 225 Main St, Newington CT, 06111-1494 USA; 860-594-0200; e-mail jota@arrl.org. Or, save some time and visit the ARRL's Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) page.

Whether as a participant or as an organizer, have a great time. I invite your e-mail comments and photos on your JOTA experiences, too. In a future youth@HamRadio.Fun column, I'll feature one or two JOTA groups.

San Diego 2-Meter Net

Attention all young hams in the San Diego, California area: The San Diego Youth Net awaits your checkin on the Palomar Amateur Radio Club's 147.075 MHz (107.2 Hz CTCSS tone) repeater on Palomar Mountain. The net begins at 7:30 PM local every Thursday evening, and lasts until the group feels it's time to wrap it up.

This net was begun last year by Sam Szarka, AD6XS, and Nathan Burgess, KG6GUL. There are currently about a dozen regular youth checkins, and everyone has a great time. So if you live within reach of the net's repeater, get on the air and meet some of your fellow young Amateur Radio operators.

Attention Collegiate Stations.

The Collegiate QSO Party, sponsored by the Collegiate Amateur Radio Association, begins September 21 at 1200 UTC and concludes at 0400Z September 22. It's a chance to enjoy a casual contest/special operating event before the fall-winter contest season arrives and to provide an on-campus ham radio demonstration and recruiting event. It's also an opportunity to make (or renew) on-the-air contacts with your school's alumni and to familiarize new hams with the club's station. The greatest opportunity presented however, is to provide collegiate stations an opportunity to get on the air all at once and have a great time.

This QSO party is open to both collegiate and non-collegiate stations/hams everywhere. It takes place on 160-10 meters (except WARC bands). The full rules are on the Web. Each collegiate station that submits an entry will receive a certificate of participation, regardless of score.

Hamfest Organizers: Let Youth in for Free.

As Ken Hoglund, KG4FGC, reminded me in a recent e-mail, the ARRL Board of Directors resolved during its July 2001 meeting to encourage the organizers of ARRL-sanctioned hamfests and conventions to admit youth under age 16 for free when accompanied by an attendee who pays the regular admission price, if one exists. The full text of the resolution is on the ARRL Web site. See Minute 66.

The point of the resolution, which passed unanimously, was to remove a potential stumbling block that might discourage some young people from exploring Amateur Radio. Some hamfest and convention sponsors now offer free admission to accompanied young people under age 16. If your local club is planning a hamfest for the near future that still charges young teens an admission fee, however, encourage them to adopt the League's resolution.

Till Next Time . . .

As always, I welcome topic suggestions. If there is something you would like me to write about in a future column that is youth-related, let me know. I hope everyone is doing well in school, but be sure to get on the air during some free time.

Editor's note: ARRL Life Member Brian Mileshosky, N5ZGT, hails from Albuquerque, New Mexico. A 22-year-old senior in electrical engineering at the University of New Mexico, he was the 1999 ARRL Hiram Percy Maxim Award winner as well as the 1997 winner of the Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award. First licensed in 1992 at age 12 he now holds an Amateur Extra class license. Brian enjoys CW, QRP transmitter hunting, satellite operation, digital modes and, of course, just speaking into the microphone. He's active in the Boy Scouts of America as an assistant scoutmaster and a Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow. Brian welcomes visitors to his Web site. Readers may contact him via e-mail, n5zgt@arrl.net.

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