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 Previous: Space Contacts Compete with Rock Band, Bring Science to Life for Fifth Graders |  Next: Antique Wireless Technology Spins for Fessenden Transmission Centennial |
By Nate Brightman, K6OSC
nehtan@juno.com
January 11, 2007
After sailing the seas for many years, the Queen Mary is now permanently moored in Long Beach, California. Although her former radio room is now a gift shop, some local amateurs developed a plan to reintroduce radio to the ship, bringing back the glory days of transatlantic crossings.
The RMS Queen Mary is owned by the Port of Long Beach, California. It is one of the top tourist attractions in Southern California. The Amateur Radio Association of Long Beach, K6RO, is in charge of the operation in the Wireless Room. [Frank Kuehn, KG6GON, Photo] |
A view of the Wireless Room onboard the Queen Mary. A gift shop is currently in what was the original Wireless Room; this one was re-created adjacent to the ship's tennis courts by using photographs the author took. [Nate Brightman, K6OSC, Photo] |
Another view of the Wireless Room. [Nate Brightman, K6OSC, Photo] |
Some of the operators who volunteer their time. Any licensed amateur is eligible to operate at W6RO as long as they agree to commit to operating at least four hours a month for a year. [Nate Brightman, K6OSC, Photo] |
Along the entrance to the Wireless Room is a gallery of vintage Amateur Radio equipment. [Nate Brightman, K6OSC, Photo] |
The entrance to the Wireless Room. Since the original Wireless Room is now occupied by the gift shop, the ship built an area on what used to be the Sports Deck. The Wireless Room is the white structure to the left. [Frank Kuehn, KG6GON, Photo] |
The new Wireless Room is located adjacent to what were once the ship's tennis courts, which is the open area on the deck. [Frank Kuehn, KG6GON, Photo] |
The antenna between the stacks is the ship's Marconni antenna, which is no longer in use. Instead, we use a 40 meter dipole and a DKN 10-80 meter. [Frank Kuehn, KG6GON, Photo] |
In Long Beach, California, the drive to popularize Amateur Radio with the public started 27 years ago and has continued ever since. When the city purchased the British ship, the RMS Queen Mary, I had an opportunity to go aboard the day after it arrived on December 9, 1967. At that time I photographed the ship's radio receiving room. Unfortunately, as the ship was being renovated to open as a tourist attraction, a retail shop replaced the radio room.
After extensive renovation, the ship was opened to the public, and has since become one of the top tourist attractions in southern California. When it opened, it occurred to me that having Amateur Radio aboard the ship would be a great way to promote Amateur Radio to the public. On June 20, 1974, I presented the ship's director with a 12 page proposal (which included my photos of the ship's radio room) that the radio room be rebuilt and operated by our local radio club, The Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach (ARALB). The ship's director, Marvin Wollf, had never seen the original radio room; he told me I had the only pictures of the room. He thought it was a great idea, but the cost of renovating the ship left no money for such a project.
Radio Comes Back to the Queen Mary
Five years later, I took a British ham for a tour of the ship. Mr Wollf saw me and said the Port of Long Beach, rather than the City of Long Beach, would be responsible for the ship and he now had the money to rebuild the radio room. We searched the ship for a good location and found an area on the Sports Deck, which just happened to be the highest deck -- you can always trust a ham to find the highest spot.
Using my photos as a guide, rebuilding started immediately, and on April 29, 1979, we had a grand opening, complete with a four-piece band and refreshments. We had a grand turn-out: 500 guests, including many city officials, representatives of manufacturers of donated radios, as well as prominent Amateur Radio operators, including past and present ARRL Southwestern Division Directors, came out to celebrate with us.
Well aware that one radio club could not provide enough operators, the ARALB agreed that operation of the radio room would be open to all licensed Amateur Radio operators, regardless of age, license class or club affiliation. To become an operator at W6RO, you must agree to operate at least four hours once a month for a one year period. No set frequencies of operation are specified, so each volunteer can operate as they would at their home station. Although we have 80 operators at W6RO, it is still not enough to keep the station open every day; however, a sign in the window still promotes Amateur Radio when no operator is present.
First Impressions and Training are Key
I have always felt that first impressions are important, and we established both a dress code and rules of conduct for the operators. Each operator is required to wear a white shirt with a black tie and black pants; women operators may either wear the same outfit or a black skirt, white blouse and black bow. Each prospective operator completes a training period that explains the correct operation of all the equipment in the room, as well as the rules and regulations pertaining to their operation. Henry Lulli, W6OLZ, is in charge of training the new operators, and Assistant Wireless Room Manager John Rogers, KF6TTR, maintains the equipment. Each year, on the anniversary of the station opening, a certificate is mailed to each operator showing their years of operation.
The entrance to the room is through a Dutch door, with the upper half kept open; this way, operators can greet tourists and engage them in conversation. I estimate our operators have talked about ham radio to more than one million visitors! A few years ago, Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose was on exhibit adjacent to the Queen Mary; more than one million people toured the ship when it was on display.
"Hello!"
As recommended in the May 2006 issue of QST, we have always suggested greeting the tourists by saying "Hello". Having been in the retail business for many years, I knew that saying, as many do, "May I help you?" would always generate a negative response. The following is from our suggestion given to each operator on how to talk to tourists as they greet them:
"When the ship was at sea, tourists would often go to the ship's radio room to send and receive their messages. On the top shelves, you can see the ships original radio receiving equipment. In the panels below are modern Amateur Radio equipment, and from here, Amateur Radio operators talk to people all over the world. With their skill in radio operation, Amateur Radio operators are always ready to provide communications in emergency and disaster situations. Because Amateur Radio operators are not limited to operate from power lines, they can provide mobile communications."
Although our operators do not necessarily use these exact words, these serve as a guide to an opening in which to promote Amateur Radio both as a hobby and a public service. Some visitors comment when they see the monitor on the packet station, that there was no TV when the ship was in operation. This gives us an opportunity to explain that by using Amateur Radio with Packet in our station, we can assure the accuracy of transmitted information in an emergency situation.
When our operators are talking to tourists and notice they have a camera, they invite the visitors in so they can take pictures of the interior of the station. We also offer to use their camera to take pictures of them seated at one of the transceivers. The operators are sure this promotes much conversation about Amateur Radio as they show the photos to their friends and relatives.
"He's Alive!"
An operating schedule and newsletter is mailed to the operators each month. This lets our volunteers know of any changes in the management's operation of the ship and of any interesting radio contacts and events that were made, such as the following from the April newsletter:
"Sometimes we scare the daylights out of tourists! This time it was the day the two Queen Mary ships met and a very large number of tourists were on the ship. In the Wireless Room with me were operators Michael Fox, W6MJF and Bob Grubic, NC6Q. They decided to go for coffee and I was listening to a weak signal on the radio, holding my hand on the dial and not moving. As we usually do, I glanced at one of the many small mirrors above the radios to see if any tourists were at the door. Seeing a large group there I turned toward them and one of the women screamed and another yelled, `He's alive!' When I got to the door everyone was enjoying a good laugh! They thought I was a mannequin! As many of you know, this happens quite frequently!"
We also mail the schedule and newsletter the executives and supervisors of the Queen Mary. In all the years of our operation, the ship's management has never had cause to issue a reprimand regarding our operation that they allow us to control totally.
That amateurs are interested in promoting our hobby is evident by the fact that many of our operators travel more than 35 miles to put in their scheduled operating period. During the 27 years of operation, more than 650 amateurs have been scheduled operators at the station. All these operators volunteer their time because of their desire to interest the public in our hobby. The Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach are very grateful for their help in keeping W6RO the Public Relations Station!
For More Information...
For more information about W6RO or to become a Wireless Room Operator, write to W6RO@queenmary.com or W6RO, PO Box 7493, Long Beach, CA 90807.
Nate Brightman, K6OSC, holds an Advanced class license. At 89 years young,
he is now in his 28th year as manager of W6RO aboard the Queen
Mary, and in his 31st year in the Red Cross Disaster Services
group. Licensed since 1957 and retired since 1987, Nate is a 1991
recipient of the Dayton Hamvention Special Achievement Award for his work
on the Queen Mary. He lives in Long Beach, California,
where he was instrumental in getting the city to raise the antenna height
limit by 30 feet.
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