Received: from opus.hpl.hp.com (opus-fddi.hpl.hp.com) by jr.hpl.hp.com with ESMTP (1.37.109.24/15.5+ECS 3.3+HPL1.1) id AA222584832; Wed, 15 Apr 1998 11:27:12 -0700 Return-Path: <poulton@zonker.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis> Received: from zonker.hpl.hp.com (zonker-fddi.hpl.hp.com) by opus.hpl.hp.com with ESMTP (1.37.109.24/15.5+ECS 3.3+HPL1.1) id AA100284827; Wed, 15 Apr 1998 11:27:07 -0700 Received: (from poulton@localhost) by zonker.hpl.hp.com (8.8.6/8.7.1) id LAA12810 for wind_talk@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis; Wed, 15 Apr 1998 11:27:06 -0700 (PDT) Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1998 11:27:06 -0700 (PDT) From: Ken Poulton <poulton@zonker.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis> Message-Id: <199804151827.LAA12810@zonker.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis> To: wind_talk@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis Subject: Re: More VHF Questions Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
> Still curious how the typical sailor on a typical day uses their VHF. Do
> you power it up only during known emergencies?
I only turn it on for testing (nearly always on shore) and in emergencies.
And in emergencies, only while down in the water or on the shore.
This is because I have to remove it from the outer bag and then hold it -
I have a leash, but no harness to wear it in a usable position.
> If no monitoring is typically the
> rule, is it feasible to monitor while sailing to assist?
It would require a headset. These are hold-button-to-talk units, which
takes a hand and you need it near your ear to hear it in windy conditions.
> Plus how about
> general communciation, is that really discouraged?
There are ~80 channels, and chatter is allowed on many.
> In general, how would
> you rate the effectiveness of the communciation among the VHF community on
> a typical day, and also during a rescue?
Most days, I know of no casual windsurfing use. There have been few
rescues where the rescuee had a VHF radio. But when we had the
radio, there was no searching, they just came right to us. Most other
rescues have taken 1-3 hours of searching *after* the 45 minutes travel
time.
> One last question, any VHF radios
> with battery life indicators?
Several.
Ken Poulton
poulton@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis
"Direct experience is best. The man who carries a cat home by the
tail gains information that will be useful all his life and will not
grow dim in his memory." -- Mark Twain
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