Archive for October, 2010
VHF never a common word when growing up…
When I grew up, I have to admit that I never even had heard the phrase VHF when talking about communication or when going out fishing. We looked at the sky, took a “shooting from the hip” weather forecast of the approaching clouds and ventured out into the water. Sometimes we were lucky and had great seas, but sometimes we were caught quite short on the safety factor. Anyone growing up on the water knows that the seas seem to calm down around 7PM and then, as a general rule, the wind comes up around 10AM the next day. Now, that isn’t true for every day, mind you, but I’m talking in generalities from what I have experienced. There are times when we could have saved ourselves a lot of stress if we had had a VHF Marine Radio on board with an NOAA Weather Channel to alert us of any weather systems coming over the horizon because usually by the time you see them coming over the horizon, they are too close for you to avoid being in the middle of them. Be safe and invest in a VHF Marine Radio – quite honestly probably the most important piece of equipment you could own on the water. Happy Boater.
Construction woes made manageable by CB…
I’m not sure how it is where you live, but in northern Minnesota, we have 2 main seasons – winter and road construction! It may sound silly, but I assure you it really isn’t far from the truth! If any of you have traveled through Minnesota in the summer, I can just about bet that you encountered some road construction and detours. If you had a CB Radio on board, it is very likely that you could pick up on some of the chatter and conversations between other truckers encountering the same messes you are on the roadways. Did you ever wonder why the truckers always seem to know where they are going? That’s because they are probably in touch with other truckers ahead of them who could warn them of tangled up traffic due to road construction, etc before they get there. These units are really very affordable and can save you a lot of gray hair when traveling. If you don’t want to actually have one installed, a hand held CB Radio is the perfect fit for you. Happy Boater.
Sound must be clear to hear!
There’s nothing worse in my opinion than trying to listen to something through a garbled up speaker. You may have the best receiver in the world, but if you don’t send its output through a quality speaker, then you just wasted a fine tune or your comments won’t be heard clearly be everyone – especially those of us who have to depend on hearing aids as it is. Marine speakers are waterproof as well as very inexpensive for a very quality item. I know folks who have actually changed out the audio system in their brand new boat to these new marine speakers and were quite taken by the quality of the sound as they hosted a boat party one evening with all their friends. If you’re going to play music or try communicating with someone else over your radio, why not send a clear message!! Happy Boater.
View the fall leaves from a canoe or kayak with a VHF Radio in your pocket!!
Beauty is certainly everywhere in the fall of the year! What fun to be in a canoe or kayak and quietly cutting your way through the glassy water and enjoying the great out of doors. Maybe stopping occasionally to snap a picture of some beautiful scenes reflecting in the water as you went. This time of the year is without a doubt too short, but we have to enjoy every day. Part of the equipment you should be packing (besides a picnic lunch, that is) is a hand held VHF Marine Radio. They are small enough to slip into your vest pocket and in the event of a mishap, may be the most important thing you took with. These little radios will float and are waterproof to approximately 1 meter so would be very useful to call for help if you ever needed it. Yes – enjoy the great beauty of the season, but be safe. Happy Boater.
Might be a bit early to put away the toys yet…
Some years summer is nearly over by the time the middle of September arrives. Then again, there is this year – we may have had a really cold and miserable June, but we have had more summer this year in the north land than any year I can remember! Many enjoyable times were had on board the pontoon boat this year listening to our favorite music through our marine radio receiver. It is really nice now that you can prerecord our favorite tunes into an MP3 format and simply plug in it into the radio receiver to be played through your marine audio sound system. There’s something really soothing about being on water – a special kind of therapy from the work-a-day world we live in. Hope you had plenty of time to enjoy the summer also. Happy Boater.
Hand held CB Radios work well on ATV’s as well as on Snowmobiles…
Generally at this time of the year, we have a general “flip-flop” of toys in the storage sheds (often call big toy boxes). The ATV’s are put away and the snowmobiles are dusted off and brought to the forefront. One thing remains constant…the Hand Held CB Radio that you had strapped to the ATV for the summer and fall months will still continue to work well when out on your snowmobile. Always nice to know that your home base or snowmobiling buddy is just a call away if you needed him/her. Now, I know it really isn’t hard to change out a drive belt on a sled or make some minor repairs, but there’s something very comforting when there’s someone there with you when doing even those simple repairs. Why not make your life a bit less complicated and add a hand held CB Radio to your bag of goodies that is taken along on every trip! You know the old saying – “if you’re broke down, misery loves company!” Happy Boater.
Keep in touch with your hunting party!
The fall season brings with it a flurry of not only colored leaves, but it also brings a flurry of hunters. What are they hunting for?? Well, there’s bear, moose, ruffed grouse, ducks, geese, deer, and many more things. The point is that not all of these “so called” hunters grew up in the woods and come up a bit short when keeping their bearings when hunting. This is for 2 reasons – they are concentrating on hunting and not where they are; and in the woods, every tree starts looking the same to the unskilled woodsman. It’s then easy to get turned around. Now, in the case of a moose hunter (at least in our area) – there are always 4 in a hunting party for a single moose taken. What if you were the one that got to take the lucky shot and bagged a 800 lb moose? Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to radio some of your other hunting party members so they could help dress it out as well as carry it out??? In this situation, I believe it would sure be handy to have a hand held VHF radio in your pocket! Help would be on the way in moments!! Happy Hunting! Happy Boater.
CB’s provide a degree of safety when on the road!
Besides being fun to operate and a real neat item to have especially when traveling with another vehicle in a “mini convoy”, CB Radios can be a terrific aid when traveling our nations roadways. Let’s say that the “leader of the pack” (or mini-pack) encounters some really slow traffic for some reason. It is possible for him/her to radio to the others traveling with them so they could avoid the slow down by diverting to another route. Also, if you’re talking to someone else occasionally when traveling, I believe it tends to keep you more alert and awake when traveling over those long stretches of freeway in our nations mid section. The good news is that anyone can use these radios and they are now better than they ever have been from a technology standpoint. Besides that – they are very inexpensive!! Add this new dimension to your travels and see what I mean!! Happy Boater.
Hearing is one thing – understanding is quite another…
How many times have you listened to something on a television set or a radio with less than desirable speakers and had absolutely no idea what they said when they were done?? I sure have. Now, I admit that I have a bit of a natural hearing loss so it is even more frustrating for me. The difference comes in when I hear something through a quality speaker which broadcasts sound clear enough so what they are saying doesn’t get left behind. Just the other day I was on a train and an announcement came over the speaker system. I had all I could do to understand what in the world they were talking about. Granted – some of those talking over the speakers were a bit less than articulate with their words, but non-the-less it sure would have helped to have clear audible reproduced sound!! Lucky us – today we have affordable, high quality marine speakers available to us to make our listening lives easier!! Treat your self today. Happy Boater.
Nothing “spooky” about radio communication…
Although we have the annual Halloween antics at this time of every year, there is nothing spooky about using the kind of equipment available for providing safety for all your boating outings. Now, I will admit that everyone gets a bit of stage fright when handed a microphone and told to say something. That’s normal. But, practice makes perfect. Get comfortable with the name of your boat as well as the proper channels to use in the event of a mishap when on the water. VHF Marine Radios are really quite easy to use, as long as you know what channels to use and the type of information required by the USCG or someone on the other end in order to reach you and provide assistance. One can monitor the weather – even when you can’t even see shore (in fact, that’s when it’s critical that the weather channel be monitored). That way, nobody has to find themselves in a scary situation – waiting to be rescued. Happy Boater.