POTA...

Somedays you come across things that make you scratch your head, today was one of those days.

Five years and 876 POTA activations ago I went on line, found the nearest POTA park...and there were not too many in those days...drove there, set up my radio, battery, and antenna and got on the air calling CQ POTA. That was September 18th, 2020. POTA was one of the few activities we could do here because of the Covid epidemic shutdown then happening.

It took a while back then to get the ten required contacts for a successful activation, some days it took over an hour as it wasn't as popular as it has become. In fact you had to explain what POTA was to many of the contacts you made, they had only responded to your call so they could find out what "POTA" was. They all knew what SOTA was, what IOTA was, but POTA, not so much.

We had an excellent guide, the POTA website. It told us all we needed to do, the rules were few and easy to follow...just as they are today. 

So you can imagine my surprise when a friend sent me a link today to a website that is offering a formal course in "How to POTA". It costs US$99. Who are these people who would pay that price rather than simply read the POTA website? My head explodes every time I think about it. 

Has POTA changed? Have the rules changed? Do operators not understand how easy it is to get out and POTA? 

You need five things to POTA, an approved park, a radio, a battery, an antenna, and a way of logging. That's it, there's no course required, and no $99 taken from your wallet, put that money towards a better antenna. It's easy, and you don't need to have a Phd to do POTA. 

Stay Safe Out There....and keep your hands on your wallet!