The short version: listen first, make one contact, check into one net, and find one person to ask questions. Do those four things in your first month and you’re past the hardest part.

Before you key up

• Your call sign is on your ISED certificate. Write it on a sticky note on your radio until it comes naturally.
• Program your radio with the local repeaters. See Programming Your Radio and the Local Repeater Quick Reference.
• Identify properly: say your call sign at the start and end of each contact, and at least every 30 minutes during a long one.

Week 1: Listen, then make your first contact

• Spend a few evenings just listening to the VE6DOK repeater (442.075 MHz, +5 MHz, no tone) and VE6UP (147.150 MHz). Notice how people call, pause and hand over.
• When you’re ready, key up and say: “VE6XXX listening.” Or wait for a pause in a conversation and say your call sign once.
• Keep it simple: your name, where you are, how you’re hearing them. Nobody expects a polished operator in week one.
• Read Radio Etiquette once. It covers 90% of what new operators worry about.

Week 2: Check into a net

• A net is the friendliest place to practise. The net control station tells you exactly when to talk.
• Have your call sign, name and location ready, and say them slowly.
• If you have HF privileges, the Alberta Public Service Net on 3.700 MHz at 6:30 pm is a good first HF net.
• See Nets for check-in scripts you can read straight off the screen.

Week 3: Find your people

• Join a club. In the Lethbridge area that’s the Southern Alberta Amateur Radio Club. Clubs are where you’ll learn fastest.
• Find an Elmer, an experienced ham who doesn’t mind questions. See Find an Elmer.
• Try simplex on 146.520 MHz with a friend to learn how far your radio really reaches without a repeater. See Simplex Operation.
• Start a log, even a notebook. It helps you remember who you talked to.

Week 4: Improve your station

• An antenna upgrade beats a power upgrade. Even a better handheld antenna or a mag-mount on the car makes a big difference. See What Should I Build?
• If you have HF, try FT8 and watch PropMap to see which bands are open.
• Put together a basic emergency radio kit: a charged handheld, a spare battery and your local frequencies on paper.

Common first-month mistakes

• Wrong offset or tone: you can hear the repeater but nobody hears you. Check your programming first.
• Not pausing: wait a second or two after the other station finishes, so the repeater resets and others can break in.
• Buying gear before you know what you’ll use: borrow, ask at the club, and buy once you know.
• Waiting until you feel ready: nobody does. Make the contact.

Where to go next

• What Radio Should I Buy First?
• Programming Your Radio
• Local Repeater Quick Reference
• Printable Checklists