Nets And Repeaters

Sometimes amateur radio operators want to talk to each other on short range radios, and there is an obstacle (like a mountain) in the way. A nice way to resolve this is to use a repeater. A repeater is simply a radio (placed in an easy-to-reach location) that takes in an appropriate transmission and rebroadcasts it on a different frequency. Everyone in a local area sets up their radio to be able to talk to and listen to the repeater, and then they can speak to each other through the repeater.

A net is a meeting on the air. In our nets, one person is called “Net Control” and calls out to different areas for people to “check in.” Subsequently, Net Control takes a report from everyone who checked in, where they have a couple of minutes to talk about what they’ve been up to lately.

The purpose of a net is for radio operators to practice using their radios, so that they know how to in the event of an emergency.