What use is an F-call?

This week I'd like to share with you an experience I had on air a couple of days ago. I was tuned to 7.093 and I called CQ DX at about 4pm in the afternoon. I'd been listening on all bands for most of the afternoon and finally was beginning to hear some movement on 40 meters. There had been contests happening on all manner of frequencies, near and far, but for some reason or another, I wasn't getting through. There were a couple of hams having a chin wag a little further up the dial, but they seemed too engrossed to have a chat with someone else, so I dialled up the VK calling frequency and called for CQ DX.

The call I got back was: "What are you doing calling CQ DX on this frequency at this time of the day?" - at first I was confused, it sounded like I'd trod on someone's toes, so I asked, "Sorry, is this frequency in use?" - I got an unclear answer and then: "What were you expecting in the way of DX?" to which I replied: "Something outside of Perth would be a great start."

I didn't really get a response, or I didn't understand the response, either way, I felt like I'd done something wrong, but was unable to determine what it was that I might have done to receive the ire of the other station.

Now don't get me wrong, the station wasn't abusive, didn't swear or tell me off exactly, but I didn't really feel welcome and soon after packed up and went home.

At the time, there were four other amateurs with me and I asked them what had happened that might have caused this kind of response. They explained that it might have been a little early to get good propagation on 40 meters, but that I shouldn't worry too much, because there were always a few people on air with a bit of a chip on their shoulder.

Further discussion revealed that at least one amateur who was with me on that day had been the recipient of a similar treatment early in their amateur involvement and that the effect had not been forgotten. Since that experience, I've heard a few other mutterings about f-calls and their short-comings.

You'll notice that I've not mentioned any call signs during this story, it's because I'm not trying to pick on a particular amateur who, in my opinion, could do with a hug, but because my experience with the rest of Amateur Radio has been so very different. It seems that every where I've been, I get welcomed almost as a long lost friend, even though the ink on my license is barely dry.

So, in closing, all I really want to say, is thank you for welcoming me into this hobby. Thank you for encouraging me and if you as an f-call are ever on the end of this kind of experience, I encourage you to remember that there are some 3 million or so amateurs around, "mostly harmless" as Douglas Adams might have put it.

I'm Onno, vk6flab