The Simplex Animals History


On the CB radio we were known as the Channel Janitors

 

The core group of Simplex Animals started out on Citizens Band Radio in the West Los Angeles area of Southern California during the late 70's and early 80's. At that time, CB Radio was crammed with people and a number of different channels flourished. Disputes between CB'ers and even entire channels were common. Adding to this anarchy, long distance propagation restricted daytime communications, so most of the radio activity could only be conducted after dark. Motivated by a desire to have reliable communications along with an aspiration to advance in our radio hobby, a migration to Amateur Radio was undertaken. The year was 1982.

Back then you had to learn five words per minute Morse code and pass a written examination to earn your introductory Novice class license, which only permitted code operation. To obtain voice privileges, you needed to pass yet another exam thus earning your Technician class license. A couple of people in our group already had Amateur Radio licenses, some went to a ham radio class, but the majority of people were taught by their peers. Once we had about eight people licensed, a two meter simplex frequency was chosen and the group that would become known as the Simplex Animals was on the air.

Our operation was legal but a bit unorthodox for Amateur Radio. Most of us were in our late teens or early twenties and continued to have strong ties to CB radio, where many of our friends still resided. We spoke of the wild things going on with our friends on CB, had heated arguments among ourselves, and engaged in conversations of traditionally taboo Amateur Radio subjects such as politics and religion. The migration slowly continued. The need to learn Morse code and pass two written exams was more than some cared to endure. Our numbers continued to grow however, as Amateur Operators that had come across our frequency and were attracted to our loose operating style would join the group.

Things really took off in late 1987. In an attempt to create more interest in Amateur Radio, the FCC added limited voice privileges to the Novice license. Although none of these new privileges included our two meter band, the comparable 220 MHz was. The decision was made to move our group to the 220 MHz band for the sole purpose of easing licensing requirements. Within a year we had over thirty active Simplex Animals and you could turn on the radio at any time, day or night and find someone to talk to. The Simplex Animals were riding high.

Over the next fifteen years our numbers dwindled. There were arguments, people moved away, others simply lost interest and some became silent keys. However, in 2004 there was a breath of new life for the Simplex Animals. We established an Echolink simplex node which creates a link between the internet and our simplex radio frequency. By utilizing this link, many of the Animals that have relocated are now able to communicate with the main group once again. With a rich and vibrant history spanning more than two decades, the Simplex Animals are still going strong� and will be for some time to come!



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