END OF AN ERA

FROM THE SECRETARY - WAYNE, ACBRO 11

Adelaide, May 2011

Well Members it will come as a shock to you but at our last Committee Meeting in April, it was decided to bring to an end our ACBRO association, this agonizing decision has been a long time in coming, but we on committee for the last few years, have been putting off the inevitable. 

In 32 years lots of things have changed and in going back to when ACBRO first started, our whole world was completely different, and the struggle to have some sort of radio communications was much more important than it is today. Truck drivers had no other communications except CB Radio. Today they have Mobile phones which can now be used on the Internet for sending emails, SMS messages and the phone plans now are so cheap they can spend ages talking to there loved ones from all over Australia, for very little cost, 24 hrs a day. Their original Association, Truckers Radio Association, has long folded for communications. These are now wonderful times, I guess people like Truckers would never have a reason really to be a member of ACBRO, would they? 

Then there's the Emergency Monitors. In  the very start there was great interest in emergency monitoring. Today everyone has a mobile phone, even the repeater on  channel 5/35 has long gone here in SA and both channels are now freely used by businesses and have been for years. I personally have been a member of ACBRO  since the first day ACBRO started and I have served on our Committee for many years now. Years ago we received club news letters from at least a dozen very active clubs. Today there are none as we have watched as they all have dropped in membership and eventually folded. It's very sad for me personally as all of the original guys who were the ones to start ACBRO all those years ago have all now passed on. To my knowledge only two of the original members still going are me and Pas ACBRO 26.

One of the greatest enemies of CB I believe is the internet. In the old days all the channels used to be filled up with people talking to friends. I recently went to visit an old CB friend and was surprised to find a dozen people at his house that I used to talk to on CB years ago. All now used the Internet every night, either Messenger, Skype or Facebook to keep in contact with friends and no longer with CB, so it seems. How could we really compete with Skype where you can look at the person your talking to and see them from any where in the world.

27Megs is still going strong here in SA but it's the die-hards that are still using it. We at ACBRO realized years ago that UHF CB has been lost to businesses well and truly and although the Department has recently given us extra channels with the new sets now in the shops for sale, we know it wont be long before we will be back where we started, having to argue with business owners for a small piece of the band. 

Finally the final nail in the coffin for ACBRO membership is the new Amateur Licence now called the Foundation Licence which has been in for over 3 year. Now, most of the radio people who really are the true radio lovers have got their Foundation Licence. This entitles them to use an amazing amount of radio spectrum, all of the 80m and 40m band 15m and all of the 10m band as well as the 70cm UHF band and all of the 2M VHF as well although they are limited to only 10 watts it is amazing how far you can get with the right antennas, in fact the whole world. If someone new comes along and is interested in radio then CB is not in the race. Just recently at an ACBRO committee meeting we had 9 people attend and 8 had there Amateur Licence and are all involved in Radio Clubs to do with Amateur Radio.

Finally I would like to say a big thank you to all our members who have been the die-hards and have stuck by us and believed in the things we too believed in, that the public should have the right to have a radio service for anyone to use, for any purpose. We have decided to end the Magazine and Committee but we do have some money still left and we have decided to continue with the website for some long time to come as a service to our old members. The post office box is now cancelled and should you wish to contact us then you still can contact the website. 

We we wish to thank our sponsors who have stuck with us and supported us right to the very end, Electric Bug, Torrens Rd., Croydon and Transceiver Services from Para Hills ,SA. also, Michael Todd Computers, Maddington WA and a very special thanks to Andrew Newman who supported our repeater for many years. One great supporter also was Mr Martin Howells, from ACREM NSW. Both Pas and I had the pleasure of meeting Martin, at his home in Cessnock, NSW. He is the most dedicated man to the emergency CB cause. Many thanks to you Martin for your great effort in helping ACBRO with much copy for our magazine over the years. 

Thank you also to Nigel Garry from Tropinet who in ACBRO's opinion's has one of the best online repeater lists around. It is quite a site devoted to repeater listings Australia wide. Michael Todd of Michael Todd Computers and Communications has also been a great supporter of ACBRO whose Amateur Radio Companion CD has been advertised in ACBRO ACTION.  

Thank you to all those involved with maintaining and supporting ACBRO since its inception back in the late 1970's. 

Wayne, ACBRO 11, Secretary,

Adelaide, May 2011

Editors Note:

The Australian Association Of Citizens And Band Radio Operators Inc. 1980 has called it a day after 32 years of operation. Its last issue of ACBRO ACTION expounds upon this.

The PO Box has been cancelled and all snail-mail will be re-routed only for six months to another address. The email address will remain active until December 31st of 2011. After this date, this website acbro.org will be archived and remain on line for prosperity and as a source of information pertinent to the Citizens Band Radio Service. 

The ACBRO Team (Committee Members) thank its members, supporters, sponsors and the CB fraternity in general for its continued support and encouragement while being not only a portal to the world of CB radio operation but also as the advocate to the Federal Government and its regulatory authorities.

The ACBRO Team wish you all well for the future and bid you all, "Cheers and 73's...we're off and clear."  

"One voice brings about a thought, but many voices bring about a change." - ACBRO Team Inc. 1980

 

AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATION OF CITIZENS AND BAND RADIO OPERATORS INC. 1980

 

ACBRO has served the Citizens Band Radio Operator and Fraternity by providing a CENTRE POINT and a PORTAL to the Citizens Band Radio Service in Australia since the late 1970's. It has established itself as an advocate, advisory service, resource centre, a means of educating the "new" CBer and as a liaison between the Fraternity and the Federal Government for the benefit of all Australian Citizens Band Radio Operators. 

 

ACBRO is recognized and acknowledged by the Australian Federal Government as the "voice" to the Government and Regulatory Authorities, on behalf of all Australian CBers, Clubs and Groups to maintain, improve and oversee the Australian Citizen's Band Radio Service.

 

"One voice brings about a thought, but many voices bring about a change." - ACBRO Team Inc. 1980 

 

ACBRO publishes and distributes a Magazine called "ACBRO ACTION" that contains the latest and up-to-date information on matters pertinent to the Citizen's Band Radio Service in Australia. It is for this reason that this web site you are viewing will NOT always have a comprehensive coverage of CB related, news-worthy items. ACBRO suggest subscribing to ACBRO ACTION by way of membership to stay informed on what is happening in the CB scene in Australia, click here.