Episode #14 - The Other Side Of The Mountain

It takes two hands to clap... to wings to fly... two to tangle... and two amateur radio ops to make a QSO! 

It's fun to read about field operations and look at images of hams doing amazing things in amazing places (like driving your Jeep down the side of a mountain). It's also fun to daydream about hauling your gear to some never-before activated mountain peak and bringing back the image of you holding your SOTA flag high above your head and a log full of QSOs. We all enjoy reading those reports and listening to those stories. For every successful SOTA activation, it takes a SOTA Activator who's willing to face the elements and haul gear to the top of a mountain and a radio op someplace else to complete the exchange. More often than not, the other radio op is a SOTA Chaser who completes the QSO and participates in a successful activation. And it turns out that being a SOTA Chaser is a super easy way for new and seasoned CW ops to have a lot of fun, participate in an exciting and interesting activity and develop their CW skills.

Kent Olsen, NC6B, was first licensed in 1998 and currently holds an Amateur Extra license. Kent has been a very active SOTA chaser and recently achieved the coveted SOTA Sloth award. He explains what SOTA Chasing is all about and just how easy it is to get involved in this fun and challenging activity.