Gary, W0MNA, passed 60,000 chaser points today. Way to go! Gary is always one of the first chasers to grab a summit. A gentleman and a great operator. It’s always a pleasure to work with Gary. Glad I could be one of your last few points to 60k.
Phil, NS7P
Wow… there is a whole peleton of US chasers clustered around 60,000 points, all pedaling after a single breakaway guy, N4EX, who is perilously close to 80,000 points. I know, I know, it’s not supposed to be a contest. None the less, gathering that many points gives a whole new meaning to the term Iron Butt Meritocracy (IBM), don’t you think?
Elliott, K6EL
Sota MT
Well done, Gary! When you’re not there, the band must be dead.
Best, Ken, K6HPX
Great Job!!
Congratulations, Gary! Well done! I hope to see you and Martha again next year at Dayton.
73, Walt
Another one of our great Chasers! Thanks Gary. It’s always a pleasure to work you (and the XYL) from a summit!
73
Pete
WA7JTM
Congrats Gary! I can’t imagine how long it would take most of us to get 60K points! It’s always fun to work you and Martha. Thanks for inspiring me to work the low bands so I can better work locals and adjacent states from the high peaks of Colorado.
73, Brad
WA6MM
Congrats Gary. I always look forward to putting you in the log along with Martha. Mr. Reliable.
Dennis
Gary
Well done!!
Thanks for being such a consistent chaser of me.
Paul
GREAT JOB GARY!!! I don’t think you and Martha miss too many activation’s during band openings!!!
See ya’ soon at the 80K plateau!
Good Luck,
73
Chuck - KA5PVB
Alpine, TX.
Congrats Gary on reaching such a large number of chaser points. It’s always comforting to hear yours and Martha’s signal when I’m way out on a peak somewhere. Thanks for being there. Doug n7cnh
Way to go Gary! Now we have 3 chasers in the low 60’s. It’s all for fun, but the competition is still there. Wish you all the best ; especially with the band conditions that are here and ahead. 73 de Scotty
Congratulations, Gary! Thanks for always being there! Looking forward to seeing you both again at Huntsville!
Dave, AE9Q
Nice job Gary - always great to hear you and thanks for dropping what you’re doing to get me a contact !! I’m sure you get extra points if you come inside when Martha calls - that always make me chuckle 
73 Rick WB0USI
Congrats Gary! Always makes for a better and complete activation when I am able to put you and Martha in the log. Thanks for being there summit after summit!
73 de K7MK
Congrats, Gary. Always enjoy hearing you and Martha on the hilltops.
Mike, N4VBV
And along the way your operating skills and anticipation have saved our activation more than once.
Trying to put that 60K into perspective - It has taken us 5 years to get to 12K… so your level equals 25 years of our chasing! Awesome!
Merle and Herm
New Hampshire
KB1RJD and KB1RJC
Congrats Gary, I knew you’d be there shortly. Amazing that the 3 of us hit the mark so close together. Thanks for the points you and Martha passed out and also for the assistance in getting other activators to QSY to 40m, when I couldn’t hear them on 20m. It wouldn’t be a pileup without MNA and ERI !
73 and good luck,
Tommy W7RV
Thanks to everyone for the kind remarks. When I started into SOTA back in 2013 I had no idea it would be so much fun, both as a chaser and an activator, plus take me this far with chaser points. The longer I work with SOTA the more Martha and I come up with ways to try and make the contacts. When I’m out working in the Kansas heat mowing the yard Martha is manning the station. She gives me a call on the cheap Baofang handheld radio and I stop mowing and slip into the AC and make a contact. The positive side of that is I get the contact, take a break to cool down and get a cool drink. When we are mobile we use a keyboard on a clipboard that feeds a K1EL model K42 keyer to key the radio on CW. The “F” keys are programmed with our calls and RST responses making it fairly easy for the passenger to work the radio and the driver to concentrate on driving. The activating part sure has helped us develop better portable antennas and such to put up easily and quickly. Never thought it would go this far back in 2013 but we’re having a great time. Only thing that keeps us off the air at times are hamfests and when we’re out with the hot air balloon team. Should of probably hit 60K sooner but we look for fun where we can find it so other hobbies get in the way of chasing at times. Thanks again and I’ll look for everyone on the bands no matter how flaky they get over the next few years.
Gary A. - W0MNA