Thanks to the many chasers who made my 12 year old daughter’s participation in my activations last week a success. I very much appreciate the patience, encouragement, and assistance in making her life better.
We drove from Texas up to Oklahoma and camped, hiked, and activated six summits. They were modest and more than half were very simple to access. She decided to stay in the car for an early morning activation with mist and winds gusting to at least 45 mph. But she thoroughly enjoyed the experience and when we were finished and driving home she said it made her feel good to be complimented. KF6HI contacted us on each summit, WB6POT on five, and many others on multiple summits. She also enjoyed hearing from the female operators. Initially she remarked that operators were all males but she discovered that is not the case.
We are putting a plan in place for her to study for technician while not interfering with schoolwork, dance, violin and piano. I don’t know that she will be on peaks in twenty years, but she will have fond memories. I’m glad she was able to participate in the hobby and understand some of the magic.
Thanks Brent for the nice story and photo. Looks like a you had a great time together, making memories which you will both treasure. I’m not sure if that was your daughter’s first experience of SOTA, but great that it was a positive one!
I was great to worked you both on the summits. I love to hear when our youth gets involved with Ham Radio and they enjoy it. Juliana did a great job with the pileups!
We shared an S2S. I think I was on Flag Pole Knob in W4V at the time. Please tell Juliana that she was a great operator . Congrats on a successful trip.
I was able to get Qs with both of you, and she sounded extremely comfortable with the mic! It’s so nice to hear about family trips that include some radio.
Orthodontic braces, like amalgam fillings, have been known to detect/demodulate strong RF signals, mainly in AM mode. Little known advantage granted to teen activators like Juliana. Has to be in the presence of saliva, so less smiling and more salivating over big pile-ups.
Hello, everyone! This is Julianna! I’ve had a fabulous time contacting you all and spending time with dad! Thank you for your extremely generous compliments! Hopefully I can study frequently and pass the test to become a technician sometime soon!
-(It is hilarious that someone commented about my braces, because I recently got them tightened!)
The only thing better than when young people get involved in ham radio is when young folks get involved in SOTA! Great job by both of you. I need to start chasing more summits from home; maybe I could have been part of this epic adventure.
You folks enjoy this great time together! My daughter started hiking with me when she was 2 years old, and still likes to hike with Dad every now and then even though she’s now 23. She did hike to Richland Balsam on the Blue Ridge Parkway (W4C/WM-003) with me for an activation a couple weeks ago, and we had a great time. Hope to eventually help her get her license once she finishes her Master’s Degree.
These are great times to enjoy, here’s wishing you both lots of future fun on the hills!
