Sofas on the Air

Friend of the 'pod Josh KI6NAZ, from the little-known  @HamRadioCrashCourse  drops by the sofa to get nerdy... and share how he entered the SOTA-verse! This episode covers Josh's disastrous first SOTA activation and Mark's theories on the importance of balancing technical, physical, and mental skills for success. Ara shows hardware for his nearly complete "Antennode" project, which uses Raspberry Pis and LoRa to automate antenna A/B testing and provide a scientific method for evaluating antenna performance without expensive equipment. Josh dives deep into the challenges of content creation, emphasizing the need for consistency over perfection. Finally, the whole team gets passionate about building sustainable ham club club leadership, and how to empower new members to take the initiative in gettin' stuff done!As always, the Sofa was captained by Mark KD7DTS and Ara N6ARA, with Di KO6BTM running the studio system and Ormoo noshing on kibbles.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Josh KI6NAZ on YouTube:  @HamRadioCrashCourse  Ara N6ARA on YouTube:  @N6ARAElectronics  The N6ARA Store: https://n6ara.com/ Drink tasting: Elysian "Contact Haze"__CHAPTERS__0:00 Welcome & beers3:07 Josh's hot takes on AI8:30 Josh's first (failed) SOTA, and need for "Intro to SOTA" days30:27 Mark's principles of "SOTA Success" 36:07 The "Antennode" - antenna science!1:02:13 Developing ham club leaders1:17:19 Patreon questions! (YouTube... how does that work??)1:45:34 Turning the tables - Josh's questions for Ara & Mark__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphics

Ara's friend Justin K5EM drops by the sofa to share his pro tips on how friendly radio events (including SOTA!) can build community both locally, and around the world. As always, this episode was captained by Mark KD7DTS and Ara N6ARA, with Di KO6BTM running the studio system.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun! https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Sake - Kunoichi by Moon BloomSupercon: https://hackaday.io/superconference/Salmon Run QSO Party: https://salmonrun.wwdxc.org/Palau DX: https://www.qrz.com/db/T88WASOTAMAT: https://sotamat.com/Non-Ormoo SOTACAT: https://store.invertedlabs.com/product/sotacat/__Chapters__0:00 Intros8:00 Mark's SOTA Goat activation19:50 Justin's ham journey42:51 DXpedition in Palau1:09:01 Salmon Run QSO Party1:30:51 SOTACAT1:42:12 Thanks to our Patreon supporters__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsNote: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Tim N7KOM returns to the Sofa to share his Oregon campout experience, drop some cool geology knowledge, and take a speed-round of Patreon questions! Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Nikka - From the BarrelTim's Etsy Page: https://www.etsy.com/shop/N7KOMPortableRadioTim's Dank Meme Page: https://www.instagram.com/n7kom_mtntop/K6ARK's W7O First Activation Video: https://youtu.be/p5zHlpZ3jbQ?si=eoqnDGwMAMP3tkqJLearn about Pseudotachylytes: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191814113000436/pdfft?md5=2cfbe5aed237c265df9b7ed67a158d81&pid=1-s2.0-S0191814113000436-main.pdf__Chapters__0:00 Intros... and Tim's wedding!2:56 Whiskey tasting & catching up11:23 Tim's W7O Experience17:44 Dank Memes - HOW?19:55 SOTA Royale 43:14 Patreon Questions - Pseudotachylytes??58:17 Speed Round!1:05:23 Thanks to our supporters__Thanks & Acknowledgements__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsThanks to our Patreon supporters for making this show possible!Note: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Mark & Ara catch up on the Sofa, answer a few questions, and get some Ormoo prints on their laptops.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey__Chapters__0:00 Mark & Ara catch up2:31 Beverage Tasting7:00 Patreon Questions41:03 NT6E Activation!49:19 Ara's Antenode Update59:15 Contests (and a viral microwave video)01:18:00 Wrap up, & thanks to our Patreon supporters!__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsNote: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Umesh KK6TXI visits the Sofa to share his expertise in custom batteries for portable ham radio, including QRO SOTA and a mountaintop Field Day! We catch up (finally) with stories from the W7O and W6 SOTA campouts, and Mark waxes poetic about an activation that went oh-so-wrong.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAirSHOW NOTESDrink tastings: G4 Tequila Blanco High Proof 108, G4 Tequila ReposadoThe NR7Y Hardware Mod: https://youtu.be/zi35aTjEppQ N6ARA Electronics - the TinyPaddle, and more! https://n6ara.com/KK6TXI's Battery Field Test - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBzJ3BqniDEChapters0:00 Hi Umesh!3:36 Tequila Tasting9:02 Batteries!01:11:28 Mark's W7O Campout01:24:38 Ara's W6 Campout01:30:11 SOTA Car-tastrophe01:52:54 Thanks to our Patreon supporters!THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSUmesh KK6TXI - studio space and intro/outro musicDi KO6BTM - audio engineeringNote: Amazon links are affiliate links