On Saturday, April 18, 2026, Lorene W6LOR and Mike K6STR rode their mountain bikes up the dirt road to W6/CT-015 (Pacifico Mountain).  It was a good day, making 52 QSOs, 32 of which contributed 2026 SOTA challenge points - adding 2322 km to 2m/CW and SSB distance.  She now has 770 total activations and 4001 SOTA points, having been active in SOTA since 2021. 

Lorene and Mike have a variety of radios they are using for the 2026 challenge.  For drive-ups they use a 50W IC-706.  They use a transverter and power amp when hiking or biking with their KX2, and have even been known to chase with their Quansheng when mobile.  On Pacifico, their KX2 failed.  (They now believe it was due to a cable not making full connection.)  Quickly thinking, they worked 2m with their Quansheng, with a power amp and JPole, getting chasers as far away as 200 km into San Diego.  But the best Quansheng story is how they have helped flash several Quansheng radios to do 2m SSB and CW for some folks at the Senior Center in Bishop, where several ham operators go to lunch each day. This allows them to have 2m/SSB chasers during the winter, when they are based out of Mammoth Lakes to enjoy the ski season.

Lorene has participated in other SOTA challenges, including the 2024 10 Meter Challenge.  For this she built a 10m Rockmite, for which she reached as far East as Illinois from SoCal, all on 250mW.  In 2024 she was top activator for in the Queen-of-the-Mountain challenge.  This encouraged YL to get on the air, and Lorene contributed by inviting YLs to join her on summits during that weekend.  Despite poor HF conditions, she made 12 YL to YL contacts, and an astonishing 210 contacts for the weekend.  But her hardest earned activation was the time she and Mike mountain biked to W6/CD-001 (White Mountain), a 14245 ft, 10-point summit.

We thank Lorene for the many SOTAFest campouts she has organized, and the assistance she has provided to others, giving recommendations on best summits.  Congratulations, Lorene, and we will catch you on the air soon.

Lorene on Pacifico, making 4X Mountain Goat

Lorene W6LOR, Mike K6STR, and David N6AN working the 2m Challenge on Cerro Negro, January 4, 2026.