Weber State University, Department of Physics

Dr. John E. SohlLong ago: John and Ian (then 5) at the climbing gym

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Personal Interests (Click on the images for larger versions.)

How to get to my home:

Topo Map to my House (Local, full color map)

Simple map to my house (from the airport)

Family:

We are interested in many things: camping, climbing, hiking, mountain biking, astronomy, visiting museums, etc. Here on this page are a few of the things we like to do. 

I have a wife (Sheri) and one son (Ian). Sheri is the director of a private foundation that is dedicated to improving science education.Our son, Ian, is very sharp and is doing well in college. While in high school, Ian won 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (2011, 2012, 2010).

 Ian winning a 2nd Place award at the 2011 ISEF.Ian's 2011 project at ISEF.

The AIAA group when I won the 2011 Utah Engineering Educator of the Year award.

Above: Winning the 2011 Utah Engineering Educator of the Year Award. My son Ian is at the far right.

  Kayaking in the Gulf of Alaska, Prince William Sound area.Avalanche control work with the old howitzer at SnowBird.

   

Mountain Rescue

I am the commander of the local mountain rescue team, the Weber County Sheriff's Search and Rescue. I specialize in vertical and other hazardous terrain rescue such as swift water rescue, avalanche terrain, blizzards, etc. We are an all weather and all season team.  I personally enjoy telemark skiing, rock climbing, mountain climbing, ice climbing, ski backpacking, kayaking, camping, etc. In the pictures below I am helping to run a rappelling station for our annual Safe Climbing Seminar and am doing a training session on swift water rescue (I'm the one in the yellow helmet). 

In what was one of the coolest things we've ever done, Sheri and I were selected as Olympic torchbearers. We ran in Ogden just a few days before the start of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. 

  Swiftwater search and rescue training. (With Mark Miller.)  

Rockets

I have been flying model rockets since the late 1960's  and I grew up within eyesight of the NASA Mercury, Gemini and Apollo launches in Florida. (I was on the other coast of Florida, but once the rocket was up a short ways, you could see it from our backyard.) While at Honeywell, I worked on part of the Space Shuttle and I got to watch the shuttle's first launch from the VIP stands. Lately I've gotten into high-power model rockets and am certified to Level I by the National Association of Rocketry. I've got two rockets that can break the speed of sound. The rocket in the pictures below is one of those rockets. 

Astronomy

I enjoy giving and going to public and private star parties. I built my first telescope when I was 14 and have been hooked ever since. I was reasonably active with the Ogden Astronomical Society back when I had a little free time, and invite anyone with an interest in astronomy to join their local astronomical society.

All pictures taken by Sheri Trbovich (my wife, who also hates to be in pictures).

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Dr. John Sohl

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