The first cop in my life happened this spring, namely during spring break and it all started like this: At the beginning of the holidays, I was faced with the fact that I was going to the village to visit my grandmother for two or three days. I won’t say that I was pleased with this news, since I will have to sacrifice my computer, the Internet and, of course, online games with friends. But the backpacks and bags were packed and we hit the road. Getting off at the station, we got into a taxi, which carried us across the vast, green steppes to a village called Chistopolye. Entering the house and starting to sort out our luggage, I noticed a strange yellow-black device in my father’s bag and, asking «what is it?», I received the answer that it was a metal detector , with whom I will be allowed to look for coins in our garden. Having completed our business, we went to him. It was at that moment that I picked up a large device with a name that was unclear to me at the time — metal detector At that moment, I didn’t understand how this thing picked up a signal on coins or nails and could even separate them. And so, having received a brief explanation of how to use it, I started searching and an hour later I had collected a good collection of old, rusty nails, and a considerable pile of wire. I no longer counted on anything valuable, when suddenly the device began to ring an obvious bell, just as my father had said. Having determined the exact place, I began to rake the soft soil with my hands and suddenly I saw a strange and rather large coin, I have never seen anything like it before!! My father cleaned it up a little and said that my first coin in my life was called «2 kopecks of Empress Catherine the Second of 1763». I can’t describe what was happening to me at that moment, adrenaline was overwhelming me, I don’t know how people who find treasure feel, but I think it was the same!! My father patted me on the shoulder and said that beginners are lucky not only in fishing, but also in coping and he was right, because this was just the beginning, and 10 minutes later the bell rang again and in my hand lay a beautiful «1 a penny from 1924», which didn’t even have a scratch! After another half an hour, the bell pointed to «2 kopecks of 1898» — it was incredible…, even my father was surprised, because he had explored these places many times and there were no such finds! The time spent searching flew by very quickly and when the sun set we had to finish our work not today, but the thought of tomorrow with a metal detector made me incredibly happy! Morning has come. Having inserted the batteries, I was the first to rush out of the house, passing through our garden, I came out into a beautiful clearing, where I began my search. More than one hour passed and my finds were all the same nails and aluminum caps, but it later turned out that they were from old vodka and are a common find for a searcher. Having changed my position, I went down into the gully and suddenly I heard a clear, but unstable signal. Deciding to check, I pulled out a long object from the ground, but when I twirled it in my hand, I was slightly upset, it was like a nail, only large and rather rusty. I called my father to look at this»miracle». Having examined it, the father was once again surprised and said that this was a real arrowhead!! And again emotions overwhelmed me! The desire to continue the search only intensified, but after walking more than one hundred meters, all the same lids and wire were my finds. On the way home, I checked a small island of grass and again luck, my joy was complemented by the beauty «kopek of 1823», with a beautiful two-headed eagle!! Time passed inexorably, so I had to get ready to go home, oh how I didn’t want to do this, but at 10 years old I couldn’t even imagine that there could be something more interesting than my new hobby!! I was ready to sacrifice both my computer and the Internet for the sake of at least one day in the field, but that’s for next time, especially since my father promised me a new coil for the metal detector, and it will increase both the depth and the area, and this is just right that’s what I need! Arriving home, my father found my tip in a book and from the shape we approximately determined that it was somewhere in the 8-10th century and belonged to either Kievan Rus or the Cumans and this was 1000 years ago!!! A lot of time has passed since my first dig, thanks to the Internet, I have become quite well versed in history, metal detectors and coins. Now searching has become my favorite pastime and I have huge plans and hopes for this spring!! Sometimes I imagine how in the future I will go on searches with my children and tell how I and their grandfather, in your years, found my first »Ekaterina» and the first tip!!! Thank you for your attention and good luck in your search! P.S. Thanks to grandma for her help in compiling Sent by Vladislav M. Comrades, to participate in the competition, send your stories from the cop with interesting photos by email: hobby.detecting@gmail.com What can you win in competition for the 2016 season? All details about the prizes here