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A Winning Whistler

--By Jennifer Marino

When Chris Ullman, 40, was a teenager with a paper route, his customers could always hear him coming. Ullman, whose father had taught him to whistle at age 5, would whistle tunes for two hours each day as he rode his bicycle. His hobby paid off: He went on to become the four-time national and international grand whistling champion!

Why does he do it? "Whistling makes people smile," Ullman, who nicknamed himself the Happy Whistler, told TFK. "And it's cheap. All you need is some Chapstick."

A love of music and two to three hours of practice a day earned Ullman his victories. He also has whistled the National Anthem at NBA games, appeared on TV shows and performed with the famous National Symphony Orchestra at the U.S. Capitol.

Ullman has also learned the importance of having "standby" songs. In June 2001, he went in to work at the White House budget office and was told to be ready to whistle in just 15 minutes. President Bush had requested a private concert in the Oval Office. Ullman whistled five songs for the President, Vice President Dick Cheney and staff members. The President loved the performance. He even sent a glowing review to Ullman's father.

Ullman hopes to "reintroduce whistling as art." His CD, The Symphonic Whistler, is for sale on his website, happywhistler.com, where you can hear snippets of the songs. He may also take part in this year's International Whistling Competition in April. Because Ullman had won so many times, he had been banned from participating for two years after his victory in 2000, and he skipped last year's competition. This year, Ullman has good reason to compete. He's going for the record! "No one has won the top prize more than four times," he says. "So if I win, I'll be the winningest whistler ever!" For more about Ullman, go to timeforkids.com/whistler.

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