Howdy, all! I am in storm-chase mode currently as tour director for Tempest Tours. Tour 1 is in the books, and I just finished the write-ups and posts on Stormbruiser. Check out the April 2013 entries.
Tour 2 began out of OKC on May 1, and we chased some strong hailers from Seymour to Albany, TX. In Albany, at sunset, our nearby cell went nuts and blasted part of our group with 70 mph-plus winds. Nearby structures suffered roof damage. The other van managed to miss the wind on the west side of town. Behind the storm was a spectacular display of continuous spider lightning in the updraft region, with occasional lightning in the mammatus field above! Images for this day aren’t ready yet — but keep checking back.
After May 1, cold air swept southward to the Gulf, and the Plains region is still waiting for moisture to return. We spent three days in Terlingua/Big Bend NP, and on May 5 we visited Fort Davis and MacDonald Observatory. We expect to shift from sight-seeing mode to chasing mode in a day or two, as moisture slowly returns. A blocking pattern in the atmosphere is making life miserable for storm chasers.
Stormbruiser had some virus problems this past week, but everything should be cleaned up now. Let me know if you detect any issues. My web page developer removed the galleries, but the chase accounts section is still intact. A return of the galleries will have to wait a while.
I am on the dreaded Facebook now, and often times that is a better way to keep tabs on my chase exploits. You can be my friend! And while you are at it, “friend” the Tempest Tours page, too. Sometimes guests and staff post chase updates there and you can see what I have seen and see where I have been even before I have figured it out.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.