Storm Chasing.

Chase Ready.

We’re getting close enough to my annual storm chasing trip to where I can start pinpointing the area of the country I’ll be visiting. It’s going to be an interesting trip this year; this is the first time I’m chasing in May instead of June. I knew this would result in being a little farther south than I was last year, but with the odd weather patterns as we move from La Niña to El Niño, and the jet stream doing some interesting things, it looks like I’m going to be very well acquainted with Texas and Oklahoma.

I have absolutely no issue with that.

I like exploring areas of the United States I haven’t been to before. Small towns are fascinating to me, and it makes me a little sad to see them become a little more generic or cookie cutter as corporations do their best to make each town look the same with their big box stores and chain restaurants.

Like previous trips, I plan on staying way from the Interstates as much as possible (unless it’ll get me to a storm faster), and I plan on eating at locally owned restaurants as much as I can. I’ll probably listen to local radio stations as well. Having worked in radio in a former life, radio is always fascinating to me. And with some radio stations I get a really different point of view than what I normally experience in my day to day life.

I’m looking forward to the experience. My plan is to direct my content to this blog instead of relying on social media to share my experiences.

4 May 2023 by J.P. Storm Chasing. 0

Getting Ready.

My next storm chasing trip is just three weeks away. We’re starting to get into the zone where long range forecasts start to mean something. Nothing changes like the weather, but this far out one can start to see how things might shape up.

There’s several weather and storm chasing blogs and other outlets that I follow on a regular basis. Most are predicting a lively experience the week that I plan on being out there. I’m looking forward to seeing and experience some of Mother Nature’s feisty moments, in a safe manner of course. After all, I do need to return the rental car still intact. My brain chemistry won’t allow me to just destroy someone else’s property just because I have insurance.

It looks like I might be going a little farther east than I did last year. I’m also going a month earlier than I did last year, so theoretically I shouldn’t have to drive as far north as I did in 2022, but only time will tell. I’ll drive where I need to drive.

If the week turns out to be quiet, I still have plenty of towns and cities and the like to explore, and that can be just as fun for me, albeit in a very different way than riding out 60+ MPH winds, but still enjoyable.

I plan on being a little more active with sharing content from my adventures during this chase week in May. I’m still not sure how Twitter will figure into the mix, any foundation of stability and reliability with that platform is quickly eroding, but I will be sharing photos on Pixelfed, and unfortunately, Instagram. I’m not a fan of the Meta owned properties but I use them because so many folks I know are there.

I may also stream on YouTube, we’ll just have to see. I’m trying to decide if I need to build a new YouTube channel specifically for storm chasing and associated content. After all, the monsoon here in the desert can be lively as well, so I’d have plenty of opportunity to share videos and the such there. I think all the cool kids have a specific focus to their channels; I should probably do the same.

I’ll definitely be sharing my experiences here on Ye Ol’ Ancient Blog. Deciding to drive the entire trip, instead of flying to a starting point, has given me the opportunity to carry a little more in technology, so I should have plenty of horsepower at my disposal to make sharing a bit easier.

SKYWARN.

After decades of chasing storms, I finally went ahead and became an official SKYWARN spotter for the National Weather Service here in Tucson. Tonight’s class was very informative and enjoyable. I’m going to work on the advanced classes (which are presented online on an ad hoc basis) this weekend.

My storm chasing trip in 30 days away. I’ve been counting down to this trip since the first of the year and I’m really excited for the chase opportunities in May. I’m fortunate to be in a place and space that allows me to take this time off and do this sort of thing for a week. Hopefully Mother Nature will be a bit feisty and give me things to chase. Long range forecasts are looking promising, though I may have to go farther east than I did last year.

If Mother Nature decides to settle down a bit, there’s still plenty of exploring to do in the nation’s heartland. And I’m good with that too.

13 April 2023 by J.P. Storm Chasing. 0

Tornado Titans.

I recently discovered the Tornado Titans channel on YouTube. As a severe weather enthusiast, I’m really enjoying the content they’re sharing. Here’s a quick look at a SE Arizona Monsoon.

9 March 2023 by J.P. Storm Chasing. 0

Daydreaming.

Photo taken June 9, 2022 in the Oklahoma Panhandle.

Speaking of storm chasing (in my previous entry), I’m already planning ahead for 2023 storm chasing trip. Last year I went storm chasing for a week in the first half of the month of June. Weather patterns had me up in Nebraska and Kansas for the experience. I’m thinking in 2023 I’m going to go a little earlier in the season and focus on southern Oklahoma and northern Texas. I still venture farther north if I have to, but I want to check out another part of the country while chasing storms across the flatlands.

My husband is supportive of the endeavor. I asked him if he’d like to join me on the chase in 2023 and he declined. His response, “rent a car, get plenty of renter’s insurance, and don’t get killed”.

This is why we’ve been married for nearly 26 years. He gets me.

2 December 2022 by J.P. Storm Chasing. 0

Lightning.

So we’re up to three nights in a row of thunderstorms here in the desert. This is rather enjoyable.

5 October 2022 by J.P. Storm Chasing. 0

More Storms.

It�s well beyond monsoon season but another Nature continues to be in a stormy mood.

While out for my walk yesterday afternoon I noticed more air traffic than usual overhead. A little digging into Twitter and it turns out Phoenix has being hit with 50+ MPH winds and an impressive sandstorm, so inbound flights to Sky Harbor were in holding patterns over Tucson. This ties in well with my instrument training currently in progress as I�ve been practicing these types of holds in much smaller airplanes.

Here�s one of the tracks of holding airliners overhead during the sandstorm.

It looks like this pilot wanted to do their own thing, though.

I enjoy storms, as long as I�m not flying in them.

4 October 2022 by J.P. Pilot. Ponderings and Musings Storm Chasing. 0

Monsoon.

The Monsoon has ramped up in these parts. Looking at the weather radar as I write this (21:27 / 9:27 PM MST), there’s a bunch of storms headed in our general direction from Mexico. We’ll see if they make it up here tonight.

In the meanwhile, during our adventures today we saw lots of lightning. �Lightning is cool.