6/29/2005 02:32:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I grew up in Minnesota and saw one tornado in the 17 years that I lived there. It was actually my first chase on July 18th, 1986. I was working at a camera store and our NOAA weather radio said it was about 8 miles from our location. A coworker and I decided to give chase. The tornado was very small but lasted over 30 minutes and was captured by the KARE helicopter and broadcast live (they were returning from shooting a story and an astute pilot simply turned on the camera and chased). I look back on this somewhat reminiscently as Minnesota has been fairly active of late and could really be under the gun this afternoon. It seems so strange that Minnesota has had preferable tornadogenesis characteristics than Oklahoma this year. 1986 was also the year Kodak lost the patent suit to Polaroid and stopped making instant cameras (yeah I remember those lively conversations around the camera store). Kind of like light bars on chase vehicles. My first chase was approximately 16 miles and netted about 15 minutes of tornado time. My 2005 season has been thousands of miles and 0 minutes of tornado time. What a crummy season.|W|P|112007355644104954|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/21/2005 11:49:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I enjoy prognosticating as much as the next chaser. Recently an individual posted on www.stormtrack.org asking what chasing will be in ten years. 2005 marks 20 years after my graduation from high school. Twenty years ago I though I knew everything when I was 18. It is kind of funny how the older yet get the smarter your parents are. I have lived in Tulsa, OK 13 years. I’m using these periods to better scope my prediction so bear with me. I have scared myself and others have greatly scared me this season. There are a lot of people in pursuit of atmospheric fury™ that probably should not be. I won’t go into particulars, but I have seen a lot of stupidity. I truly believe that we are on a collision course. A chaser will kill another chaser or even worse a civilian. This will likely not be a shooting or stabbing. It will happen on a rain slicked road and an unsafe driving decision that will end tragically. Someone will die, not by atmospheric fury ™, but because of a driving mistake. We call them accidents for a reason. Accidents can be prevented. I think we all need to examine our driving and probably back it down a notch. This forecasted death will unleash a media firestorm and consummate legislative action. There will be a rush to judgment to identify the responsible from the thrill seekers. Those that enjoy this hobby should consider how they can prove that they are responsible. In some sick way I welcome this big brother era. It will reduce the congestion. I have, can ,and will, take, and pass; federal, state, and local licensure requirements. In 2015, the Department of Public Safety will have authority over pursuit of atmospheric fury™. Clean up our act or it will happen. Prior to chasing, I was an active skydiver with a class A USPAA/FAA License. It too was a time consuming and expensive hobby. Skydiving has one additional feature. It is a self cleaning oven. About fifty people die each year because they were stupid. The FAA is fairly conservative in where they locate drop zones so as not to kill civilians. Until you have mastered the art of skydiving , a drop master is technically in charge of you. Upon successful completing a series of progressively harder obstacles you will be granted your license. You are then 100% responsible for you. As a chaser, you are 100% responsible for you. You are unlikely to kill someone else as a skydiver. You are somewhat likely to kill someone as a chaser. As Phil Esterhaus adjourned the roll call each week on Hill Street Blues "And, hey - let's be careful out there."|W|P|111941577984714494|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/16/2005 11:41:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Should I try one more time?|W|P|111898336899812216|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/16/2005 10:42:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Chasing storms is hard. It was a really tough season and to have lost every single game is a really hard pill to swallow. I have over relied on quantitative products and should have used my qualitative gut instinct. There is a lot of art and science involved in detailed weather prediction. There needs to be a balance of left brain and right brain thinking. I have enjoyed chasing with some great people, and I have the best chase partner in the world. Tomorrow probably marks the last day of the Spring season. I will be back in the Fall. I have tried to use this blog to educate, inform, and share a little bit of what it is like to chase. Ultimately you are responsible for you and it is not a Nerf world. I would never encourage someone to chase. It is a potentially dangerous, expensive hobby that tends to attract a bunch of weirdoes who are about as socially adept as Charles Manson and as in touch with societal norms as Michael Jackson. There are elders that pioneered this hobby and I would love buy them dinner and drinks. It will never happen, because they are so sick of what they have seen their passion become. Blogging is forcing me to write and it feels good. I can’t believe that this gets 30-50 hit’s a day. Please feel free to post comments. Congrats to all who did well this year. I’m dusting off the books and polishing up the Magic-8 Ball. I have also been geo-caching a bunch of treasures on the plains. Thanks for reading -Bob|W|P|111897980461547675|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/16/2005 01:08:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I'm sitting here at 1:00 PM and deciding if I can possibly take another trip 412 to Enid, OK. Steve and I have been on this road so much the Jeep can almost drive itself. There are currently pretty impressive dew points out there. Here is a 1:00 PM view from the Oklahoma Mesonet. We will monitor and see how things mix out this afternoon. Tomorrow also has a possibility of severe weather. I am frantically trying to get all of the things that I need to get done at work. Monster storms over a Buffalo, OK. Our friend Charles Allison has probably bagged six tornadoes. We did a quick chase to Coweta (28 Miles) and then the promissing cell crashed. Ready for another MCS. I can't express with mere words how much I HATE Mesoscale Convective Systems. They are the carp of storms. They are not interesting, and you hate bending over to even get them off your hook. |W|P|111894529858763330|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/16/2005 12:23:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Things have been pretty hectic and I have not had a chance to post much. Steve Miller and I played a 225 mile chase into Springdale Arkansas on Monday 6-13-05. Nice discrete super cell went up and then the storm decided to split. We disengaged and got on 412. We did have a another wall cloud try to produce a small spin up. This road option did give us a chance to do something I have wanted to do for a long time. We stopped and took a few photographs of the NWS WSR-88 Doppler radar site in Inola. (I will enhance this account with photos this weekend).|W|P|111890067116445645|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/12/2005 10:16:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I feel like an aging hurler (baseball pitcher) at the end of a tough season. The convection last night cooperated and left SW Oklahoma unmolested. If the cap will hold today until about 2:00PM things could get interesting. Steve, Andrea and are on our way to Altus, OK / Childress, TX. Our ETA (Earned Tornado Average) is currently 0 (yeah I know ERA is an individual stat). The end of the season is near and we need a good game today.|W|P|111858951938413300|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/11/2005 06:28:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|We are carefully monitoring a potentailly active day for 06-12-05. A powerful upper level system will make its way across Oklahoma and Kansas tomorrow. If you are a resident of the plains, you are quite aware that we have had large storm complexes move across on a nightly basis. The affect of these is to scour out a lot of moisture (rain). If they do so again tonight, tomorrow will be another bust and Steve Miller and I will not be chasing. You can see that the SPC is thinking this will probably happen because of the slight risk, but if air does not get worked over it will be a dangerous day. As of 6:30 PM the Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCS's) were forming. Here is a regional radar form weathertap. The Norman and Tulsa National Weather Service Forecast Offices continue to amaze me with their ability to create tools that communicate what is going on. Here is TSA's and OUN's take on the situation. I could not resist and decided to purchase an additional hand held forecasting tool. Given the uncertainties around Sunday it should prove helpful.|W|P|111853306264363531|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/10/2005 08:55:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|On the way back to Tulsa on the Turner Turnpike. Another busted day. Played around in the Texas panhandle all day. When we saw the early convection between Amarillo snd Lubbock, we pretty much knew the day was going to be nonoptimal. One nice cell was briefly discrete and had potential 8 miles South of Groom, TX. It has been an interesting year. Steve Miller and I will likely be out again Sunday.|W|P|111845534822844090|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/09/2005 09:15:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Left Tulsa after work and am sitting in Woodward, OK at 9:15PM. A few storms are going up, but we really just wanted to get west 3 hours to make the chase a little easier tomorrow. We are at the Day's Inn and they have pretty good wireless and very nice staff. The room key even worked on the first try. We get a instant message that our sister station KOCO is doing a live shot. As we wait for models to render, and there not being much going on in Woodward we decide to swing by. There are a couple of young ladies that are interested in chasing. Anyone that wants to be a groupie for gobob should contact me. We stay up until 1:30 forecasting. You can see the analysis at Steve Miller's web site. www.hamwx.com.|W|P|111837008097393097|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/07/2005 09:45:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I chase thousands of miles and meet about one hundred interesting people each year. Generally I’m at a gas station or a dinerette grabbing food or fuel. I’m usually staring at the sky or taking psychometric readings when someone pulls up and asks “are you a storm chaser?” That is a pretty easy one to answer. Then comes the next one: “Are we going to get some weather?” Maybe… There is a pregnant pause in my response. Secretly, I’m hoping yes; and yet I do not wish ill upon anyone. I do not control the weather (yet). I consider this a Faustian bargain. Chasing storms is really hard and that is part of the attraction. Meeting interesting people and finding interesting stories is surprisingly easy and that is part of the attraction. I've had lots of stories so far in 2005 and very few storms. That may change soon, June 10th - 12th looks pretty ominous.|W|P|111819878621888469|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/08/2005 11:13:00 AM|W|P| Steve Miller|W|P|I'll buy it!6/07/2005 12:17:00 PM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|This is from the area forecast discussion (10:37AM 06-07-05) out of the Norman Office: "Regarding late week...have a very strong feeling that something Big is brewing. Looking at progged longwave pattern - without getting bogged down in details - THE SETUP LOOKS ABOUT AS POTENT FOR WIDESPREAD/SIGNIFICANT SEVERE WX IN THE CENTRAL U.S. AS THIS FORECASTER HAS SEEN IN NEARLY 25 YEARS OF OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE. Models have been consistent with unseasonably strong height falls Into the sw late this week. Latest runs depict nose of a very Strong upper jet /140 kt at 300mb blasting SE onto the W coast By Sat...which supports continuing neg height anomalies out w and Thus keeping a very deep longwave trof over the W for June...most Likely with a general negative tilt as depicted by a majority of The med-range models. Unseasonably strong mid/upper level flow Thus likely at low latitudes into s plains. Details...such as effects of probable MCS activity or even a possible tropical cyclone in the gulf as suggested by the GFS...are more elusive and really are not as crucial at this point. Screaming message is that potential will exist for 1 or more significant central-u.s. severe WX outbreaks...beginning as early as Thursday but more likely in the Fri-Sat-Sun period. Plan to hit this hard in the noon HWO."|W|P|111816477539226469|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/04/2005 08:10:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Naaaked no more. On the road with Steve Miller (solo chaseolo tougholo). After two days and 891 miles, back on the road again. Target Junction City, KS. I should have good data so stay tuned. May be the first real chase day of 'o5. SPC Outlook. Tornado Threat. 9:25 AM In Bartlesville, OK at the Sonic getting breakast and data. This pretty well sums it up. 11:15 AM SPC's 16:30 is out Severe and Tornado are favorable. Going towards NE/KS line on 75. In Topeka gathering data and eatting some McDonalds. Decide to get on the turnpike (335) and head towards Emporia. Things look favorable and a couple of cells go up unexpectably. We are in a scramble to get off the turnpike but options only every 20 to 40 miles. We bail and watch at the first opportunity at 56 E/W. Had great access to data. Everything is looking favorable with lots of enhanced wording (code words that express the forecaster's concern to get people to pay attention.) We repositioned several time and analyzed the Northern storms that everyone went after. We could have chased this circus, but opted not to. This was a serious decision that was based on us being the only chasers on a southern target that dynamically was progged to be better and had a better chance of not being linear too fast. A really unique water vapor formed that was like insta-fog. Got to see the lowest based 180 degree rainbow ever. Today was wall cloud city, but the lower levels were so disorganized. We played a number intersting storms that all had favorable air at some point and had huge hail shafts (this storm made sounds like an old mans belly {I wish I had a Senheisser shotgun [microphone] and DAT, this was wierd}). Approaching sunset we have a nice storm N of Rock, KS. Great inflow gusting to 45 mph and pretty. And then the cold air hits... Chase Over!!! Let's grab a sunset shot. And another. We get rewarded with and incredible lightening show on the way home. In Ponca City, OK we start hearing reports of incredible winds along 169 in Tulsa, OK. The winds of these collapsing anvils is approaching F1 strength. As Steve points out, interesting stuff always happens in Tulsa when we are not there. Oh by the way, apparently a wedge ran over Lawton, OK. You can see why Lawton is such an obviously great target??????? If you are not crazy when you start chasing, a season like 2005 will get you there pretty quickly. Gotta get some sleep. 586 Miles.|W|P|111789081394832822|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/03/2005 11:31:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Lots of negatives out there today. Based on the MCS's there is a lot going on cold pool wise, outflow, and a strong cap. Since I'm out will head North to play a I-70 corrior. Target Colby, KS. I make it back to Liberal, KS. Durring this 36 mile trip I keep getting calls that are dropped. I figure it might be Miller so I get to a hill and can finally call him. "Turn around, OK looks better." So I blast to Woodward, OK. On th e outskirts I get a call: "LAWTON!!!" We agree that the I-40 corridor is reasonable. Gas tank full, bladder empty. Up roll the doppler on wheels and tornado intercept vechicle. Am overtaken by curosity and wait to see what they do. Head towards Lawton. Coulda had a 15 minute head start. Blast South through the MCS. Fun (NOT!!!). Got some great mammatus with new towers going up and even better in in Putnam. Sitting in Clinton, OK (5:32). Chill for several hours and the SPC cancels the Torn Warn. Time to head home. What???? New cumulus going up!!! Time to blast East (chasing towards home rocks). This thing is building but high based (Shown on KTUL as part of the 10:00 PM newscast. Pursue it North of El Reno and decide it is better to head home and sleep so tomorrow is chaseable. I cannot express my greatest thanks to my chase partner Steve Miller for forecasting and nowcasting. His forecasts are errily accute. Because of a scheduleded meeting we could not chase together. As a friend, he provided the best of all possible guidance. For a chaser to not be in the field and be willing to help a fellow chaser is the mark of a Quality Person.|W|P|111781656141753763|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/03/2005 10:35:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I woke up in Liberal, KS and could not find a good data source. Ongoing MCS looks like a real mess. I had planned on charging home and chasing latter in the day with chase partner Steve Miller. I am headed South on 83 and get a call from Steve who suggests I shut it down and chill. I plan to get to Woodward where I know I can get data. At 9:14 AM my Blackberry vibrates and scares the heck out of me. I'm in the middle of nowhere and I have digital coverage. The rest of my phones and T-mobile are dead. So here I sit in Balko, OK at the junction of 83 and 412 getting data and posting with my Blackberry at full signal strength. I patronize the store by using the restroom and buying buying a Kit-Kat bar and a Gatorade. This power breakast is recommended by the Storm Prediction Center for chase days because its low fiber and high yum factor (both very important.)|W|P|111781374270426506|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/03/2005 10:16:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|I was in data and phone hell yestaerday, so could not post. Initial target was to get to Dodge City, KS and wait. This worked as I sat and pestered Steve Miller each hour for an update as I could get no data. A storm went up over Hugton, KS. The storm was looking great as I was pursuing on 56. The storm then decided to simply die. Another quick nowcast from Miller said I still had the best air. A tower started to go up a little to the north. I went to junctiion of 83 and 160 and waited. As the Sun set, I abbandoned all hopes and decided to crash in Liberal, KS.|W|P|111781226472237769|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com6/01/2005 11:49:00 AM|W|P|Bob Hall|W|P|Oklahoma sets a record with no confirmed tornadoes in the month of May. This is a first since records began being kept in 1950.|W|P|111764487504472869|W|P||W|P|ChaseHelp@gmail.com