09/30/2009 REPORTS: CO, KS, NE

[Tony Laubach]

I blew my forecast pretty bad and fortunately I ended up delayed and ultimately lost any hope of getting on storms thanks to a dust storm on I-70 that closed down the interstate for over an hour in both directions between Bethune and Stratton. It was over an hour before I was moving again and by that time the storm that fired several hours too early under the thermonuclear cap that was taken out by temperatures 20 degrees to warm was well out of reach. Oddly enough, the delay probably saved me from adding a ton of extra miles to my day as I went to Goodland mainly to visit a friend before returning to Denver after the bust in the dust...

VIDEO ON MY BLOG

 

[Brett Roberts]

Brandon Lawson and I caravaned with Curtis McDonald, Daniel Betten, Matt Van Every and Matt Chatelain and targeted the northeast TX Panhandle into northwest OK. My expectations were extremely low, so just watching the cap break on the distant horizon as we drove from OUN to WWR was encouraging. We ended up on the southernmost storm in the Panhandle by late in the 6:00 hour as it passed between Wheeler and Sweetwater. Approaching from the east, we made a short pass through the core near Kelton that gave us about 30 seconds of quarter size hail, followed by a fairly cool view of the back side of the cell.

After soaking in that view for a bit, Brandon and I backtracked east on TX-152 to stay up with the storm. We found that it had dropped quite a bit of golfball hail near the Wheeler/Roger Mills Co. line, with a few stones appearing closer to tennis ball size (no ruler for confirmation, though).

As the sun started to dip below the horizon, the laminar base of our storm continued to be picturesque, despite the laughably high LCL's. Needless to say, the cap "won" shortly thereafter.

 

[cdcollura]

Good day all,

Not much to write home about for 9-30-2009. It was a long day, with an initial target of NW Kansas, which remained capped, then a ditch effort to catch the storms that (unexpectedly) developed near and east of Dodge City.

Above: Views of the late stages of the (formerly high based supercell) storm east of Dodge City (left), and a weakening cell to my west (near Jetmore).

 

[Steve Worthington]

Not much to report off the south/western Kansas DDC storm other then 35 to 40 mph winds and heavy rain at times. GR3 reported 2" hail but there was only pea size hail. We chased the cell from it`s start of the life cycle to the slow death. Storm was a fast mover reaching speeds of 40 to 45 mph. All in all I wished I`d stayed home
No Naders

 

[Mike Hollingshead]

18 hours in a car for a couple crappy bolts only 20 miles from home. I need to work on the whole fearing something will actually happen thing, when it seems it won't. Sort of like deciding to stay home June 5, 2009! (sarcasm obviously) Doh. I love chasing.

Some interesting people tooling around my car as I waited on the second monsterously crappy storm to arrive here. My car looked empty here with tinted windows in the middle of the parking lot at midnight to 2 a.m. in north Omaha. I swear the one group was the same exact car that had just gone by me. First off I don't get why so many take the route through this parking lot to the other street. Well the second time they came by they drove in right behind me real slow, then went RIGHT by my passenger window very very slow. Guessing they wanted to break in if no one was actually in it, and perhaps if there was anyone in it.