Could you do it?

[Mike Hollingshead]

As good as morning models are with frontal positions, etc, I don't think anyone having internet at home before leaving is terribly naked. That is usually the biggest battle of the day, the morning target. One can get a good chunk of the rest of the useable info from nws warnings and watches being broadcast on a weather radio in that target area.

It's funny, sometimes I swear I don't do any better now than when I first started, percentage wise. Having morning internet then a weather radio would be plenty to chase decently with.

I used to love the truck stop at Elm Creek on I80 after I learned it had an internet machine in there. $1 for 4 minutes or something, lol. Used that in 2001 I believe. Other than that thing didn't use a whole lot till some 14k stuff with a cell phone in 2003.

I usually laugh, the only thing data seems to do for me is show me what the hell I'm missing. That or convince me to leave an area for something else, and sometimes that backfires.

 

[Leah Robertson]

Aye, I too was one who chased with a paper map and the radio in the mid 90's. I remember pulling out a pencil and plotting the movement of a storm on the map using a ruler...it actually worked pretty well. In fact, my first chase ended up in seeing a tornado in the NE Texas panhandle. I should have retired then and claimed bragging rights about having a perfect record, haha.

Having nearly up to the minute data certainly has its benefits but it can have its drawbacks as well. For me personally, solely relying on radar at times can be too much of a distraction and takes away the element of good ol' fashioned observing...watching exactly what the storm is doing and how it's interacting in it's environment. Don't get me wrong, I love having the option of pulling up a radar when needed but I try not to use it as my primary method chasing a storm.

Edit: Great topic, btw! It really got me thinking this morning.

 

[Dan Robinson]

If if meant completely giving up chasing for not having data, no - but I probably would scale back going after more complex or out of season setups. For instance, there have been fast-moving storm setups that I probably would have passed on if I didn't have mobile data. Some chases are just impossible if you can't keep up with what's going on.

I see technology in chasing the same way I do for anything else in life. Using technology IMO isn't cheating or being lazy, it's being smart. It means efficiency, more results for less effort and less expense. The same reason we all use computers for things we used typewriters and calculators for in the past - the same reason I used a leaf blower instead of a rake this week, and a car instead of walking to work. There is a legitimate nostalgia factor in doing things the old way, but if not for that, why purposefully handicap yourself?

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Many times I find myself reflecting back to the days of chasing with only a camera, scanner, paper maps and printed data. Honestly, that wasn’t all that long ago either. From the time I began chasing in the mid 90’s up until 2003 I never had a laptop with me during a chase. In the winter of 2003 I got a laptop and by 2004 I had gotten Mobile ThreatNet and used that during the 2004 chase season.

I wasn’t quite happy with ThreatNet so I ended up getting rid of it and in 2005 I had a laptop with GPS and I would just find a hotspot to connect to and download data and then be on my way.

I never used mobile internet until 2006 when I began chasing with Tyler Costantini and during 2006 and 2007 would just connect to his mobile wireless network and used that. At the end of 2007 I finally got my own data card and mobile internet service.

Successfully intercepting a tornado may not be as common chasing without any technology than someone who has all that technology, but I think I could successfully intercept a few tornadoes in a season not having a laptop, GPS, mobile internet, etc.

 

[Danny Cheresnick]

Great Question Dick, I love seeing the replys from people.

I actually still chase with nothing more than a scanner when I got out on my own. The only tech upgrade I have had since 1998 is a cell phone. When I am sans-DOW, I usually do a couple hand analysis in the morning of at least 500mb and 2-3 hours of surface maps and I bring those with me. I still have kept some of my ones from better days over the years (May 4, 2007, May 29, 2004 are my favorites). I also would usually print out the morning Skew-Ts from areas I was interested in, and I have a blank laminated Skew-T I would draw the modified boundary layer on based on the surface obs over NOAA WxRadio. I loved doing it this way. I am yet to even bring my laptop on a chase, and I have no internet anyway on my own for it. Certainly I have been out with other people who have other data, and I'll look when they bring a laptop or tv or something, but if I am on my own, its really low-tech for me.

Mind you the last 2 years I guess you could say I had the biggest chasing gadget possible in a DOW, multiple internet connections, ThreatNet and about 6-8 meteorologists with 6-8 very active cell phones. I actually look forward to whenever IO can get out on a chase again without all the crazy gadgets.

 

[STurner]

Yeah chasing has seemed to have gotten easier over the years due to high tech equipment. I myself have chased a couple times but did not see much. I think sometimes it is best to follow your instincts and use what you do know.

 

[Tyler_Costantini]

I like the techno side as much as chasing the storms! That’s one of the main reasons I like chasing so much! I can use all of my hobbies, Computers, ham radio, and meteorology at the same time!

Some people may not be that much of a nerd but I really enjoy cramming equipment in a car making it look like Back to the future, Running atmospheric models on my computer cluster at home! And most of all being in an RF field strong enough to cook a TV dinner most of my life heh!

I sure wouldn’t want to go back that’s for sure! I really think I would get bored and give it up!

 

[Rick Schmidt]

Dick:
That is how I chased from 1981 until about 2003. One of my best chases was June 15, 1992--- the Plainville storm. I headed towards Western Ks., saw the storm go up, went right to it, and saw 4 tornadoes and a gustnado. All that with just checking the Weather Channel, and my weather radio.

 

[Paul Hadfield]

If I don't pay my broadband card bill here soon, I might not have a choice BUT to chase naked lol! On a serious note, data access is something new for me. I'm finding that with it, i'm much more confident in getting close to areas I would've otherwise been afraid as well as roaming much further. Could I do it again? Definitely, though what I end up with (if even worthwhile) would be more a matter of luck than skill. This also from a general wx perspective and not necessarily tornadoes like many of you. If had to live by skill in catching IL tornadoes, I would likely starve to death lol.

 

[Dann Cianca]

Before this year, I didn't have good data on my phone. If I chased outside of Colorado at all, I couldn't access radar. This led to a scary night on May 5th (2007) outside of Great Bend, KS.

The resolution of the radar on my phone isn't that great (MyCast) and I think it's more useful determining trends in storm intensity than specific features or positioning.

I wouldn't be against chasing naked. I don't have a laptop or GPS or a radio for that matter. I have a good number of DeLorme atlases, but that's it. I've only chased with GR when with friends who have it. Granted, we had GR when we saw the (my first) tornado this summer ... but I'd say anyone who saw the storm and got position on it, would have stayed and watched at the rate it was spinning. ... and the tornado warning was issued on our report.

If anyone from Colorado wants to team up next year and chase without the "modern" technology, I'd definitely be up for it. The storms here are usually pretty LP ... and easier to see.

 

[mike scantlin]

May 4, 2007. Greensburg. Scanner and paper maps.

 

[Dick McGowan]

I wasn't trying to imply that anyone was better off than anyone else for using data or not using data...I was just asking if you would or could do it again (or if you still do it now!). I didn't have data till 2007 of any sort and relied on generous nowcasters and wx radio the years prior.

Dan R. stated it's a smarter thing to do, which I totally agree, but isn't bagging a tornado the old way more rewarding than today's technology? I'd feel better if I were to rake those leaves up with a rake, instead of using a leaf blower...kind of like fixing up your car yourself, instead of taking it to the mechanic. The end result is the same, but it just feels better doing it on your own.

There are advantages and disadvantages of having data, data has screwed me on days I would have bagged, and it has saved my life on others. It's heavily weighted for the pro-data side, obviously, but having it does have its downfalls (like Mike suggested).

I was just browsing Gene Moore's website the other day and noticing how many tornadoes (and great tubes) he has seen over the years and with essentially nothing...except for knowledge and instinct. It'll become easier and easier to see tornadoes as the years go by (hopefully!), but it'll never get old...at least to me!

 

[Damon Scott Hynes]

There are areas where I'd feel perfectly fine chasing with just my DeLorme maps and All-Hazards radio. In fact, Omaha-Lincoln-Beatrice I could do without the WX radio and do just fine with broadcast radio.

OTOH, between Omaha and Sioux City, WX radio is next to useless and there's no local broadcast radio. Between the radio hole, Missouri River crossings and the Loess hills, OMA-SUX is a character-builder. I really wouldn't chase without an internet card, if I had my druthers.

But I need my maps

 

[mike scantlin]

it just feels better doing it on your own.

I definitely agree with this. It's much more of an accomplishment when you use your instincts and leave all the unnecessary tech out of it.

That being said, It's still not too easy, even with the data.

 

[mikedeason]

My answer is yes, I can and still do chase naked when I can chase these days. I've only had two chase days since my last chase west of the Mississippi (which was, are you may remember, with you, Darin and my rental Grand Cherokee on March 12, 2006 ) and both of those were successful, old school style days with just me, Rand McNally and my Oly (in Alabama, none the less.)

I guess it's kinda like fishing. Some guys have huge boats, all kind of GPS, tackle, fish finding gadgets, etc. Me, I just like to sit on the bank with a cane pole. In the end it's all about enjoying the experience.