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How are you doing so far this season?

Not that great so far and no tornadoes yet. I'm not one to get down on myself when I don't see tornadoes. I love structure, and to see a barber pole updraft always makes me just as excited as seeing a tornado. Hopefully, I can see a few tubes this year along with some incredible structure. I'm off from May 13th to June 2nd so maybe I can redeem myself.
 
Off to one of my best starts ever! Three great tornado days in April:

April 6 - multiple gustnadoes near Hutchinson, KS

April 26 - got within yards of both the Roll, OK tornadoes and some of the best HD video from multiple cameras ever.

April 29 - then just on weds got a secondary target in Garden City and witnessed multiple gustnadoes and landspouts. One rated at EF1: From the NWS: "A dairy farm took a direct hit and even though the tornado did EF1 damage with 100 to 110 mph winds, there was a heavy toll on the cattle as numerous pieces of tin and sheet metal churned through the pins. Much of this debris was carried almost 4 miles. At least 100 head were mortally injured or had to be put down. There was one injury at the dairy when a door flew open injuring a female although not seriously."
 
I'm definitely having a pretty good start to the season! Two big tornado days with 6 combined tubes, some good hail and fun chases. Already have my structure chase out of the way thanks to a very marginal "See Text" intercept in eastern Colorado.
 
I have no complaints about this year at all. Although having only gone out twice, I've seen multiple tubes, the biggest hail I've ever seen (my car lost it's hail damage virginity :D), and the best structure I've ever seen. From a forecasting standpoint, it was also pretty gratifying to have my 4/29 target verify.
 
Pretty good start for me. I have chased twice, I seen 5 supercells. I have thus far made great strategic decisions. Captured great video of the Roll, Ok tornado on the 26th, the first time I have chased in Oklahoma and my first Oklahoma tornado. All the other supercells were from March 23rd. A very difficult chase with 60mph+ storm speeds, yet I captured 4 wall clouds. The one SW of Omaha was one of the better wall clouds I have ever seen. That storm produced a tornado during the time we were filming it but it was transitioning to HP at the time so rain was obscuring the tornado. The Roll, Ok storm occurred within my target area that I forecasted 3 days out. So far so good hoping for a few more good chases this year, still have to see my annual Kansas tornado. I have seen at least 1 tornado every year in Kansas since 2004.
 
Doing great !!!

8 tornadoes.....123,455 hail stones.........4500 miles ...1 tire ..1 windshield and one $350 towbill........not bad for march and april ! And a new lightba......... Ha ha could have, but didnt.
 
Chasing in the Zone

Been a season of poor decision making in the field for me, but I am confident things will improve. Saw a brief torn in North TX back in March, so I am looking to get back to the good times in May. Couple times since I went after lead supercells instead of sticking to the forecast/chase plan, a triple point forecast abandoned twice when the TP produced both times.

Once I read a book about making decisions when the outcome is uncertain. Great book called Trading in the Zone by Mark Douglass has applications beyond trading/investing. We humans are not wired to make decisions without being certain first. However in storm chasing we constantly must make decisions without certainty. It goes back to planning. Douglas talks about a trading plan but we have a forecast that we worked on for days. Both should be followed for success. You win some; you lose some. It is OK to miss when the target does not work out. It is unacceptable to miss due to not following the plan. IMO the plan can include a backup, a Plan B, if the meteorology changes. Plan B should also be made in advance to avoid silly decision making mistakes. However in both TP cases I was being impulsive instead of even following any Plan B.

Also have some thoughts on data. Made the mistake of looking at old data twice, and not double checking the time stamps. Old data is worse than having no data at all. On the good clear days I am going to get back to the basics of interrogating anvil structure from afar. Of course up close I was already favoring visual observation. Perhaps start that a little sooner, and rely on a quality forecast/chase plan.

Good luck to everyone. We still have a lot of time to succeed.
 
So far, pretty good. 3 chases and only 1 bust. Caught the Feb tornado right here in Edmond. Caught a storm in Crescent, Ok(i call it a funnel; only half way to /3/4 to the ground) but I was only about 300 yards from it when it died in a field. Closest I've ever been. Made a trip to Tulsa on MOD risk and busted but chased wildfires coming home. The 2 storms I caught here were in my backyard so no cost, mileage to speak of. I think it has been a slow season so far and I'm hoping for a better May.
 
Well, seeing as how my work load dropped yesterday from 16-18 hour days to (hopefully) 5 hour days Mon-Thurs, my season is NOW going spectacularly!

I played around with the line of gunk in NE Kansas last Sunday just to get the cobwebs out of stuff and now I'm ready to see some storms. :) Congrats to those that have already had a great season.
 
I can't go out this year . It's driving me up the wall to see all the good days go by.
oh well, next year.
Melissa
 
Well I chased for the first time today! In WA there was a severe thunderstorm, and it wasn't actually that good but at least i chased! I am taking a trip to Tornado alley over the summer so I can't wait for that!
 
Statistically I'm on pace for a pretty good year. I'm stuck on this "dust swirl" and "halfway down funnel" tornado streak, which is a good problem to have I guess because I chase tornadoes and they're all lovely regardless...but I'd really love a full-condensation tornado. Below are my numbers to date:

CHASES: 10
MILES: 4,510
AVERAGE CHASE DISTANCE: 451 miles
TORNADO DAYS: 3
TORNADOES: 7
SUCCESS RATIO: 1 in 3.3
STATES CHASED: KS,MO,OK,TX

That's just going by actual fact. If you go by ST standards, I haven't seen anything.
 
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