How did you get interested in Chasing?

[Lisa Post]

I got started on my interest in storm chasing at a young age as well. Traci mentioned on the last page the storm that went through Salix, IA back in the 90's...I lived in Salix at the time, and though my family didn't personally have anything happen to our place, I remember my parents driving us out to see the damage the next morning...I was absolutely amazed at seeing what a tornado could do. Also, for school, my class went on a field trip to Port Neal, the coal plant that got destroyed by that tornado, a year after the event. I remember there being pictures on the wall in one of the rooms of the plant, showing what the room had looked like after the tornado hit...also got to see a home video of the funnel from one of my friends who lived out at Brown's Lake....gave me the heeby jeebies just watching the cloud formations.

Storms have always fascinated me, and to this day I wake up if I hear even the slightest roll of thunder, and cannot sleep until it has passed. I lived in south central Nebraska for six years, and absolutely loved the storms we'd get out there. I am now back in Sioux City, where the storms are not quite as frequent, but are intense when they do occur. I just love the electric, butterflies in the stomach feeling I get every time severe weather comes my way...

I have not been able to chase much as of yet, but this next spring I am planning my first "full-fledged" chasing trip, so hopefully I'll have something valuable to add to this forum...I also think my love of traveling, photography, and meeting new people played into why I got involved with chasing...

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Like most people, I developed a fascination with thunderstorms and tornadoes at a very young age. Growing up I was always questioning my mom as to what tornadoes were, how they formed, and why they were destructive. It was just a curiosity that developed naturally within me.

But it was one particular event that really triggered my interest that made me want to study storms up close and in person. It was in spring of 1994, and at the age of 13, when a supercell had developed and made it’s way into Bourbon county Kansas, just about 25 miles north of me.

The storm, which had already, became tornadic and prompted tornado warnings, had the most amazing structure to it. I remember staring at the anvil that spread through the skies and being amazed at how awesome that was. I watched this storm until I couldn’t see it no more, instantly I began to do further research into the type of storm that was, how they formed and what happens within them.

From that moment on, my interest in thunderstorms and tornadoes just continued to grow and eventually I began storm spotting and then storm chasing.

 

[Anthony Silver]

My fascination with severe weather came about, probably around age 7. I believe it was the spring or summer of 1988, my dad and I were in the backyard, having a little BBQ during a thunderstorm, and then the sirens started sounding. My dad (yes, he's a big storm freak too!) got all excited, went inside and grabbed the camcorder and came back outside and began shooting film. Eventually we observed a tornado off in the distance, which began moving closer and closer to the house. His house was situated in an area where you could see everything from miles around. This would have been my first time ever seeing a tornado. When it got within maybe a mile of the house my dad decided to chicken out and wanted to take cover. I just stood there watching in amazement. My dad eventually resorted to dragging me in the house. He did finish videotaping the storm as it moved through the neighborhood. Fortunately, everything on our block was spared, but a school, car wash, and some other buildings about three blocks away suffered some damage. The tornado was a weak one, but nevertheless I had the time of my life watching it. Last I checked, dad somehow had a brain fart and misplaced the tape, but it would be neat watching that again.

From that point on my facination with storms grew and grew as each year went by. Tornadoes, hail, winds-you name it I loved watching it. I became a very big Weather Channel nut, and could sit there and watch it for hours on end, which annoyed everyone. By the time I was 13 I began chasing storms with my Uncle and Cousins. I just loved getting up at the butt crack of dawn on a chase day, and going on those 1000 mile road trips and not returning until late evening. This was a tradition we had every spring and summer when severe weather was rolling through the plains. This also became somewhat of an addiction for me. I began reading the meteorology textbooks, talking to local TV meteorologists, attending the local spotter trainings religiously each year, and eventually spending hours on end looking over Internet resources. When I turned 17, and got my first car, me and some buddies would get together and head out each spring roaming the Great Plains in search of Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. Even after high school, when everyone went their separate ways (college, jobs, etc), we still try to find time to meet up on those severe weather days. Chasing (in my view) is a hobby like no other, and I see myself doing it the rest of my life. It's certainly one I could never get bored with.

 

[Dave Kaplow]

Here's the short version:

I've always been fascinated by storms as far back as I can remember, but I never seriously considered chasing them until 1989, when a damaging F4 hit New Haven CT, very near the neighborhood where I lived. It's likely I could have seen this tornado if I had just bothered to stick my head out the window and look... But I didn't, for various stupid reasons, and afterwards I was so mad about the missed opportunity that I decided then and there that seeing a tornado was now a major goal of my life. I began to chase severe weather in New England at every opportunity, but I didn't really know what I was doing until I got online in '99 and began to educate myself about things like storm structure and the finer details of chasing. Very soon, I knew that I had to get a taste of the real thing out in Tornado Alley. After my first trip to the Plains in '02, I was thoroughly hooked. I can't imagine ever giving up this magnificent obsession.

 

[T. W. Miller]

Like many others, my fascination with weather and storms began at an early age. Was 8 years old when a tornado ripped through Enid, OK missing a direct hit on our house by only half a block. While the swing set was destroyed by a large section (about 6 ft. or so long and over foot in diameter) of concrete pipe and numerous other pieces of debris lay in the yard, all one had to do was step across the alley to the block behind us and several homes were completely leveled with others sustaining severe damage (roofs missing and such). In addition, my dad had to pull me away from the window as I stood awestruck as the tornado approached. Other memorable part then was shortly after passage everyone ran out to watch the tornado move on southward and quick survey of immediate vicinity only to seek cover soon as a strange roar from the north rapidly became louder; let the gates of hail (golfball - tennis balls) open among thee.

So began that every chance I could and no matter where would watch storms as they passed near or overhead. Particularly loved to watch lightning and the intense cloud formations. Saw numerous severe storms and tornadoes as a child, either in OK or Texas Panhandle when visiting relatives there plus near home once we moved to DFW. Also, I grew up listening, watching, and learning from a grandmaster of meteorology; Harold Taft. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s read and studied much literature about weather; still do.

Most of 1970s and 1980s storm experiences are only memories as I could not afford video or still camera equipment and/or did not have with me at time of event. Early 1990s changed that when I got more serious with photography in general and for about 10 years or so could afford to venture farther for chases when time from jobs permitted. Then I was able to translate book knowledge to field observations, which is truly best way to learn as nature rarely has textbook days.

Weather is neverending learning experience, which is great stimulation for the mind. The sky is nature's palette while air and moisture are the ingredients used to paint the canvas with magnificent shapes and colors plus is the grandest laboratory in which to experience nature's powerful show. Besides, I love road trips; especially, when not sure where will end for the day or what will be seen along the way (might be a song in there...?).

From Wayne's world, Chase On!

 

[Joe Guerra]

Well, here goes:

Around 1996, my Dad came running in and told me to go to the basement, when we finally got down there, he told me that we had a tornado warning, I was really scared to begin with, but then, I got curious and decided to look out of the small glass window, just in time to see a funnel cloud go right over the house. From then on, I became a sort of "Kid Chaser," which after a storm passed through, I would ride my bike, with a Wx radio tied on, and my camera slung over the right handlebar, and would try to get pictures of the storms as they moved away. Each storm would have a whole roll's worth of film, and I couldn't wait to see how the pictures came out. I basically i did this routine, while studying storm books in the mean time, until I could drive. Now, I try to chase every storm I can, and have had some scary moments, as well as moments that made my hobby even better. Like being stuck under a wall cloud in traffic, to seeing a funnel just miss a high-rise in the city, to nearly being struck by lightning about 5 times (Yes, not as exciting as David, but still surprising.) Since that first trip to the basement, i've been hooked, and haven't been able to break away since (which is a good thing.)

 

[Glenn Dixon]

Jarrell

The day after the Jarrell tornado I was reading up on the internet because I used to live just a few miles south of there. I read this crazy story about these people who were driving around in a car, staying just ahead of the storm and taking pictures and video. They were chasing the dang thing! The idea somehow fascinated me and I ended up finding this online list of people willing to take chaser wanna-be's along for the ride. I lucked out and ended up riding along with Steve Miller (TX). One year and many chases later I even got to see my first tornado! It's now many miles and many tornadoes later but I still love to chase.

 

[carey libby]

back in 94,i was sitting in a deer stand around 4 in the afternoon when a thunderstorm came through.first the rain,then the 3/4 inch size hail,and just when i thought it could not get any worse,i looked out the window only to see the pine trees start to rotate.the meso storm ended up producing a F2 a mile and a half from where we were hunting.
since then,i have been active in Skywarn.

 

[Jimmy Deguara]

Hi,

My story in some ways is somewhat different and other ways similar. Similar in that the fascination started at an early age - different in that my initial interest stemmed from fast flowing water on the farm and that I live in Australia with little chance of experiencing tornadoes. Fast flowing water led to rain as well, fast flowing creeks/streams and floods! By the the age of 10, I had picked up on the interest in thunderstorms. In my early teens, and during a severe Australian drought, I became fascinated in the behaviour of thunderstorms and quickly picked up purely from observational purposes the behaviour of multicells as "developing on the side". I recognised there was something different in certain storms - I recall vividly a supercell with an overshoot looking different and of course severe storms in general particularly significant hailstorms were well structured and organised. The theory although not thorough came in later - I guess I still like to "read the skies".

Although there was an intent to move into other areas that had more severe storms, (we seemed to miss out on storms more than others - this proved to a certain extent true) it was not until 1989 when a well known scientist by the name of Chuck Doswell visited Australia and was invited to give a presentation. My first weather related meeting - Chuck Doswell speaking about "Storm Chasing on the High Plains". This was the first time I realised there was a fascination to chasing tornadoes. Chuck had some excellent slides of tornadoes and of course wild flowers. This represented a turning point as I had looked at someone with a similar interest for the first time - I was looking at a mirror image as a storm chaser - prior to this I had tried to keep secret this fascination in fear of being ridiculed. It was the first time I had realised that "storm chasing" actually existed. This also helped me become confident as a human being to get out there and do what I liked doing without fear or ridicule - others with a similar interest I would promise to help as well if possible.

In 1992, I was given contact information about a Professor Howard Bluestein. I sent a letter expressing an interest in setting up a storm chasing network here in Australia. One thing I recall with this letter was the requirement of a 5km grid network of roads! This made me scratch my head - we don't have them outside our cities! But this did not stop me - the scientific papers that had been sent were an inspiration. Howard did not ignore this letter - moreso he sent more information that I had ever imagined! It was not until 1993 that I met with my current website partner Michael Bath and we decided to begin storm chasing. It was more local and then we went abroad during the late 1990's. Stork Track and Tessa were very important to maintain the connection to the US and the reality of tornadic supercells, storm chasing jargon, theory and culture. The internet certainly was an important turning point in communicating to the whole world particularly via the websites. Michael then also moved to the North Coast of NSW so he and I had to obtain new chase partners. Our connection though still remains after 12 years to this point via that website.

David Croan (now also a website partner) amongst other chasers, teamed up since then and in 2001, we both headed to the US to explore the unknown. As suggested many times before, we have had to do things the wrong way around on the wrong side of the road! It was nerve-racking - what would it be like, how will we find tornadoes as we had never chased them in Australia. I can only say that the learning kerb skyrocketed from this point. I made new friends and also met up with Tim Marshall in our first year. The White Deer tornado still remains the most exciting event chased - the emotions brought out by that event are second to none.

Storm chasing still remains an important part of my life as you are one with nature - be it chasing a supercell or tornado on the Great Plains or chasing a supercell or multicell in Australia, just being out there with friends that understand is what it will always be about.

Regards,

Jimmy Deguara

 

[Jesal Patel]

My interest was sparked after I faced the sheer power and energy of a F2 tornado. I was staying at my cousins' place when I was 13 for the summer in 1993 when an F2 went through the backyard. I remeber the roar, and shaking of the house. It was terrifying to hear all the windows break, feel my ears "pop" from pressure change, feel leaves, mud and other debris hitting my body as wind was moving objects inside the house. The lot their house was in was wooded and we could feel thumping and lound bangs as trees were falling onto the roof of the house. Almost all of the largest trees were uprooted. Luckily, although, there were 12 of us in one house all visiting, no one was hurt. Unfortunatey, other people died from the same tornado as it went over a Walmart a few miles away.

I remember being in complete awe and feeling profound repsect for the power of mother nature when I saw that a stick had pierced the wall of the house such that one half of the stick was outside while the other half was in a bedroom. I was slightly dissappointed that I never saw the actual funnel. Since then, I have always watched by the window in excitement whenver there have been watches and warnings in my area, hoping to see what I experienced.

I only started chasing in the past two years and have loved it the whole time. I've been fortunate to have others from Stormtrack share their knowledge of storms and let me chase with them. For people with no formal meterology background, Stormtrack and its users are an invaluable resource for learning and bringing people together in this hobby we all love.

-Jesal

 

[Mike Ridgeway]

Growing up in the Chicago area I became fascinated with severe weather, TV warnings and once in a while a siren or two. Drove by myself and chased my first severe storm (no tornado) in eastern Colorado in 1990. I was hooked. And now I teach weather in my Earth Science classes at a Junior High. Love it.

 

[Glenn Dixon]

Jarrell

The day after the Jarrell tornado I was reading up on the internet because I used to live just a few miles south of there. I read this crazy story about these people who were driving around in a car, staying just ahead of the storm and taking pictures and video. They were chasing the dang thing! The idea somehow fascinated me and I ended up finding this online list of people willing to take chaser wanna-be's along for the ride. I lucked out and ended up riding along with Steve Miller (TX). One year and many chases later I even got to see my first tornado! It's now many miles and many tornadoes later but I still love to chase.

I had forgotten that I already posted in this thread! As a follow-up, I just found this in the StormTrack archives:

Craig Green's 5/27/97 Chase Report

 

[Scott Bell]

I was interested in severe weather since I was 5. Our neighborhood was hit by an F3 tornado and I can still remember the seriousness in mom's voice as we ran to the basement, watching trees hit the ground outside the basement window, the sound of windows breaking, and the unbelievable destruction outside just 10 minutes after we went to the basement. That left a heck of an impression on a 5 year old!

I wasn't quite scared of tornadoes, but for a long time, I definately felt the hackles on the back of my neck go up when the humidity and temperature hit a certain point. I knew nothing about dewpoint depressions, etc, I just knew it was "right" for something bad to happen. As I got into college, I enjoyed watching thunderstorms roll across Missouri from a distance. Of course I watched Twister but wrote it off as hollywood and didn't even think about chasing as a true hobby at that point.

In 2004, I read the National Geographic article about Tim Samaras' probes and knew instantly "that's for me." I found Storm Track within 3 hours of reading that article, had the distinct pleasure of accompanying Matt Crowther and Betsy Abrams on their chascation that spring and have been hooked ever since. Time and other obligations often keep me from being able to throw myself into chasing like I would want to, but it is a fascinating hobby, and one that will keep me interested for a long time.

 

[Cris Schroeder]

It's hard to believe, but I was around 4 years old during the 1974 tornado outbreak. My dad was a volunteer firefighter in a small town just south of Marion, IN and I remember being at the firehouse for some reason. The weather was getting bad and we hopped in the Nova and headed out of town to pick up my aunt who lived in a trailer house. Later I remember the sky being unbelievably dark, and huddling under the workbench in the basement. Nothing got hit close to our town, but it was definitely a memorable experience, even for a 4 year old.

Most of the memories are fuzzy, probably due to how young I was at the time, but it's stuck with me ever since. If I close my eyes I can still see the look of the sky and the feeling of the wind as we dodged tree branches in the old Nova.

As I got older, I wasn't aware that people actually chased storms. In college I would occasionally drive after building cumulus but didn't have the slightest idea what was really going on. Several years after college I worked with a guy who was an armchair chaser, and he introduced me to new ideas like the lifted index, CAPE, etc. It reignited the old spark, and here I am.

Funny...somehow I didn't expect my first post to be something like this!

 

[Derek Weston]

I'd been a life long severe-weather lover before my incident with the April 13 2006 Iowa City tornado last year.

It was then that I decided I wanted to chase. That experience put me over the edge, I was scared, but also exhilarated. My passion for severe weather was rekindled, and then some.

I found this board shortly after the tornado and started soaking up information.

(Not that I'm anything but dumb compared to those of you that *really* know what you're doing. . . I've got a ways to go)

I hope to go on my first *real* chase the next decent opportunity we get in the midwest. I've "sort of..kind of" chased on a few different occasions close to home. One of those chases was on the May 21 2004 Palo Iowa supercell, a cell that dropped an F3. The chase involved my dad, brother, sister and I taking off for a country road that led into Palo. (Palo being only about 10-15 minutes NW of our Cedar Rapids home) We ended up turning around and going to back due to some "scary" looking clouds -- scuds, lowerings, and whatnot. We actually snapped a few shots, and may have caught what would be the tornado far in the distance. Maybe I can post pictures. Had we just turned off our westbound route on to the northbound gravel road we were near, we would seen the Tornado as it headed off NE away from us. Not knowing exactly where the Tornado was when we took off, we were incredibly stupid to head west into the oncoming storm. (thankfully it wasn't high precip -- so we didn't do something really incredibly stupid)

Would have chased a bit today but had a bit of a gear breakdown at the last second -- power supply for laptop failed -- so I stayed home and let the weather come to me. (which was probably a good decision considering the mess that we had today in Iowa)