Looking for Storm Spotter Training Materials

[Rick Smith]

NWS Norman is getting ready for the 2010 storm spotter training season. Each year, we conduct 40-50 classes across our area, with average attendance in the 2000-3000 range.

We rely heavily on contributions from spotters and chasers to keep our presentations fresh, entertaining and informative. If you have video clips, compilation DVD's, or images you would be willing to share with us for educational purposes, please let me know.

Contributed material is used only for educational purposes and is not redistributed. Contributors are credited in our presentations.

While any storm images/video is certainly welcomed, we are always looking for video depicting some of the less obvious events spotters/chasers might encounter, and for any video that would help a spotter stay safe and make more accurate reports. Some of the items on the wish list include:

- hail, hail damage, hail measurement
- damaging winds, wind speed measurements and associated damage
- outflow features (shelf clouds, scud)
- tornado/funnel cloud/wall cloud look-alikes
- funnel clouds
- wall clouds (tornadic and non-tornadic)
- lightning (to illustrate safety issues)
- flooding/flash flooding and impacts on spotting
- non-weather hazards (roads, traffic, etc, etc)
- spotters/chasers making reports (radio, phone, SpotterNetwork, etc)
- tools and gadgets (instruments, communications, safety, etc)

If you have something you'd be willing to share, please PM me directly.

Thanks in advance!

Rick Smith
Warning Coordination Meteorologist
NWS Norman, OK

 

[Shane Adams]

NWS Norman is getting ready for the 2010 storm spotter training season. Each year, we conduct 40-50 classes across our area, with average attendance in the 2000-3000 range.

We rely heavily on contributions from spotters and chasers to keep our presentations fresh, entertaining and informative. If you have video clips, compilation DVD's, or images you would be willing to share with us for educational purposes, please let me know.

Contributed material is used only for educational purposes and is not redistributed. Contributors are credited in our presentations.

While any storm images/video is certainly welcomed, we are always looking for video depicting some of the less obvious events spotters/chasers might encounter, and for any video that would help a spotter stay safe and make more accurate reports. Some of the items on the wish list include:

- hail, hail damage, hail measurement
- damaging winds, wind speed measurements and associated damage
- outflow features (shelf clouds, scud)
- tornado/funnel cloud/wall cloud look-alikes
- funnel clouds
- wall clouds (tornadic and non-tornadic)
- lightning (to illustrate safety issues)
- flooding/flash flooding and impacts on spotting
- non-weather hazards (roads, traffic, etc, etc)
- spotters/chasers making reports (radio, phone, SpotterNetwork, etc)
- tools and gadgets (instruments, communications, safety, etc)

If you have something you'd be willing to share, please PM me directly.

Thanks in advance!

Rick Smith
Warning Coordination Meteorologist
NWS Norman, OK

Rick,

I have five compilation DVDs you're welcomed to. You can see highlights of them here: http://www.passiontwist.com/videos.htm

 

[Chris Foltz]

Not wishing to hijack Rick's thread, but NWS Goodland would also be very appreciative of images/video showing storm structure as well as the lifecycle of a tornado from beginning to end. 2009 obviously offered slim pickings as we all know but we too do our best to keep the presentation fresh for those spotters who attend the training sessions each year. Video clips, more than images, also tend to keep the interest of the attendee better. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. As Rick indicated, any video/images submitted would be only for use during the spotter training presentation and proper credit would be clearly given. Feel free to PM me and I'll give you my email address and the office address.

Best regards,
Chris Foltz
NWS Goodland

 

[Tyler Allison]

You could simply walk through the SN training program. Has all the above already provided.

-Tyler

 

[Rick Smith]

Rick,

I have five compilation DVDs you're welcomed to. You can see highlights of them here: http://www.passiontwist.com/videos.htm

Shane,

We'll take anything you're willing to share!

Rick

 

[John J. Holt]

I was very impressed with the SN training...

 

[Larry J. Kosch]

Storm Structure 101

Rick,

Mike Hollingshead had put together a really good video, "Storm Structure 101". I purchased it from him on his website:

http://www.extremeinstability.com/

I really enjoyed watching it and learned alot about storm structure. Mike is one of those storm chasers that would rather "hang back" instead of driving into the "bear's cage" of a tornadic storm.

I will send him a PM to let him know you may be interested!

Edit: Sent a PM to Chris Foltz too.

 

[James Langford]

Hey Rick, any way to get a copy of the training material that you all put together? I'm curious to see how my image was used.

James

 

[Jason Young]

Rick , the class you gave in Ardmore was the best in year's ! The information on the Lone Grove Tornado was insightfull and really took me back to that chase .