*New Users. Meet and Greet Area*

[Paul Swearingen]

I'm back!

And glad to be back. I was a long-time subscriber to the printed "Stormtrack" magazine and lost contact after the switch to online publication because of a computer meltdown. Call me an old new member, if you wish. I've never been on a chase, can recall actually seeing only two tornados in my 64 years (not including the one that missed my apartment in Iola, KS in June '70 by a block or two, at treetop level), and am a retired teacher and still live in Topeka. I am no expert in meteorology but know enough to stay away from all weather phenomena that can pick me up and fling me great distances! On the other hand, if I ever went out on a chase, I'd be the one out front shooting photos until someone sensible told me that it was time to get into the chase vehicle and get out of there. I need to look through my collection of weather photos and find a decent one for my av, although don't look for any words of wisdom from me in any future posts. I'm just a guy who has developed a healthy respect for violent weather and appreciate the work of those who compile info, photos, and videos about weather.

 

[fredhopkinsiii]

Another new member - found this thread via google http://www.stormtrack.org/forum/showthread.php?p=263846

As an observer of that weather system and tornado I wanted to jump in with my memories and observations. Unfortunately [occuring in 1976] it predates digital cameras, consumer video recorders, cell phones - the works of what we take for granted today.

 

[NickMoir]

Hi everyone ,
I am a news photographer in Australia , specialising in storms and bushfires. Chased in US for 5 weeks in 06' and will be back this May/June. Hope to see you then!
Great forum , so much to learn here , very enjoyable and well explained

 

[Stephen Jones]

Hello Everyone,

Some people I already know on here, I just wanted to say hello and formally greet myself into the community! I am a Freshman at the University of Oklahoma, Go Sonners! Anyways, I have always had a passion for weather and storms since I was a toddler. I was born and raised in Beaufort,SC! I moved to Norman, OK last year to follow my dream in Meteorology! I have followed and heard of this forum before. This is the Fifth year I have been actively spotting or chasing, but its my first Storm Season out in the plains! Hopefully will get to see the more classic tornadoes instead of Southern HP Supercells.

I hope to gain alot of insight in the chase community in this forums and have always wanted to join, just wanting to grab all the knowledge and experience in the field i can get!

Heres my link to my weather photography on facebook if anyone cares to look at or join! Also i have updates on chases and weather events
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Stephen-Jones-Weather-Photography/240424608517?ref=ts

 

[Justin McGinley]

Hello My name is Justin McGinley. I live in southeast nebraska, I am a storm spotter for Nemaha county Nebraska. I have been a spotter for the NWS office in Hastings and for the Omaha office for about 5 years now. I have had always a passion for weather ever since I was little and I am wanting to get deeper into it. I am hoping to make some friends on here, and maybe to learn some new things also.

 

[Trey Thee]

Hey guys, my name is Trey Thee, been lurking for a couple years now.

I have been obsessed with weather since I was in a tornado in 1986 (age of 4). I have been chasing off and on for 11 years now, but gotten more serious the last two years since a good friend of mine is also a chaser.

Glad to be a part of this solid community, I hope to learn and contribute in a manner that is beneficial the my fellow members.

 

[BHastings]

Hey! My name is Brian Hastings, also a multi-year lurker, thanks to a friend who introduced me to storm chasing. I've loved staying up late and watching (and listening) to storms from about as far back as I can remember. I distinctly remember hearing from a jr. high science teacher about college students who actually spent their summers (well, springs, but I didn't know that at the time) doing storm research and studying tornadoes. (and I remember thinking -how awesome an opportunity like that would be. I wish I could do that someday...)

I'm into storm chasing for some of the same reasons I love astronomy; I'm not all that great a scientist, but learning and observing the world provides me both a sense of awe about creation and a push to learn new things. I'm looking forward to being a more active part of the boards.

 

[MBurdette]

Hello everyone! My name is Mike Burdette, and I live near a little town called Pleasant Hope which is north of Springfield, Missouri . I have enjoyed watching storms since I was very young, especially if there was a lot of lightning and it was getting dark.

I have also had a passion for airplanes and flying since I was four years old,and earned my private pilot licence around twelve years ago. On May 4, 2003, there was a tornado that virtually wiped out the town of Pierce City, Missouri and another that went through the middle of Stockton. A friend and I took the Cessna up the next day, (which was beautiful weather, of course) and followed the path of the two tornadoes. We were awestruck by the amount of devastation within the paths, and saw things from our vantage point we would have otherwise missed.

I got an ultralight airplane a couple of years ago, and last year, on May 8, 2009, a derecho came through SW Missouri, with winds of 80-100 MPH (someone nearby recorded a peak wind gust of 117.4 MPH) and I was in the barn with my plane as it collapsed around me. I had never even heard of a derecho before, but never want to be out in one again. I put a video on YouTube of what the storm did and my subsequent repairs to the plane, and if it's OK with the moderators, here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/user/MDBGUY#p/u/0/o9_ZPAF3Rhs


I am looking forward to getting to know some of the members of this forum, learning more about weather in general and gaining insight to the conditions that lead to the most severe storms. I feel very fortunate to be able to read the thoughts of guys (and girls!) who are the real pros in this field and promise to read the old threads before I ask dumb questions!

 

[Brian Moody]

Hello, ST community!

My name is Brian Moody. I live in the Omaha/Council Bluffs metro area. Weather, especially severe weather, has been an interest and hobby of mine since kindergarten. I don't chase storms at this time, but have unintentionally found myself beneath a rapidly developing supercell (nothing to a boiling cb in 20 minutes). As some may know, my area has had a couple recent events with tornadoes and a straight-line wind ripping through parts of the metro area (2008) and this past winter our area experienced winter storm after winter storm.

Through forecast discussions, ST forums as a guest, convective outlooks, I have educated myself on the parameters experienced forecasters and chasers use in diagnosing severe weather events, but one can still learn more.

Thank you

 

[Alan Black]

Hello everyone! My name is Alan Black, and I live in east-central Illinois. I've been interested in weather since a young age when a thunderstorm wind gust felled a tree on to our garage. This led me to an interest in weather that I have pursued through college. I earned a BS in meteorology and an MS in Geography from Northern Illinois University. I have been chasing for several years, mostly locally through IL, IN, and WI. I'm looking forward to contributing to the community, getting to know the other members of the forum and learning more from all of you.

 

[William James]

Hello all! I am a brand new user to Stormtrack and I thought I would use my first post to introduce myself. My name is William James, but my friends call me Bill. I am located in North Central IL in a town called Heyworth, just outside of Bloomington/Normal. I am interested in storm chasing. I have loved storms for as long as I can remember. After seeing the TV show Storm Chasers on the discovery Channel I started to do a little more research on the topic. I had always known people chased storms but I did not know that there was such a large community of people doing it. I am currently in the process of educating myself on storms. Terminology, the meanings of terms, how they fit together and how to know when a storm is going to drop something interesting. I am also saving up to buy a video camera.

 

[Nick Nolte]

Hello from Lower Michigan! My name is Nick Nolte (no relation, just devious parents) I live near Jackson, MI and work as a GIS Analyst for the county here. I graduated from Central Michigan Univeristy with a BS in Comp Sci and GIS.

I've loved storms for as long as I can remember and I've chased around here since I got my license twelve years ago. I'll be trekking out to the plains this spring for the first time to take it all in. We usually get MCSs around here and discrete cells are few and far between.

I've gained quite a bit of knowledge perusing the forums, and am grateful that a community such as this exists...one can only get so far without the help of others. I hope to have many enlightening discussions and maybe even bump into one or two of you on the road!

Cheers!
Nick

 

[RobertMoney]

Robert Money:
Photographer
Storm Chaser
Graphic designer

Networks:
Spotter Network
Stormtrack.org
stormchaselive

Location
Plano, TX

Description:

I Drive fast, I drive hard and i love extreme weather and being out on the scene... I've been shooting landscape photography for the past 5 years and what I've learned is that a key element to a perfect portrait is a perfect sky, and what better than a towering thunderhead off on the horizon.

I'd love to have a chance to meet with some of the locals here in Dallas to have the opportunity to chase with, as well as learn as much as i can from this online community!

Thanks!

http://dj-iso.deviantart.com/art/Pending-Storm-103957446

 

[Elaine Spencer]

Hello everyone, I've been lurking here for a while and finally decided to take the plunge and join. My name is Elaine Spencer, I live in Springfield, IL. I am married with one daughter and I work full time for the state of Illinois.

I am not a chaser -- I'd much rather run AWAY from storms than toward them -- but I have discovered that the more I know about tornadoes and severe weather, the less paranoid I am about them. I have started reading chaser blogs for information about past and upcoming storms and that is how I discovered Stormtrack.

In recent years I have had some close calls with tornadoes. I grew up in Utica, Ill. and the F3 that hit there in 2004 just missed my mom and dad's house. I also knew two of the people who died in that storm.

My husband, daughter, and I were living in Metamora when that happened. Three months later the huge F4 hit Parsons Manufacturing just a few miles to the east in Roanoke. (That anyone survived that at all, let alone without a scratch, was truly miraculous and a testament to the attention the factory owner paid to tornado preparedness.) When I consider how fast that storm developed, I shudder to think what might have occurred had it formed just a few minutes earlier or farther to the west -- Metamora could have suffered a direct hit :-(

In 2005 we moved to Springfield, and wouldn't you know, less than a year later that big half mile wide F2 hit Springfield. I remember that night like it was yesterday. We were living in an apartment on the UIS campus and ended up scrambling for shelter in the tunnels underneath the library. The tornado actually tracked a couple miles north of us but that was the closest call I've ever had. Later that night came ANOTHER tornado warning and we had to do the same thing again.

I later wrote an article about the "six state supercell" which spawned that storm and posted it at Associated Content under a pen name. If you google "Six State Supercell" that's one of the first hits you get. If anyone has read this article, let me know what you think of it and if it needs any corrections... I would like to write more about weather.

Ever since I have been very vigilant when it comes to weather and I really appreciate all that you chasers and spotters do to keep us safe. I am honored to be included in your discussions. Thanks everyone, and stay safe out there!

 

[Eric Hurst]

Hey guys, I'm Eric Hurst, I live in Denver, Colorado and have been chasing mainly in state for the past 6 years. My usual hunting ground has been the Palmer Divide, it's been a great place to learn and experince mainly landspout tornadoes... although it's also been the scene of some impressive supercells and strong tornadoes too. My interest in chasing is primarily photography. My specialty is fire/emergency photojournalism but I enjoy all of the extremes nature has to offer.

I'm looking forward to expanding my knowledge base and sharing whatever I can.

Thanks!