TIV

[John Diel]

John wanted words from the "horse's mouth" as to what my intentions are...without the "pr" crap.

I'm trying to capture what I see as one ot the most amazing things that happens on our planet with what I think is the best medium for doing so, the Imax format. I love it out there, and it will sound goofy, but it is being as close to heaven as I have ever experienced.

I can't see finishing this film without getting the shot of a tornado coming toward us and then impacting our postition. How else could I relay how incredible a tornado is. I see the footage that Tim S. has gotten and it's fantastic, utterly beautiful, and if I could do that with the camera I have access too...

I'm out there to bring back the feeling I get while I'm out there, to pass that on to people that see the film I hope to do.

Sean,
Welcome to the Zen of chasing. Though I would remind you that it's a better experience sober

I think you hit upon one of the areas that we, as chasers, don't always articulate very well. That's the beauty and majesty of Nature. We tend to get hung up in the equipment (at least us Gadget Mongers do) and the ethics, and all the little way side things and forget about the real meaning of chasing to each of us. I really believe it's about what you said. It means something different to each of us and how we capture it or view it, or even think about it is unique and individual as each person out on the road.

Keep us informed of your ventures. Put in your reports. Learn from some of the Masters of forecasting on this site. I don't think anyone here will ridicule you or your mission anymore. You have the pride and fortitude to come on here and let us "Have at you". Not everyone does that.

Welcome to the ST family and keep on chasing!

John Diel

 

[Sean Casey]

Bob..I completly understand your first impression of the TIV. It is silly in a way, how can one take oneself seriously when you're driving a homebrew tank and in every town you drive through you feel that you should be announcing the arrival of the carnival with a PA system. Plus I usually have at least one serving of crow each day.

Helen..we have a website, but I'm a bit embarrassed by it's roughness. But have a look, it's at imaxtornado.com. It's out of date as it proclaims a mission statement that I should clear up right now...

At the time the site was put up Josh Wurman wanted me to make clear that if we were chasing with the DOW trucks we would not try to intercept any tornados. Josh's DOW mission at the time was to scan storms from a distance of 2 to 4 miles with dual doppler. At that distance it is hard to get accurate readings of wind speeds closer to the ground, due to interverence with ground clutter and the resolution of the radar.(I think this is mostly right, if I'm wrong then I'll at least get another serving of crow when Josh calls.) Josh wasn't able, under this game plan to give us wind speeds of a tornado that both he and we felt comfortable risking our lives with.

Josh's mission changed this last year which our website doesn't reflect. The DOWs would focus on recording near ground wind fields at a distance of less than one mile. At this range he felt comfortable in leading us into, or near a tornado with winds less than 60 m/s. We also have other safety guidlines that the DOW/TIV mission follow. If we lose radio contact and don't get a report from Josh after 20 seconds, we abort. If the tornado shows signs of strengthening, we abort.

This is not to say that I feel completely safe doing this. I know there are risks to this activity, risks that will never be completely subdued no matter how many safety guide lines we implement, other than to stay at home.

Anyway, I appreciate the warm "welcome" to your club and look forward to seeing you all this spring. If there are any concerns/ideas about how the TIV might make for a better member on the road, let me know.

sean

 

[Greg Stumpf]

Sean,

Since the first day I saw the TIV (and, I'm sorry to admit, couldn't stop laughing for about 5 minutes), I've always wondered if this vehicle is street legal. If so, what steps did you go about ensuring that is was? Do you need a special license to drive it?

Also, who is funding your research?


greg

 

[Tim Vasquez]

Hi Sean -- welcome to the board... we're glad to have you here to field questions about TIV.

Tim

 

[Sean Casey]

Thanks Tim, glad to finally answer some of the questions out there, I would have done so sooner but didn't know this site existed until Josh told me to visit it three weeks ago. I'm trying to get up to speed...

The TIV is street legal. The D.O.T. is very liberal in what it allows on the road. It has to be less than eight feet wide, have head and tail lights above a certain hieght, and that's about it. I could send you a rough sketch if you want to build your own.

We're not funded by anyone, just me, except for last year when Nat Geo footed the bill.

sean

 

[Mike Peregrine]

Sean - welcome ... first of all, congratulations on the new addition to your family. Your baby will always be your finest achievement.

To be honest, when I first laid eyes on the TIV out on the plains, I looked at my brother and rolled my eyes pretty hard - especially after seeing just about the full gamut of what these storms are capable of out there. And then, as you know, there was just all kinds of discussion among chasers, both in and out of the forums.

The NGC special was pretty helpful to get a little clearer perspective on how your operation with Dr. Wurman worked, especially once I saw how he was able to estimate surface winds by comparing the data he was gathering from higher in the tornado. I have to admit that I'm not yet completely sold on the ultimate safety factor of the project, but feel like the NGC special did a lot to dispel some of the worst fears - and it also let us see that your passion fuels you the same as it does the rest of us. There's no doubt that you are compelled by the very same 'forces of nature' that drives any chaser.

I was curious about the ultimate plan for the project - and whether you would go back to normal chasing if you managed to obtain the footage of your dreams, or continue to make attempts to trump the last intercept ... any chance of going back to a more conventional chase experience once you bag "the ONE?"

Like every other chaser alive on the planet, I will be the first in line at the nearest IMAX anytime your films are completed and up on the screen. Looking forward to seeing one - and hope to get a chance to run into each other and chat on the road one of these days.

 

[Sean Casey]

Hey Mike,

I'd love to just take a 4x4 truck out to chase in and leave the TIV behind. It's such a pain to drive, fix, and explain. I don't think that I'd ever be able to chase without an Imax camera or equivalent, it would seem like such a waste to go out there without some camera to bring back the best possible image.

I'll find some excuse to bring out a big camera after "Tornado Alley" is done but not the TIV. I hope I can do a better job than I did in "Forces of Nature" I feel I totally messed up in trying to convey the reality of storm chasing.

sean.

 

[cdcollura]

Welcome Aboard

Good day, Sean

Nice to have you aboard Stormtrack!

The TIV in my opinion I found to be a pretty thought out and well put together vehicle. I heard many laught about it, but that's just their opinion. It does not have to look "pretty", after all, is a military tank pretty? But ... As long as it gets the job done it what matters.

I remember seeing the TIV out on June 12, 2005 in Texas and then read about "TIV collected in-situ HD / IMAX video" from the DOW project sites ... Cannot remember which one. I am sure the video of the "corner region" of one of those tornadoes on the 12th must be second to none, and similar to Tim Samaras's media probes!

Last year in Nebraska I saw the TIV parked behind the motel, I did a walk around like I was a kid in a candy store ... The seat harnesses, camera turret, bullet-proof glass ... You sure put quite a bit of work and effort into it.

We are all happy to see you on here as I am sure you have already got a lot of questions.

Anyway, keep up the good work, whether its for video, film, and / or science - And stay safe and good luck!

Chris C - KG4PJN

 

[Shane Adams]

Format isn't what conveys chasing, what you put in front of the camera is. Getting so focused on technology will always skew the artisitc view IMO.

 

[mrobinett]

Welcome Sean! My favorite part of the Nat Geo special was the the irony of you guys passing a military Light Armored Vehicle (LAV) in the TIV.

The first video I saw of TIV was in a Mike Hollingshead DVD in 2004. Since then it has been a mystery until I ran upon the TIV/DOW team in Garden City, KS May 11th, 2005. Im not sure who I spoke to about the TIV but he was very nice, approachable and patient with questions. I was impressed.

Best of luck Sean, hope to see the Tornado Tundra out there this year.

 

[Sean Casey]

Hey Chris C, Thanks, but we haven't gotten images close to Tim's, but we'll keep trying.

Shane, not too sure what your post was reffering to. I agree that a ceratin format doesn't convey the subject of storm chasing but each format has it's strengths. The Imax format is useless when it comes to social documentaries, as the "fly on the wall" approach is best done by descreteness, not by a 100 lb machine that sounds like a sewing maching in need of a repair. But the Imax format is unique in it's resolution, it's ability to capture detail. I've seen tornados on tv and I've seen Imax footage on a 90' X 60' screen and there is no compairison. We are making a film about tornados that plays to the strengths of our chosen format, not by the need to tell the social story of storm chasing.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Hi Sean,

Given the success of Tim S.'s probes and your 'New Dad' status (congrats by the way!), I was wondering if your team had considered building a 'turtle' probe for the Imax camera itself - a unit that could be deployed in front of any tornado (weak or violent), eliminating the need for a human operator to be present in the path and its associated dangers. I realize such a turtle unit would be massive in itself (probably filling a full-size truck bed and requiring a crane or multiple people to deploy). But, at least you'd be able to go after tornadoes without putting yourself in the path, and not worry about stronger tornadoes without the support of the DOWs.

I'm sure you guys have considered this and many other solutions, but I'd be interested to hear what swayed your decision to go with the fully mobile, manned vehicle and if there are any other intercept methods for the Imax camera (like a probe) in the works.

 

[Sean Casey]

Hey Dan,

There are a host of problems in going with a turtle housing for the imax camera and then leaving it in the path of a tornado. We'd have to build a radio remote for on and off, and a system that would broadcaste a image of what the camera is seeing as three minutes of film, a 1000' roll, costs $2,400. Plus the camera would only serve that one purpose, we couldn't use it to film other angles and events, as it would be a permanent resident in that housing.

And then there is the fact that the camera can't pan to follow the action if the tornado misses it.

Plus, intercepting the tornado in the TIV adds drama to the storyline of the film.

Those are the realitys that forced our hand in building the TIV.

 

[David Wolfson]

You have my admiration, Sean. I've been trying to shoot medium format and it's hard enough to haul that around, set it up, and break it down. Plus I don't blow through a roll of 220 every second.

Wasn't Breshears able to climb Everest with an Imax cam that weighed about 25 lbs.? 100 lbs. seems like a heck of a load to throw around, although your chiropractor should be grateful.

Congrats also, dad!

 

[Sean Casey]

Yeah, Breshears had the production company he was working for make a stripped down version of an Imax camera so that no one piece of the camera weighed over 25lbs. It's been said though, the camera failed just short of the summit, so they had to do some recreations up in British Columbia. But still, the effort to overcome the types of logistics they encountered, is admireable.

Just a side note... I've been blessed with the opportunity to go to exotic places and witness some fantastic events but nothing comes close to storm chasing and it's all here in our mid-western backyard! We are all very lucky on that account.

Idea #12... go with the flow and convert 18 wheelers into massive TIVs and give tours into tornadic circulations. I apologize, my mind goes to these places.

At least the DOW program would have funding every year...sad, really. I blame the gorvernment's budgeting priorities for forcing Josh Wurman into bed with the TIV.