Who plans on chasing in March?

[Craig Maire II]

March

Aaron Kennedy wrote: I rest my case-17 March 2003

I to chased on March 17th 2003 and got some AWSOME pics/video!!
http://www.supercellstalker.com/2003chases.html
4th picture down

 

[Mike Hollingshead]

I've chased 5 years now and still not one March chase for some reason. I've chased in February I think 3 times though. I think it is best to blow off Feb, March, and April and hit it harder the next three. There may be some good storm examples in those months but more often then not it is not worth the trouble unless it is in your backyard.

 

[Bill Hamilton]

I rest my case.

17 March 2003

http://ww2.convectionconnection.com:8080/CHASE-031703/crw_6027_std.jpg

LMAO! I see that building everyday going to and from work.
I got pics of that same cell on March 17, 2003.

 

[Jeff Lawson]

I've yet to have a truly productive chase in March - even living in Texas. Now that I'm in Nebraska, I'm not even sure I'd consider March an actual part of chase season. I certainly wouldn't drive to Oklahoma or Texas for a March setup.

 

[Jeff Wear]

I honestly hope I am chasing in March.....hope this is the year we get another 3/13/1990 type outbreak (but away from populated areas of course).

The disadvantage about chasing in March though is the days are still pretty short - plus it's before DST starts so you have to leave an hour earlier than you would in April or May and it's dark by 7pm.

 

[Amos Magliocco]

Southern plains chasers don't blow off April. I think a lot of us want to blow off April (in January especially!) but the fact is that there are often days of both high shear and sufficient instability and there are plenty of good chasing opportunities.

Gene Moore's archives show 10 tornadoes in April during the 1990's and 18 tornadoes in April overall, including some events like 4-10-79 and the awesome Red Rock, OK tornado of 4-26-91. There may be more that I haven't found on his site. I'm not speaking for him by any means, but Gene chases April, not infrequently from the looks of it. And if it's good enough for Gene Moore...

Those 18 tornadoes may be a small percentage of his total, but they're not a small percentage of any of our totals, that's for sure.

March is far lower percentage, definitely. When I chase in March it's mainly to get out on the plains again and use my gear, get a feel for how things are going to shape up in the truck. I never expect to see tornadoes in March; I'm thrilled if I find a rotating storm. Most of my March chases are busts. But then sometimes you get lucky:




March 27, 2004


March 17, 2003, this storm produced a tornado a few minutes after this photo, which my chase partners saw while looking behind us. Tim Marshall and Carson Eads caught this tornado as well.

And on March 30, 2002, Robert Hall and I chased a tornadic supercell in Comanche and Erath counties. We didn't see much that day, but on another storm that same day, Jeff Lawson and Steve Miller saw a tornado near Chalk Mountain and Brian Fant bagged one near Hico.

 

[Jeff Lawson]

And on March 30, 2002, Robert Hall and I chased a tornadic supercell in Comanche and Erath counties. We didn't see much that day, but on another storm that same day, Jeff Lawson and Steve Miller saw a tornado near Chalk Mountain and Brian Fant bagged one near Hico.

Whoops...I forgot about that storm. OK, I guess I have had a productive chase in March.

I forgot that March 17, 2003 storm produced a tornado (weak as it might have been) as well. It was a decent storm there for awhile.

 

[nickgrillo]

I've been chasing for nearly four years now, and had numerous occasions where it looked like I was gonna be able to chase something...

I finally did on March 5th 2004 in northcentral Kentucky. After driving eight hours, I ended up with 30 seconds of mammatus cloud footage along with a stroke of lightning. Wow, what a chase, huh? LOL...

March 1st 2004 also made me hold hopes for a Michigan chase, as the area recieved a slight risk and a blue box. Several warnings were issued, and penny-sized hail was reported all along the shoreline of Lake Michigan. The line quickly went to junk as it moved rapidly eastward...

March 4th was also a good example of a disaster chase for people on the plains.

Sometimes a good day will arise, but surely not in the Upper Midwest usually. Luckily, the upper Midwest can fly away for all I care, because I will finally be chasing in the plains this year!

..Nick..

 

[Sheila_Ward]

I have strict rules concerning which months I will chase. I will only chase in May, June and July, unless it's January, February, March or April, or if it's August, September, October, November or December.

If it's not one of those months I refuse to chase.

 

[Bill Hamilton]

I have strict rules concerning which months I will chase. I will only chase in May, June and July, unless it's January, February, March or April, or if it's August, September, October, November or December.

If it's not one of those months I refuse to chase.

LOL!! Just stick by those rules and you will do alright!

 

[chad lawson]

i am with sheila and her STRICT RULES.

 

[Jim Bishop]

I've made many drives deep into Texas, even to near the Rio Grande during March and even February. I know too many people that simply discard potential chase days and say, "It's February, or it's March!".

I'm always looking for the next chase, and yes early in the season I'll risk getting burned bad by a strong cap or limited instability. The excitment of the first chase of the season will get me to drive just about anywhere.

The one good thing about early season chases is the lack of chaser "traffic jams" in BFE!

 

[cedwards]

I usually consider March 13th as the beginning of the chase season. But that doesn't limit me to any particular time to chase. I lost my first windshield due to hail in March. My earliest chase was On February, 12, 1996 on the way down to the TESSA meeting. Saw some nice structure, a lowering that resembled a tornado. I Told Matt Biddle (My chase partner then) that There would be a tornado warning based on that. Sure enough Tornado warning was issued. When the storm passed, I saw the best Mammatus I have ever seen lit up by the setting sun. We chased on the way back from the TESSA meeting as well. Almost didn't make it back home since I blew the engine on the Blaser.

 

[Reed Timmer]

March

Several nice setups occur every year during February and March south of the Rio Grande in Mexico. I've been to Del Rio a few times hoping for a raging Mexican supercell to cross the border. Has anyone here ever ventured into Mexico for a chase? This year may be the year for me.

One characteristic of early season setups in the U.S. is that the tornadoes are often moving very fast, so I like to position myself well ahead of the storm during early Spring because a chase is all but over if you get behind a March supercell. March 27 last year was an incredible day, especially if you were on the Woodward Co. storm. Lets hope for a similar situation this year.

 

[Damon Scott Hynes]

Originally posted by Craig Maire II
Just wondering who plans on doing any chasing in March?? Usually there are ATLEAST a couple of \"good\" chase days during March.

Nebraska in March? 80 MPH storm speeds...going from TOR Warning to Winter Storm Warning within the space of three counties...might as well throw $20 bills off the front porch--saves time!