Tony Laubach's Storm Chase Blog

Apparently blogger did post the previous shpeel about my website changes.. in any case, here's an updated version. I deleted the previous...

Lets see if Blogger will cooperate with me this time... for the second time today, I am posting here.. obviously the first one didn't make it cause blogger had a hiccup. I'm about to do some minor changes to my website. Here's what's going on.

The biggie is the use of templates. Macromedia Dreamweaver has a template thingie you can use to create templates for your site. Since you're here and have probably been elsewhere, you know the basic layout of my site. Previous to this update, I've basically copied everything from one page to the next, which meant if I wanted to change something in the main template (link, button, etc), I would have to do it for every page indivigually. As my site closes in on 100 pages, that's a bit tough to want to do. Well, I finally taught myself how the template works and am in the process of recreating the site template so that I only have to edit one page to make site-wide changes. The layout of the page will be pretty much exactly the same with a few minor changes...

1. The Yoshi buttons will be a bit overhauled. I touched up the colors of the Yoshi buttons to brighten them up a bit. I also redid the text which adds a bit more of a whit eoutline to the letters which will hopefully help make them stand out a bit more. I also added one extra button.

2. The buttons themselves have been swapped. Some have been renamed, others have been added, some taken out. The additions include one for 'Weather Blog', 'Media Services' (more on that shortly), and 'Sign Guestbook'. Removed were the contact and photo albums. Changed were 'Tony's Bio' to 'Tony Laubach'.

3. Media Services: I've basically elected to combine Contact and Photo Album with this. Media Services will be a small part on the site which includes ways to contact me for licensing photos, videos, etc. The photo albums will be linked from this and the Storm Chasing section and will no longer be a main section in the site.

4. The rest of the navbar underwent a face-lift as well. The three fading buttons that were up (Email, Sign Guestbook, and Nowcast) have been removed. The email is listed on the bottom of the bar and can be found all throughout my site. The sign guestbook button was changed to a Yoshi button. The Nowcast was done away with cause I have never put a page for that. Instead, I swapped that out with a group of quick links that will link in new windows to various SPC products, forecasting sites, and the Stormtrack forum. Also removed was the Columbine Tribute graphic for personal reasons. I will leave the tribute page up in the background as it's frequently hit via outside sources, but I no longer feel the need to have a graphic on the main site. A couple of small tidbits of info are also on the navbar as well, including copyright stuff and created infomation.

5. Off the bat, there will also be the addition of a graphic button which will take you directly to my 2005 chase logs section. Below it will be the counter I have made for the countdown to the May-a-Thon 2005 kick-off which is coming up in just over a month!

This template configuration will allow me to make changes to the parts of my site which are displayed on most if not all my pages. This will eliminate the need for me having to worry about making small changes. As of this writing, I have not put the new template online as I am in final stages of nitpicky stuff. I also have to undergo the task of copying and pasting my old site onto the new template.

As for changes you'll notice, there really won't be many. While I'm transfering everything over, there may be a few small things I update/change; nothing note-worthy though. Most will be simple copy 'n' paste shots from my old site into the new. I will be doing all of that offline, so unless you hit a particular page as its being reuploaded, you probably won't have any problems. I anticipate about a 15 minute dead period where I am cleaning out the server and uploading everything new.

Please note, that since I do have nearly 100 pages, I may miss a few in this transformation. While that may happen in the first day as I make the change, I could easily miss a page or two. Just drop me an email and let me know. I do know that the blog pages will be behind on this as I have to go and recode my blogger to accomodate this change. Also worth noting that NONE of the pages will be given new filenames, so even if some pages are old, all the links to my site will still be active and working, it'll just look different.

I'm figuring on going online with this within the next week. The 'Media Services' section may be up as early as then, or as late as Fall, pending my time. I'm not going gangbusters with it, but its just a matter of me figuring out how I want to organize it. In the meantime, I'll put a temporary page up in its place just to direct you to wherever you may want to go.

Whew.. long blog, eh.. just wanted to mention the updates going on just in case you start noticing differences! Stay tuned!
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Wednesday, March 30, 2005

 

A lot going on today in the weather world. The obvious MOD RISK over the Midwest which has most everyone's attention. Then what could be a very interesting Spring snowstorm here in the Front Range.

First, I'm gonna stick closer to home. The ETA and the GFS are very different with the potential for snow here in Denver through tomorrow. While the ETA is barely breaking the precip barrier, the GFS is going for nearly half an inch in places. Moisture at low levels is almost non-exisistant, but ample moisture over the mountains could spread eastward and at least give us a shot. Winds aren't looking great for upslope here in Denver, but the Palmer Divide looks good in terms of that. The front is currently in extreme southern Wyoming/extreme northern Colorado, so as that gets down here, we'll start seeing the temps fall and soon after that, the precip. Ratios seem to be about 6 to 1 in terms of snow, but I'm not thinking we'll see a lot here in Denver, maybe upwards of 3 inches with more in some areas where some convective snows develop. I also wouldn't be surprised to hear some thunder on occasion as there is some instability in the area. Very complicated setup kicking through and the models are very different. Will really have to wait throughout the day to see how things progress. I'm leaning strongly towards the lighter amounts in Denver (2 to 4 inches); there's just not enough to convince me that this system can squeeze out more than that.

On the other side of the country, SPC has a MOD RISK for a good chunk of Illinois and Indiana, stretching south through western Kentucky, Tennessee, and into Northern Mississippi. SPC's 15% tornado risk was bumped northward into east-central Illinois and west-central Indiana from their earlier outlook. I would imagine this was in response to how quickly this system is up a moving. As of this writing, there are a pair of MDs out. One of which is discussing the current SEVERE WATCH over Iowa and the other is hinting at a TORNADO WATCH in eastern Iowa and northwestern Illinois. This setup looks good as a nice moisture tounge extends right into the risk area. Both speed and directional shear looks good, but I think a few would agree that the directional shear could be better. None-the-less, it's in place to get storm rotating and I would imagine a higher tornado report count than we've had with some of the systems that passed through the Southeast last week. A small window exists for isolated supercells in parts of Illinois where things look to be coming together better, but I would imagine a linear setup will evolve pretty quickly, so I foresee a short show before things congeal and make a mess.

I haven't seen anything from Amos on his blog, but I know if I were him, I'd be sitting in Central Illinois eating lunch right now. Hell, if I still lived in Circleville, I'd be sitting in Illinois right now eating lunch! I'm guessing he did venture out as close to home as it is for him, especially since he'll end up chasing his way back home as the day progresses. I hope he and everyone else playing the Midwest scores well today. I talked to Doug yesterday and he was preparing to chase Iowa. Not sure how he's going to fare up there, so I'm hoping he's playing a bit further east today. Iowa's already trying to light up, and Illinois is clear and warming fast, so I'd definately be sprinting in that direction.

I obviously had no chance to chase this system today, so I'm not too skittish as this starts to unfold. I was happy to see some severe reports yesterday from South-Central Kansas. I'm not sure who if anyone chased down there, but even with the fact no tornadoes were reported, it was nice to still see some severe in the area I was targeting thanks in part to the moisture which snuck in there. While most of it was small hail, it's at least some verification that something got in there.

Nothing major in the future to discuss... just playing out today from the labs and hoping for the best for all who play the fields. Just FYI, SPC has just issued a TORNADO WATCH for Eastern Iowa and West-Central Illinois. The MD I spoke of earlier pulled through with the watch. The Midwest will be lighting up today!
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Tuesday, March 29, 2005

 

Had I been a bit more prepared today, I may've chanced Kansas this afternoon! Glancing at things and seeing how pretty of a setup it is (minus moisture), I may've actually tried to work my way out today. Although I'm not exactly sure where in Kansas things would've kicked off, I think I would found myself strolling the now happily famous stretch of Hwy 160 somewhere near Medicine Lodge. I don't think I'm gonna regret sitting this one out, but it looks like it has possibilities. Right now, the moisture still remains a huge issues at Tds are barely in the mid 40s across southern Kansas (i.e. Medicine Lodge 44, Arkansas City 49, Dodge City 33). However, it looks as if some moisture is trying to advect northward as Tds in northern Oklahoma are running in the 50s (i.e. Alva 55, Enid 50). This seems to be a very narrow band, though, as surrounding Tds are struggling to keep pace. For instance, Woodward is reporting 37 at 12:32p CST while Alva was reporting 55 about the same time. Its very narrow, but appears as if it wants to pool in Southern Kansas west of I-35. Model analysis from Dupage shows that the 50s area wants to knife eastward into Southeast Kansas. Everywhere in South-Central Kansas stays in the mid 40s. I think that's probably correct, but am wondering if the SFC obs I picked up from NWS in the above mentioned areas are hinting that perhaps a bit more moisture is getting up there than the models are forecasting.

Everything else is looking pretty good aside from moisture, which the RUC seems to also show. At 6 hours, it does attempt to pool some 45s over a narrow strip in South-Central Kansas into North-Central Oklahoma, but not really enough to generate anything. Helicty values from the RUC are 600 and higher across North-Central Oklahoma, South-Central Kansas. Theta-E could definately be higher, but shows a broad axis straight through Central Kansas with values just above 300. SFC winds aren't bad, straight out of the south, but the RUC does try a couple times to back them towards the west ever-so-slightly in extreme South-Central Kansas, albeit, not strong at all.

A risk to say the least, but eyeing the SFC obs none-the-less. Looking in Northern Oklahoma/Southern Kansas, most stations are flirting with 50 if not already there (57, 52, 51), so if that progresses, I wouldn't be surprised to see a SLIGHT RISK hatched over the area because of this. Obviously the models aren't going for it, but the real world just may be.
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Lake Michigan anyone? Not me... my official position on chasing this week has now been determined... I will not be attending a Great Lakes get-together. I remember last year joking with other chase pals about how we were chasing Iowa in May and were still too far south. I can only imagine the jokes flying around for chasing Iowa in March! *LOL*

Again, back to the drawing board. I'm gonna await the passing of the Fool's Day in hopes that I can avoid crowning myself with the title prematurely. With the passing of the day to which I was crowned King of in my early High School days, I'll be in my official season awaiting the first "regular season" chase.

Next week may hold difficulties if a midweek scamper emerges from the model mess. On Monday morning, I have a Physics Lab I cannot miss. The upside to this is that if I were to miss Monday, I could sit in on the Tuesday lab at 1:00pm. The upside to a Sunday/Monday chase would be missing no work. Wednesday is a no go as I have an exam in Physics and will likely be finishing a Video Editing excercise which is due that week. I would have to jump through some serious hoops next week if I were to chase. This week, it was work; next week it's school. After next week, I can pretty well leave at will.

I did find out that my Physics Labs end one week earlier, which means the week of April 25, I have no lab; meaning that by that time, I will likely only have Physics and Forecasting Lab to attend; assuming I finish the rest of my Video Editing excercises. This would basically free up my Mondays and give me a strong option to ditch Wednesdays. I have one quiz in Physics after my exam that I would need to take, but after that, all I have is my final. I'm figuring by the week of April 18, I'll be far enough in the classes I haven't finished to take off for a mid-week chase. As for work, one of the beauties I have with my current job on campus is the ability to find coverage. This also works the other way as I can usually find hours to make up for any I may miss. Albeit, sometimes that requires planning ahead, but normally, I can usually get myself pretty close to where I would normally be at if I were to take off for a mid-week chase.

So yeah, all plans are to focus ahead for the coming weeks. Mid-April usually serves as my first big chase anyway, so I'm figuring on the same now. While I may get lucky and get a chase squeezed in between days I can't take off, I'm going to resume my holding pattern and patiently try to wait out mid-April.
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Monday, March 28, 2005

 

Wednesday's setup is looking less and less favorable for me. I won't make the final decision til tomorrow afternoon, but I'm thinking there's a 10% chance I will chase Wednesday. Several factors coming into play. First of all, school and work obligations. Because of those obligations, I'm already feeling as if I need a pretty strong reason to bail on those. Second, the distance is looking way too far east for me to make it up and back quickly enough. If this were falling during a time where I could skim by missing a day and a half of my real life, I'd be a bit more compelled to chance it, but not in the middle of the week. I wouldn't be able to leave any earlier than tomorrow evening, which would require a crazy sprint eastward with little sleep to continue the journey the following day, let alone survive the entire day, chase, then begin to make my way home so I could arrive in time for my Thursday evening shift. Taking Wednesday off was already a big deal cause I'd miss 3 classes and 7 hours of work. If I bail Thursday as well, I would miss 5 hours of work if I made it back before my pizza driving shift Thursday. Obviously I could get out of that, too, but I would find myself losing over $160 in lost work time alone, not counting the money I'd spend chasing. Third, being off for Spring Break already set me back a wee bit in terms of my normal income, so taking more time off in the same pay period would totally kill my upcoming checks. That's cutting into May savings I'd rather leave alone til May.

It's too much of a gamble right now... if things were a bit closer where I wouldn't be so pinched for time, I'd be happier, but the models won't slow this system down for me. I'm gonna see how things evolve tomorrow morning and afternoon before I say no for good, but I'm thinking my best interests are to wait this one out and prepare for the next. My official chase season doesn't start til April 1 anyway, so it's not like I'm missing out on anything normal.

The timing of this system just doesn't fit in every way you can imagine. Any other week, I'd be fine, but I'm coming off Spring Break and am already in the hole for work hours. This wouldn't help much. I have a couple stashes for weekend chases as April kicks in to gear, and CPC's Friday analysis had my happier areas circled for severe weather through the 8th. I'd rather see how that pans out and hope it falls in better time for me to up and leave. This system just isn't going to work with me, I'm afraid.
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Sunday, March 27, 2005

 

Happy Easter to everyone, including everyone who wasn't on my mass texting list earlier today!

My chances for chasing the Wednesday system are slowly slipping away as the chasable weather is going to venture a bit further east than I could easily chase in the middle of the week. If this were a weekend where only 1 day of work/school would be affected, I probably would be more inclined to chase it, but since I'd be taking Wednesday/Thursday off, it makes it hard to justify the effort. I was hoping for something a little closer to home. Now while the chances exist that this system slows down enough to bring things a bit further west of the I-35 corridor, I am still preparing as if I could leave Tuesday night.

A note of somewhat encouraging news, CPC's assessment of hazards on Friday has an area circling Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. This also includes a bit of SE Colorado. They have severe weather forecasted in the April 2 - 8 range. While this is obviously far enough out where it'll likely change more times than Janet Jackson at a concert, it's a glimmer of hope that systems following the mid-week's system will be in more chasable territory for me at this point in the season.

Stay tuned on Wednesday as hope survives for a more western scenario. If things push east of I-35, I'm likely to pass it off for something closer to home.
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Friday, March 25, 2005

 

Winter has again graced us here in Denver. A couple inches of snow fell yesterday which I believe would've been closer to 4 or 5 inches had the ground not been so warm. The snow didn't even really start sticking til several hours after it began. It came down heavy at times, too. More snow is forecasted in the area tonight through tomorrow with accumulations here in Lakewood ranging from 4 to 8 inches more. March is typically the snowiest month here in Denver, so there really is no big surprise on this. We had just better be careful not to completely overtake our annual total thus far in this next week, which unfortunately with as little snow as we've seen, really wouldn't take a whole lot.

Still playing towards the middle of next week, but latest models runs don't look very happy. NWS in Wichita, which had been mentioning next week's potential in their AFDs as of late kept quiet about it in their latest AFD, only mentioning scattered storms. They didn't speak their recent, "next week looks interesting if this and this comes together". This latest run, looks like this and this aren't there. Even Amos Magliocco watched it disappear form under his nose. Hopefully we can find it again cause it was pretty consistant up til now, just slowing up a little. Curse you GFS!

And last night, I fed my bordom by watching Twister! It really is a good movie aside fro the fact of its lack of truth when it comes to the actual chasing part of it. It still gets the blood pumping! Hopefully Nature can do the same here soon! This snow isn't helping any!
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Thursday, March 24, 2005

 

Right now, I'm kind of in a holding pattern. After missing out on Monday's action, I find myself watching every other possible day seep into the jaws of crap. What went from today/tomorrow in terms of where my attention is being directed is now Tues/Wednesday. Albeit, the Tuesday/Wednesday scenario looks the most promising of anything I've seen, so that's where my eyes are sitting right now. I'm really waiting for Sunday to roll around as its very hard to get excited about something 5 and 6 days out, but the run-to-run consistency is beginning to excite me a bit. The last several runs of the GFS has been reasonably close to the same, although it appears the system is slowing a bit, which seems to be shifting the main focus from Tuesday into Wednesday. While I'm not yet making any plans to venture out, it is something that I'm gonna keep in the back of my head. The main issue will be its middle-of-the-week timing as I'll likely miss my Wednesday classes and work probably Wednesday and Thursday morning/afternoon. Again, I'll play things out a bit in the coming days before I start pulling triggers. In any case, I was at Wal-Mart the other day where I picked up a few things to get me started. Included in that list; new wiper blades, Rain-X, drinks, snacks, batteries, 8mm tapes, 100 speed film, etc. I'm all set to go at a moment's notice.

In other news really quick, still waiting on my license plate.. now going on FIVE months, I'm beginning to get a little impatient and rather annoyed that this is taking so damn long. I'm now on my third temp-tag. Outside of that, The Storm Tracer is ready to roll. Oh yeah, and yesterday evening, I saw my first lightning of the season (not counting snowstorms)! A small, weak thunderstorm rolled through and dropped some very tiny hail and a brief period of rain along with a couple strikes followed very closely by very loud thunder! The Gods above we reminding me that its coming soon! Hopefully soon will be sometime next week! Stay tuned...
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Monday, March 21, 2005

 

The equipment setup in the car has been completed. I was finally able to eliminate the problem of the jotto desk tipping when the laptop was placed on it. With some help from one of my buddies at work, we were able to work it out with an extra washer by sticking it inside the bracket adding extra friction. In the test this morning, I ran a 15 mile trip around Lakewood with the laptop setup. Other than some swaying, it worked fine. No shifting of position and best of all, no tipping. I also tested out the GPS unit for the first time and it ran flawlessly! Here's a quick look at the inside of the car...

Click Here for Full Descriptions



In other news, kind of kicking myself a bit for not venturing out today as SPC has just issed a TORNADO WATCH for parts of Central Oklahoma. Not sure whether or not I would've actually made it in time, but it would've given me that more western play I was hoping for. No matter, still eyeing a Thurs/Fri potential. With all the equipment a go finally, I'm ready to roll! More than anything else, I would like to get a dry run in just to check the car's performance, get all the equipment on a test run, and obviously get me out once to get myself back into the mode. Really waiting for tomorrow's runs before I start making travel plans. I won't have any issues getting out of my 3 hour Thursday driving shift, so I'm pretty well free to roam. Made some great cash this weekend as well, so all I need is a go from Mother Nature. We'll see how all that pans out in the next 24 to 48 hours.
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Saturday, March 19, 2005

 

It has begun! Systems are beginning to look more and more favorable. Models and forecasts are indicating a decent setup Sunday and Monday, unfortunately they're a bit far east for me to run ATTM. None-the-less, it has potential for anyone who is trying hard to shake their SDS and wouldn't mind chasing the thick terrain well east of I-35. Glancing over the models, it looks as if instability and wind shear will be enough to fire off some good storms. SPC's thought for Monday seems to trend more towards a squall line, but supercells kicking things off before merging into the line of death. Please keep in mind that it's butt early on a Saturday morning and I'm working, so I haven't really jumped head-long into this yet; but a quick glance suggests that it may be a decent season starting day for some.

The GFS is also hinting in its last frames of a possible setup at the start of April! A weekend gig there would be nice, but again, it, too, looks a bit out of my early season boundries. I'll have to keep an eye on that and see if it falls on a convienient day for me. In any case, things are starting to stir and I wouldn't be surprised if I am planning a potential chase out in the next few weeks.
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Friday, March 18, 2005

 

Gas prices have now exceeded $2.00/gallon just about everywhere in Denver, and more than likely in most areas across the chasing Plains. I have started a discussion in Stormtrack in regards to how this will affect chasing for everyone. Me, personally, I find myself to be rather lucky in terms that I drive a vehicle that gets between 25/30mpg on an 11 gallon tank, which would mean I could fill up for close to $25 each time from empty. While the effect means an extra $5.00/tank, it doesn't significantly affect my ability to chase as much, but it may lead to a couple chases I miss cause the gamble just wouldn't be worth while. While I'll be more solid on this answer as these events arise, right now, I'd be reluctant to make a 36 hour chase into Central Oklahoma for a SLIGHT risk. Whether I'd bail on it cause of gas prices, I cannot say, but I figure the trip would run me another $20/$25. Last year, I drove 15,393 miles in chasing; assuming it to be all in my car where I got 300 miles to the tank (27.25mpg), this is what I ran in costs assuming it cost me $22 to fill up ($2.00/gallon)...
52 fill ups = $1144

If I chased the exact same this year at $2.25, annual total would increase $156 to $1300 assuming $25/tank. In all honesty, that $100/$200 would get lost in everything else, and I probably wouldn't notice it enough to seriously affect my chasing habits. If gas climbed to $3.00/gallon, then I'd speak differently, but if I can hold gas under $2.25/gallon, I think I'll be okay.

Amos mentioned in reply to the thread about renting a car and chasing it. I think this would have very good upsides. First of all, its someone else's car you're punishing; which means less upkeep for your vehicle. Also, finding a car more economically gassy (try that one for size) would also save you some cash. In checking Orbitz.com for a pick-up in OKC for my May-a-Thon stint (May 10-May 30), I've found you can get a Compact car for less than $400 for that period of time. This doesn't include damage protection, which I think would be a MUST, so figure adding to that. And of course, mileage.. while Orbitz offers unlimited mileage, state restrictions may apply on that, so God only knows. In any case, it may have its benefits, but by the time you add in all the small-print, fees, and damage stuff, you may be closing in on similar costs all-in-all. I, personally, wouldn't benefit from this cause the underage fee would add a couple hundred dollars to my fees and I don't turn 25 til November... maybe 2006 as gas prices approach $4.00/gallon. By then, maybe I'll be in a new car that can drive 40 or 50mpg!

In other news, my Jotto is installed. Thanks to the Chatfield Meineke in Littleton for letting me use their drill as I didn't have mine! That Meineke is also responsible for saving my transmission, so as a plug to them and their incredible work, if you live in the Denver area, its worth making the trip to their shop to get your vehicle serviced! They're fare, honest, and good! My 114,000 mile car is running like a new car cause of their work! Stop in and tell them Tony the Storm Chaser sent you! In any case, the desk is up! I had to mount the plate in the middle of the floor in front of the passenger seat as opposed to the side like I hoped cause of the incline on the floor which made it hard for the self-taping screws to get to the floor board. Either way, I think sticking a passenger in the seat with the desk would've been difficult anyway; now it's probably impossible! I haven't had a chance to test it with my laptop, but before the weekend ends, I should have that out of the way.

Not much else to speak of in terms of chasing. May do some shopping over the break for video tapes and film, just making sure I'm stocked up. Everything else is pretty much ready to roll! Still not sure if I'll chase over break or not... may use this time to work my ass off and make as much tip money as I can! We'll see what's tempting me in the next few days!
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Thursday, March 17, 2005

 

Chase potential? Perhaps this weekend, but the work I've committed myself to will prevent me from making a trip to Texas on Sunday. Some chatter about the possibility of a Sunday chase has began to leak a bit, and if it weren't for the 10a to 7p shift I was working that day, I'd seriously consider it. But as pointed out by Amos, myself, and anyone who drives, gas prices are rather outragous at the moment, so unless a MOD RISK pulled up on SPC's Day 2, I'm not sure I'd want to gamble away the $100 in tips I'd probably make in that 9 hours. That may go to a (hopefuly) chase over Spring Break where I can put my weekend tips to use and not lose any work time. Amos also pointed out something (perhaps) at 180hrs, which lies late next week... if that looks decent, I may make arrangements. I really need something to kick off between Monday and Wednesday, though, if I want to chase freely over Spring Break.

In other news, I've added a cool applet counter to my main page and this blog page (on the left side). This is an applet which actually configures really easily.. AND allows use for a timezone setting, which doesn't rely soley on the computer you're using. A nice addition, I though. It's counting down to 3:00pm on Monday, May 9. That's the time when my only final ends on that day. As soon as I finish with that, my May-a-Thon chase vacation can begin! Hopefully I'll be fortunate enough to have a couple chases by then, but that's when things really kick off!

I also remounted my scanner in the car. I used a RAM mount and installed it in the cup holder on the rear of the center console. The radio is mounted a bit behind me between the front seats, but is accessible and out of the way at the same time. I still haven't been able to install the Jotto Desk as I haven't had the time to do it (the scanner took 30 seconds). I'm hopefully gonna get the base plate screwed in later this afternoon between jobs. If that's the case, I'm gonna mount the laptop in place on Sunday during my day driving shift so I can test out how everything feels in case I decide I need some other adjustments. That'll also give me a chance to test out the GPS with DeLorme while driving to see how all that works for me.

Basically, the final details are coming together. I should also mention that I will hear about my grant situation within the next day or so. While it doesn't directly affect my chase season, it will give me some leeway in August when that money arrives to catch up on things. I'm figuring on having at least $1000 extra after all school expenses are taken care of for whatever, so if I need to replace/repair something, I'll be able to do so.

Watching the upcoming week for chasing scenarios. We're getting into the area where the seasons are making their transition and chasing weather can turn up very quickly. Assuming I can get the base plate drilled today, I'll be ready to pack up and go on a moment's notice barring work. It's coming!
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Monday, March 14, 2005

 

The Jotto Desk arrived this afternoon, but more snow prevented me from going out and installing it. I did, however, place it in to check out the fit and it looks like it'll work perfectly for me. Not sure about a passenger just yet, as I don't think the desk is high enough, but I'll check that out later. I did have to buy a couple longer springs as the ones that came with the desk were too small even with the cables fully extended to extend over my 15.4" laptop. Thank God for Ace Hardware!

Nothing new to report in terms of chasing itself. Still hoping that Spring Break may yield some possibility, but am waiting to see how things pan out. My excitement continues to build toward the start of the 2005 season. I can hardly wait any longer!
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Sunday, March 13, 2005

 

Good afternoon from snowy Denver! Our Spring-like conditions which have spoiled us now for quite a while gave way to some winter in a hurry yesterday. Here's proof! At 11:36am yesterday, DIA hit the high at 64 degrees. Almost exactly 10 hours later at 9:30ish yesterday evening, snow began to fall! The low for yesterday was set at 11:59pm at 28 degrees! Yes, we went from sunny Spring to winter in 10 hours yesterday! I awoke not long ago to this site.


Yes, that's my car buried under 4 inches of snow! If you look closely enough at the front tires, you'll notice they're new! Yesterday afternoon prior to the blast of winter, I finished the absolute LAST of my vehicle repairs for the season! The right front tie-rod was replaced and I got 2 brand new tires! Aside from small things like the oil change and possible tune-up, the "Storm Tracer" is ready to roll!

My Jotto Desk didn't arrive yesterday like I had hoped, but its here in town. No doubt it'll arrive Monday while I'm at school, as its sitting in the Commerce City shipping building according to my tracking information. Why it didn't come yesterday as it arrive there Friday, I cannot say, but none-the-less, it's here! My trackball and cell phone headset did arrive, though, so my checklist continues to be cleared. The trackball is a suggested item by many who run laptops on the road because it typically is a pain in the ass to use a touchpad while driving. The headset is for obvious reasons. It's a Jabra ProBoom which sells at Radio Shack for $50; I paid $25 w/ shipping on Amazon after losing an auction on eBay.

Spring Break starts next week. I managed to score tons of extra drive time (pizza delivering) over the weekend as the usual Friday closer/Sunday opener is heading out of town. I immediately jumped in and asked for those hours. That'll double my usual weekend load in terms of hours and hopefully close to double my usual cash intake. I would like to make enough to cover the $292 I spent to get the car fixed yesterday, which will probably be pretty easy considering I normally make 2/3 of that anyway in the 15 hours I normally work. Basically, the money saving time has begun! I've begun to make adjustments to various services I have, including the decrease in TV cable and internet at the house. This is basically cause I'll be gone often enough where those services aren't needed for a couple months. This also frees up some cash that'll go towards the upgrading in cell phone service as I'll be changing over to higher minute plans for several months.

That's the update as of now from Winter Wonderland! Still nothing promising in the short term and pretty much the same looking out 10 days. It's beginning to look a lot (like Christmas) like I'll get off to my usual start sometime in April. In the meantime, I have 58 days til my expected start to my 2005 chase "vacation". Hopefully it won't be that long to see any action!
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Friday, March 11, 2005

 

I think the chasing community is starting to worry about the start of the season... or lack thereof. I, on the other hand, am starting to retrograde back to my usual patiently waiting for April. Last year's March 27 kicked things off early and had the season starting for me several weeks earlier than I'm use to. I guess that's why I am sitting so calm at the moment. May is still 45 plus days away, and I have to remember, aside from last March, I haven't chased anything worth a poop prior to May 1 anyway!

This lack of weather will give me more time to stock up some cash. It'll also give me a chance to give the car one last good shakedown before things get kicked off. This way, I can make sure everything in the vehicle is in good shape, ready for another 15,000 miles of chasing. I'm trying to get in some extra pizza driving shifts over Spring Break. If I can do that, I'll take the $300 or so and throw it into my car, getting it tuned up, fluids changed, etc. I've also elected to back out of the Des Moines conference this year. With the full plate of chasing I'm hoping to feast on, that $200/$300 I would normally shell out for hotel, gas, and conference registration can be saved for better times. I've got two conferences knocked out this year and I think I'm set to go.

My Jotto Desk was in Salina, Kansas as of 2:10am this morning. I'm guessing that means I'll see it tomorrow! I probably won't install it right away unless weather presses the issue. Since I have an entire week off during Spring Break, I'm sure there will be a day where I can do my own car work. I figure one of those days, I'll take it into the shop to do all the above... another day, I'll start getting everything mounted and ready to roll.

I'm still playing phone tag with Mike Nelson over at Channel 7. Seems the interest in bringing me on board as one of their spotters is there. Just waiting to talk to him and see what's going on. I'm hopeful about this! But we'll see!

That wraps things up for me as of now. Colder weather and some snow is forecasted starting Saturday night and going through early next week. My hopes for something major have dimmed dramatically since I brought it up, and to make matters worse, winter will return for a few days before the start of Spring. I guess we had to be reminded that it does get cold. Definately kills any real hopes of sneaking a chase in! Ah well... like I said.. I'm being patient! :o)
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Wednesday, March 09, 2005

 

Quick news...

My Jotto Desk has been shipped, so hopefully it'll arrive before the weekend ends!

Dr. Greg Forbes was able to find a copy of my Conway Springs segment aired on TWC on May 30th of last year. He said he'd get it out to me soon!

Meteorologist Mike Nelson from Denver's Channel 7 News dropped me a message this afternoon regarding some spotter stuff (more on that later).

And long range models are hinting at a possibility of a significant snow storm here in Colorado? While 10 days out is very hard to put much confidence in, it's at least something to watch as we've been so dry here since January. Aside from yesterday's freak 30 minute snowstorm, I can't tell you when it snowed down here last. Again, while my confidence in this is well below 5%, its at least something to eyeball next week. March is our snowiest month, and it's definately one of our wildest, so I won't put anything passed Mother Nature. But again, I'm only wishcasting. This could mean severe weather for the Plains, and since it falls right at the start of Spring Break... well, you see where that may go!
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Tuesday, March 08, 2005

 

Wait 5 minutes and it'll change. That's what Coloradans will tell you about the weather, and today, that phrase held true. At 10:00am this morning, I went outside and shot 3 minutes of video that included wind driven snow and people buried in their hoods only 36 hours after I shot people enjoying 60 degree weather on Sunday! Yesterday, while a bit cooler, was still quite sunny and mild (50s temps). Within two hours of the passing of the front, the snow ended and skies quickly cleared up. It's now sunny and if you had slept through the morning, you would've never guessed what you missed earlier in the day!
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Monday, March 07, 2005

 

I've updated the side navbar with links to various other storm chasing blogs as it may be cool to follow other chasers, especially if we're on the same event or even chasing together! May be cool to see how things unfold through various chasers.

Nothing really major to report in the chasing world. As mentioned earlier, all my major equipment has been purchased so I am now free to start tucking cash away for the season. When my Jotto arrives, I'll have all my equipment and be ready to install everything. I'm hoping to be up and running by my Spring Break just in case the weather warrents. Right now, I'm not seeing anything to peak my curiosity just yet. Maybe later, though!
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Sunday, March 06, 2005

 

Shot my first video of the year for The Weather Channel this afternoon! Warm temps in March made the news and was aired this evening on The Weather Channel!



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As I am sitting around waiting for my 2004 Highlights to upload to my server so I can burn them to DVD, I thought I'd post a reply to Amos Magliocco's blog entry on chasing caravans...

Personally, I enjoy them! I'm usually one of the first to seek out a group of chasers to enjoy the day with. While I enjoy the independence of chasing alone in my vehicle, I really enjoy the chance to share the day with others.

Amos brings about a point of some chasers bringing luck and others curse. He reflected on our shared luck on the evening of May 12 where we barreled south along K-2 out of the way of a nasty tornado that fortunately slammed on its e-brake prior to hitting the highway. Had it maintained its speed, I think its likely we would've been singing a different tune. While I'm not sure how luck with others plays in chasing, as I've only really chased in organized caravans for the one season (2004). In that season, my "luck" was probably 50/50; May 12 was a HUGE score with a group, May 20 scored well with another group, May 24 scored for everyone else except ours in the group, and May 29, I was pretty much alone for my 15 tornadoes that day.

While I can't say there are cursed people out there, I do have theories. My girlfriend, Dania, accompanied me on several chases this passed year, and she claims she's my curse. She may be right; 3 times with me, no tornadoes, and two of those times, we missed tornadoes. I cannot say how she effects my luck as I had other discouraging busts without her company.

I think for me, caravaning is a great way to enjoy the chase. Even as there may have been little going on, it added to the thrill that really is storm chasing. I've come to an understanding with myself that chasing is more than just catching tornadoes; it's spending time doing something you love with people who enjoy it as much, regardless of their own reasons for being out there. I had a great time chasing in the company of Blake, Amos, Jeff, Doug, the crew for WXVine, and Todd. While some days were better than others weather-wise, I cannot say that any of those days I'd take back.

Caravaning also has other benefits. The pulling of resources and combining of talents and skill greatly aid in helping make a chase successful. In 2004, I finally felt as if I made the jump from tag-along (tailgater) to someone people enjoyed having around. While most of my contributions came in the form of cheap humor and the occasional "we should do this instead", I didn't feel as if I was a lost puppy latching on to someone to lead me around Tornado Alley. I think most newbies in the field have this uneasy feeling when they see an antenna covered car and ponder whether or not they should drop in tow and follow them. I tried my damndest to avoid doing that in my first couple seasons so I could at least add to something later on. Last season, even as I didn't have quality input on most things, I still felt pretty welcomed in the caravans I was part of. It'll definately make chasing 2005 much easier as I no longer am worried about whether or not to join up with friends if I see them on the road.

The tag-along issue is a biggie though. I personally don't like it when people do it with me cause I feel obligated to do things with them in mind. Truth is, I'm not an expert in the field and have made very dumb choices which have lead me to miss out on some great things (June 10, 2004). While I know they tell newbies to chase with experienced chasers first, I insist that they do it in the same vehicle. I was a bit more eager in my early years and chased solo in my own car, but as 2002 and 2003 showed, my lack of experience led me to little in the way of gold. I learned the basics on my own and was rewarded with my gold the following season. Now, coinsidence could play a role in saying if you chased enough days in 2004, you were bound to see at least ONE tornado. But it was a mixed bag of good and bad in caravans and without. My point with that ramble; don't follow in tow with someone if you really have no idea what you're doing. You really should be in the immediate company of someone who knows the ropes, cause as Amos pointed out, there is sometimes more danger in trying to stay with a caravan than there is with chasing itself.

In the 2005 season, I anticipate many chases in the company of other vehicles. I would hope its a good mix of people I've chased with previously, as well as new, semi-experiences faces who enjoy the open country as much as I do. Even as I prefer to chase alone in my own car, I enjoy having the outside company and experience around me to further enhance the experience. With a busy season like 2004 was, I cannot say how greatful I was to have shared it with others. Even as our group was split many times over many chases, everyone was able to witness different things going on in the same storm. That's something that cannot be done if you're the only car on the road.
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Friday, March 04, 2005

 

My Annual Email to Friends and Family...

Hey gang!

Finally, an email that doesn't have death, theft, or hospital visits!
I wanted to give a shout out to everyone and quickly update you on
some things I'm doing with my website for this upcoming chase season!
As a few of you may know, the countdown has pulled itself within a few
weeks of the official kick off, however, March has proven to be an
unpredictable month in terms of chasing weather, so its possible I'll
be heading out at any time!

First of all, I wanted to invite all of you to the newest and biggest
change since last year! In January, I introduced my Storm Chasing
Blog, an online journal of sorts which will allow me to update my
website like a journal. Contained within this blog will be a lot of
behind-the-scenes stuff that I do before, during, and after a chase.
I try to update it at least once every other day and imagine as the
season gets into full swing, that may rise to as much as several times
a day! This will be a wonderful addition for anyone who likes to keep
tabs on me during the season! Right now, its in preseason mode as I
am discussing all my preparations for what I'm hoping will be a very
good season. Bookmark the link below and check back very very often.
More times than not, the blog will have pictures up before I get an
official log up, so you'll definately be tracking me pretty well with
this!

http://www.tornadoeskick.com/blog.html

I've also done some minor updates with some of the not-so-big areas of
the site. My recent purchase of a digital camera has allowed me to
get rolling on various smaller areas of the site. Also worth noting
is that in the coming weeks, there may be some changes to the main
sections of the site; nothing crazy, but noticable.

Anywoo, I just wanted to touch base with everyone and invite you all
to "join me" for this chase season! While I'm sure it will be nothing
like 2004, it should definately be a good one! Stay tuned!

Ciao,
Tony

--
Tony 'WX NERD' Laubach, KCØONL
http://www.tornadoeskick.com
WXNerd@gmail.com

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All my major equipment is now bought. Yesterday, as earlier mentioned, I ordered my Jotto Desk and last night after getting done with work, I picked up my copy of DeLorme Street Atlas 2005 w/ Earthmate GPS. I am installing that on my laptop right now! All my major equipment is paid for and I can now focus on stashing money away for the upcoming season! Are we excited yet? I know I sure am! I dreampt about chasing last night! It's coming soon! Damn this ridge! Get it out of here!
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Thursday, March 03, 2005

 

The Jotto Desk has been ordered! I picked it up at GoMobile.com for about $190 w/ shipping, so I should see it probably sometime next week! Preferrably on Thursday or Saturday so I have the time to install it right away! If not, then I'll leave it for my mechanic who said he'd do it when I brought my car in for its fluid changes (for free).


So with that done, I am left with one last thing to buy.. the GPS software... I'll likely wait a couple weeks just to be safe (financially), but I should be okay! With that complete, I'll be equipped and ready to go for the 2005 storm chase season! Woo hoo!
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Wednesday, March 02, 2005

 

Hola! Running a test on the blog email service to check and see how
this works! As you can see (hopefully), this will allow me to send
blog posts directly to my site via my email, which when time is short,
I can avoid logging in to many places at once.

Website updates continue; mainly smaller things. I changed out the
format of my hotels section so it wasn't so long across a screen. I
also eliminated the massive amounts of blinking that was somehow coded
into my logs section, so hopefully that'll eliminate that issue once
and for all. Thanks to the IRC Stormtrack chatters for bringing that
to my attention, as my IE doesn't see the blink code.

Got the last of my eBay goodies yesterday. It was the extended
battery for my other video camera. I apparently thought I ordered the
3.9x (6 hour battery), but instead got the 5.9x extended. Funny thing
is I paid the same for the 5.9x as I did the 3.9x. The 5.9x gets over
10 hours with the screen extended and close to 14 hours with it
closed. I'm thinking about shelling out another $40 for a second one
for my other camera, but I'll wait it out and see how I use them.
Between the two, I can go nearly a day without charging, so I'm not
thinking I'll have issues. Just as long as I charge them prior to my
chase day, I should be fine. Never-the-less, a second 10 hour battery
would be a nice addition! ;o) Afterall, I just sold off my TWC Polo I
won at the chasers conference for $15. May be something I'll do
anyway!

Anywoo, that's it for now! More than anything, wanted to test out
this new blog feature. Hopefully it works! If not, this will be
posted as a copy once I make that discovery. In any case, you'll be
reading this! *LOL*

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Tuesday, March 01, 2005

 

I am currently updating many of the smaller sections of my website, including many in the storm chasing section! My new digital camera has allowed me to quickly get pictures of various things so I can begin to update those smaller sections of my site. Check those out in the Storm Chasing section! Still have a few odds and ends to work out, but things will be going up over the next week or so. Major updates and additions will be added to the 'Recent News' section on my main page.

This season's biggest additions will be the addition of reviews for various hotels and resturants I encounter while chasing or doing other weather-related stuff. Both of those sections will be included with life on the road. This has two purposes; first, it allows me to remember what hotels I've stayed at, how much I paid, and what ammenities they had. It'll give me a list of hotels to stay at or avoid based upon whatever I happen to be looking for. It also allows other chasers to see what's out there and get a good idea of what hotels to search for and where I've found them. Hopefully they can use this information as much as I intend to. Also in the works in the uploading of the Nowcasting section. This page will basically be an online page full of quick links to various conditions that are happening now. As I decide what I'm looking at more and more, I'll add those links to that section. Aside from the main navigational bars, no graphics will be on the nowcasting page. I'm also thinking about linking the nowcasting page to another page on someone else's site if I fall short of time to accomplish this on my own. That's still in mid-term planning.

Just wanted to post the update and what's going on with the website. Stay tuned for more goodies!
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The first day of March is upon us, which for some is the unofficial start to the chase season. Not for me, and in looking at the country, I would say the same for evreyone else unless you like to chase snowstorms! With this unofficial start passing, it means for me that my start is now a month away. With that, I wanted to remind myself of my extended chasing time and other important dates...

March 20 - March 27: Spring Break
May 9 - May 11: Finals Week
May 11 - May 30: Official Chase Vacation

The summer semester starts May 31, and if I can get both my classes online, I will not have any classes to hamper late Spring and Summer chasing times. If that happens, what I am going to do is try and squeeze all my working hours over 3 days (Thurs, Fri, Sat). I may also pick up Wednesday evenings pending how everything works out. What I'd like to do is schedule myself to work in the lab from open to about 4 Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. From 5 til whenever on those same evenings, drive pizzas. If I can work that out, I'd end up working 24 hours on campus and about 15 hours driving pizzas. That would give me enough paycheck money to cover living expenses plus my tips from driving pizzas. Those tips could then be spent on chasing over the following days. And an added bonus, when worknig in the labs, I obviously have computer time to easily do my online classes, so two birds with one stone there. If that schedule works out, I will be free to chase Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Plenty of time to drive a marathon if needed, especially if South Dakota calls over June.

Long range forecasts keep things quiet for the next couple of weeks. A double-edged sword as that obviously means no chasing, but at the same time, ensures me some time to complete major chase-related preparations. Spring Break, while not entirely out of the question, is a complete week in which I would have to roam if the weather warrented. And trust me, there is no where else I'd rather be during Spring Break than on the Texas Caprock! Everyone else should be in Padre Island with MTV! ;o)
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