The Storm Prediction Center has issued a high risk for today for the heart of Oklahoma. Southern Kansas is also in the target area. Wind profiles today are insane, and those and other parameters suggest a tornado outbreak is possible. So I am feeling a mix of dread and excitement … dread for those who live here, and excitement (and anxiety) about the chase. The storms are likely to be moving at scary speeds, so it will be a challenge.

In favor of getting a few hours of sleep, I didn’t post pix from yesterday – May 23 – which was a wonderful chase day. I saw a slim tornado, hail, flooding, a gorgeous structured storm, and lightning.

I hope everyone has their weather radios on today. Heed warnings.

End of day update: Ugh! The storm we targeted in northwest Oklahoma produced a beautiful, huge tornado over a lake – shortly before or about the time we got to it. Unfortunately, terrible visibility and bad timing meant we didn’t see it. Two of our party went into the precip core to see a subsequent rope tornado, but I didn’t, and the rain obscured it. And then I was caught behind the line of storms as they screamed east at highway speeds, dropping massive and destructive tornadoes in some cases, often wrapped in rain and invisible. Some chasers “saw” but didn’t see these wedges; at least one friend nearly was killed by one. In a way, I’m glad I didn’t get aggressive and try to punch that line, but I’m disappointed I didn’t see more of this historic outbreak, and I am saddened at all of the destruction and loss of life. This has been a terrible year for tornado deaths.

I’m almost caught up on storm-chasing photos (after staying up half the night again). I saw severe storms Sunday, but not much to write home about, though I will post a few photos eventually. I was saddened to hear of the devastation in Joplin, Missouri. Some of my chaser friends were on the scene and helped victims of the tornado.

In the meantime, I have posted photos of the beautiful Kansas storms of May 20 and photos of the southeast Oklahoma tornadoes of May 21.

[Note: the old galleries at SkyDiary.com are gone, but here are a few photos from those pages.]

 

May 20, 2011: I had a glorious chase in southern Kansas today, as minor storms firing off the dryline offered lovely photo opportunities as they gained strength. I started with a big group of friends, but the company soon narrowed to Jason Persoff and Robert Balogh as we split in different directions around the storms. We kept going after the southern storms forming on the line, all in the vicinity of Pratt, Kansas.

 

May 21, 2011: I targeted Ardmore in southern Oklahoma today as a starting point, due to a potentially favorable spin in the atmosphere and huge instability, among other things. When I got there after driving from Wichita, I couldn’t help driving just a bit farther to Marietta, just north of the Texas border. (Also, I left the Ardmore truck stop because a skunk was wandering around, and I’d almost stepped on it when I attempted to get out of my car.) I was anxious over an already-reported tornado on the ground in Texas, but like everything in Texas, it was really far away. I chose to remain in my target area, watching cloud towers push up and break apart – until one started to look as if it meant it. It had crisp, billowing convection and began to cut a gorgeous shape in the sky. When I got up close enough to see the base, rotation was evident. At first, it had a multi-vortex appearance and produced a couple of needle funnels in this mode. Later, it put down short-lived tornadoes. And much later, as this storm died, another to its north produced a tornado just outside Ada, Oklahoma. I got to it just in time.

 

Chasing in southeast Oklahoma is a special kind of challenge. I was reminded of this fact as I spent a few minutes twisting through the hollers, my view completely obstructed by trees, as a tornado-warned storm that had already produced funnels was moving somewhere over my left shoulder. Nonetheless, that was my target today, due to a potentially favorable spin in the atmosphere and huge instability, among other things. Ardmore, specifically, I viewed as a starter point, but when I got there after driving from Wichita, I couldn’t help driving just a bit farther to Marietta, just north of the Texas border. (Also, I left the Ardmore truck stop because a skunk was wandering around, and I’d almost stepped on it when I attempted to get out of my car.) I was anxious over an already-reported tornado on the ground in Texas, but like everything in Texas, it was really far away. I chose to remain in my target area, watching cloud towers push up and break apart – until one started to look as if it meant it. It had crisp, billowing convection and began to cut a gorgeous shape in the sky. When I got up close enough to see the base, rotation was evident. At first, it had a multi-vortex appearance and produced a couple of needle funnels in this mode. Later, it put down short-lived tornadoes. And much later, as this storm died, another to its north produced a tornado just outside Ada, Oklahoma. I got to it just in time, and this photo shows the structure of the storm with the tornado on the ground under it. I’ll be posting more photos later, but once again, I am extremely sleep-deprived and anticipate more driving and chasing tomorrow and Monday. I hope I can find a few minutes (really, a few hours) to post photos soon.

It’s about 4 a.m. CDT, and I’m making this post fast, so I can get to sleep. I had a glorious chase in southwest Kansas today (May 20 is still today for me, at the moment), as minor storms firing off the dryline offered lovely photo opportunities as they gained strength. I started with a big group of friends, but the company soon narrowed to Jason Persoff and Robert Balogh as we split in different directions around the storms. We kept going after the southern storms forming on the line, all in the vicinity of Pratt, Kansas. Here is just one shot; I have a lot more to post, but time ran out tonight after trouble on the road.

Just 10 miles west of Wichita late at night on the way into town and to our hotel rooms, Jason hit a deer. Or maybe we should say the deer hit Jason. Either way, Jason was OK, but the deer and the rental car were both in bad shape. Many phone calls, the kind attention of a wonderful police officer, and a tow truck later, and all Jason’s stuff was in Robert’s and my vehicles, and we were able to get under way again. We got in about 2 a.m., and it’s taken me forever to get all the photos off my cards. I just don’t have time to process them all tonight before lapsing into unconsciousness, so … more later!

The prospects seemed good today for tornadic supercells, the kind I’ve been waiting for, especially in south-central Kansas. Sometimes, you take a chance on an area where you hope for long-lived, photogenic storms rather than going after the other stuff. Today, it was all “other stuff,” as storms fired off the dryline and zoomed north, prompting a few unimpressive tornado reports. (To clarify: Yes, there were tornadoes, just not what I hoped for.) But meeting other storm chasers was fun.

You can’t always get what you want. Today, I don’t think I got what I needed, either – I’m still looking for Mr. Goodstorm, the supercell that will make this trip photographically worthwhile, before I go broke.

 

 

There was a chance of an isolated severe storm in western Oklahoma today, May 18, and I was sure I could get to it. I targeted Watonga, and adjusted the target a little north and west, only to get a doomed turkey tower – a cloud that tried and died. For the whole area, it was a bust for many chasers.

Along the way, I continued Dilapidated Shack Tour 2011, and I shot a few images of a horseshoe funnel, which was pretty neat. But day after day of massive drives for little in the way of storms is starting to wear thin. Prospects should get better over the next couple of days. I know, I’ve thought that before.

Though I knew the best chance for storms was in northeast Colorado on what was a marginal day on Tuesday, I decided not to go for them, because I wanted to be in good position to chase the next day farther south.

So I split the difference, driving from Amarillo to southeast Colorado – then Kansas and Oklahoma – seeing lots of blowing dust and road construction, along with picturesque ruins and a nice sunset. That’s four states in one day, and I didn’t get near the tornadic storms in northeast Colorado.

To top things off – well, you know when people spray perfume and then run into the cloud so they get a light spritz of scent? I think I got a similar treatment from a freshly road-killed skunk. It was dead when I drove by it, but the smell was overpowering, and my car is still kinda funky, at least on the outside. I also saw elk and pheasants today, but at least they were alive. And not stinky.

I went to The Big Texan in Amarillo last night. It’s kind of a tradition while chasing storms; chasers actually reward themselves with a steak if they catch a tornado, but I had no such reason. I was hanging out with Cloud 9 Tours, always a fun group.

I had some hopes for popup storms today, maybe storms with a little structure, but I’m wondering if I’ll see anything here in Texas. Chances will be marginally better in northeast Colorado, but I question whether it’s worth it for me to drive all the way there and then back into western Oklahoma (probably) for tomorrow. I will look over the data one more time before making a decision, but I don’t think I will go to the northern extremes, given the time and gas money involved.

Too often when on the road, I end up eating fast food or “convenience” food, like those Tornado things (probably because they are called Tornadoes) or string cheese and a banana from a gas station. So when I get a chance to eat a real meal, I relish the moment. Last night I enjoyed a fantastic Italian meal at Benvenuti’s in Norman, Oklahoma. Except for a bird bombing my outdoor table, it was a delightful experience.

I ordered off the seasonal menu. As much as I love traditional Italian food – after all, I was raised with it – I enjoy a fresh take, and Benvenuti’s offers new specials every few months.

It also offers wine flights, three-glass samplers on a variety of themes. I went for the First Class Cabernet flight ($10), which included The Show from California; Penfolds Thomas Highland from Australia; and Cult from Napa Valley. I especially liked the California wines, and they went well with my starter, the Risotto Arancini ($9), essentially a fried risotto ball stuffed with mozzarella and pesto and served with a tangy plum tomato sauce. For an entree, I got the Moppina ($17), with sheets of pasta, asparagus, peas, fava beans and flavorful fresh herbs in a butter sauce with a dollop of black pepper mascarpone cheese. It was just light enough, and delicious, and I had leftovers, to boot.

I wrapped up with the decadent Chocolate Caramel Pot du Creme ($6), a rich, chocolaty custard with just a touch of sea salt.

There are several more things I’d like to try at Benvenuti’s, which has a hip, friendly atmosphere … maybe the next time I’m in town, if I’ve survived the convenience store food in the meantime.

Sometimes I’m asked if I’d like to chase storms full-time. And I would, except that it’s a seasonal gig. In addition, in between the storm systems, there is usually down time, as there is right now, when high pressure is sitting over Tornado Alley. I’ve always said, when I make my fortune, I’ll build my bunker vacation home in Oklahoma. Then I can hang out at my second home in between the storms. In the meantime, though, I’m languishing in a hotel, watching “Betelgeuse” and again wishing for a teleportation machine for easy cross-country commuting. It may be a few days before I have anything to update – whether it’s storms, or going home.