WX ON FILM

DESPERATE TIMES, DESPERATE MEASURES

2011-04-19T19:25:00.000-07:00

Being that the TX panhandle has been so dry and void of storms this year, it has been a very frustrating chase season, without a doubt. It's past mid April, and until today, I've only been on 3 chases, and one was a huge bust. With a bit of energy coming over the Northern TX Panhandle, and Td's in the upper 30's and lower 40's, a few thunderstorms were forecast for this region. They weren't going to be severe, but at this point, I didn't care! I just wanted to get out of the house and see something! The 4km WRF put a decent cell near Stratford by mid-day, and that's what I was banking on. Stratford, TX, here I come!

I left about 2:30 or so, and made it up to Stratford a little after 4. I saw a few towers to the W/NW, so I parked just north of town and watched for about an hour. A cell west of Stratford got going, and actually became severe when it reached Spearman. It was moving too fast for me to catch, so I resumed watching the storms to my NW. After a few minutes the storms showed somewhat of a base. They were moving SE, so I scooted south of Stratford on hwy 287. As was talking on the phone to John Harris, I noticed a quick forming mid level funnel, and I got a quick shot of it with the iphone. The funnel lasted no more than 30-40 seconds. The base became a bit more defined, and I took a few more pictures and called it a day.

Couldn't expect more on a day with such low expectations. I still love low risk days! They seem to like me a lot! Now to the photos:

PHOTO #1 Storm near Stratford that eventually became T-storm warned near Spearman, TX
PHOTO #2 Mid-level funnel on left side of updraft near Stratford, TX (iphone photo)
PHOTO #3 Updraft near Stratford a few minutes after mid-level funnel
PHOTO #4 Decent structure of T-storm base near Stratford, TX
PHOTO #5 Base beginning to dissipate, but still pretty decent structure near Stratford, TX

3/24/11 CHASE NEAR LAMESA, TX

2011-04-05T14:42:00.000-07:00

I had been eyeing this day for a couple of days and decided to pull the trigger to chase. It wasn't going to be a huge day, but it had potential. I left home about 12pm and targeted Lamesa, TX. I got a text and found out that my buddy David Drummond was just south of Lamesa at a rest stop. I finished lunch (Subway) and headed that direction. We met and shot the bull for about 30 minutes and saw towers going up near Midland. We decided to head that way, but after about 10 minutes on the road, the cells died out quickly. We decided to head back to the rest stop and continue to wait it out. After about 30 minutes or so, towers started forming to our south and southeast. We waited a few minutes and decided to go after them. We went east on 180 and made it into Snyder. We decided to get gas since towns are fairly sparse in the area. We looked at radar and the storm was severe warned. It didn't look too bad visually, but it had a fairly high base. We then decided to go north towards Rotan. We sat about 10 miles West of Rotan and watched the storm for quite a while. We saw plenty of CG's, and actually saw a fire started from the lightning. The storm looked ok but never really got it's act together. As light faded we decided to go into Rotan to see if the storm had dumped any hail in town. As we were looking at the storm to the SE, a farmer came over and started talking to us. He mentioned food and our faces lit up with enthusiasm. Right across the street from where we had parked was a nice little barbecue joint. We went in and were treated to some great sausage and brisket with some pinto beans and sweet tea. After that, we chatted a bit, and then I made the long trek back to Amarillo. All in all, it was a great chase, and I had fun chatting and chasing with David.

PHOTO #1: David Drummond's chase vehicle in foreground near Rotan, TX
PHOTO #2: An old abandoned storm shelter near Rotan, TX
PHOTO #3: Treated to an amazing sunset near Rotan, TX

3/19/11 CHASE NEAR PLAINVIEW, TX

2011-04-05T14:29:00.000-07:00

Started off the day at the NWS convention at the Amarillo Civic Center. Had lots of fun with the guys from the station and my chaser buds. It looked to be a possible chase day with Td in the 50's and a warm front hanging around the area. I stayed at the Civic Center until about 2:30 or so and then went home to take a short nap. That was my mistake. I got back up and saw convection SE of Plainview and scrambled to get to that area. A tornado warning was issued for the cell that was SE of Plainview, but I was just too late in getting there. I made it south of Plainview and saw the storm that initially had the tornado warning on it. It still had a pretty well defined wall cloud with it, but the light was fading fast. I then went back to Plainview and found a nice spot to watch the rest of the convection move to the north. All in all, it was great to get out for the first time in 2011 and see some convection and CG's which really helped with the SDS that I had acquired over the long winter months!

PHOTO #1 and #2: Convection near Plainview, TX

SOME SNOW

2011-02-06T09:17:00.000-08:00

We finally got a few inches here in Amarillo. Actually, about 2-3 to be exact. This will definitely help with the wildfire concerns this year, but we need more. Went out and did a little snow driving in the Xterra for the first time this winter season.

YES, I'M ALIVE AND WELL!

2010-12-20T20:32:00.000-08:00

First of all, yes I'm alive and kicking!
Second of all, Jay McCoy said I need to update the blog, so this one's for you Jay!

It's been a dull winter around here! Two little snow events not really worth talking about, and that's about it. I'm not the type that posts about everything that goes on in my life, and even then, it would be pretty dull! Anyway, I've just been doing a little vehicle maintenance lately to get ready for 2011. Also, I got a filmtools window mount for my vid camera, so now I'll have more video in the coming season. I guess Facebook has taken over the majority of my posts, but I promise that I will have wx images on here as well as Facebook. I'm in no way giving up this site for Facebook...that's a promise.

Anyway, now that you know I'm alive, you can sleep better tonight! LOL

SORRY FOR THE LACK OF POSTS LATELY

2010-06-04T22:02:00.000-07:00

Whew!!! I have been busy chasing lately among other things. I finally got this blog updated. For those that follow me, I apologize for not being more consistent in my posts. For those of you that chase and maintain a blog, you know how hard it can be to stay current.

Now, enjoy my recent chases and photos from the past couple of weeks!

5-31-10 MEMORIAL DAY MIRACLE CHASE IN COLORADO!!!

2010-06-04T21:34:00.000-07:00

All I can say is WOW!!! ABSOLUTELY THE BEST CHASE OF MY 12 YEAR CAREER!

Another slight risk and t-storm watch did it for me again! Boy, I'm still all giddy inside! Met up with friend Dan Skoff in Guymon, OK and he left his vehicle and jumped in with me. We actually targeted Campo, CO (believe it or not). Got west of Campo and saw a brief funnel (later found out it was a tornado). The storm looked ok, but never really looked like it was going to put down a significant tornado. We found out differently after we got south of Campo a few miles. We were actually looking at rotation SE of Campo. We pulled over and I happened to look to my NW and saw the long funnel touch down about a half mile or so to our W/NW. It was coming straight at us, so we had to blast south a little ways to get out of the path. At times, we got hit with RFD winds of at least 75-80 mph and maybe higher. We followed the storm to Guymon and saw at least 3 more tornadoes as we followed it back. In 12 years of chasing, it's the best chase of my life. Being a chief met in Fayetteville, AR, Dan hasn't seen a good daytime tornado in 10 years. That came to an abrupt ending today! Everything went absolutely perfect for us today. I took all stills of the event, and Dan took the video. This is the best tornado I've ever seen! Oh, and it's the first tornado I've ever seen in Colorado.

Tornadoes like this make all the negative factors of storm chasing worth every minute.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that is was absolutely great to finally meet Lou Ruh and Dr. Jason Persoff. 2 very genuinely nice guys that make a storm chase even better! Like I've said before...tornadoes are great, but meeting awesome people on a chase is something I'll always cherish.

PHOTO #1 DAN SKOFF GETTING VIDEO OF THE STORM WEST OF CAMPO, CO
PHOTO #2 ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE FROM DAN SKOFF
PHOTO #3 DAN SKOFF POSING WITH A NICE LOWERING WEST OF CAMPO, CO
PHOTO #4 THE FIRST THING IS SAW WHEN I LOOKED TO THE NW. I BARELY GOT IT OUT, BUT I SAID...DAN A TORNADO. I REALLY COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.
PHOTO #5 IT GOT BIG VERY QUICKLY. TAKEN ABOUT 3 or 4 MINUTES AFTER THE FIRST TORNADO SHOT.
PHOTO #6 PROBABLY THE BEST WEATHER PHOTO I'VE EVER TAKEN. I CAN'T THINK OF ONE THAT TOPS THIS ONE. JUST A CLASSIC TORNADO PHOTO IF YOU ASK ME.
PHOTO #7 TORNADO AS IT'S PICKING UP A LOT OF DIRT AND CROSSING THE HIGHWAY
PHOTO #8 A RARE PHOTO OF A TORNADO AND RAINBOW IN THE SAME FRAME

5-25-10 REPORT

2010-06-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

Started off the chase near Hereford, TX and made it north to Channing where a storm showed promise. Some other storms from the south merged with the isolated storm and basically killed it. Zoomed the radar out and noticed a tornadic storm west of Dimmitt, TX. Blasted south and got a brief tornado, and a couple of hours later the cell morphed into a spectacular LP north of Nazareth. A brief tornado and a beautiful LP at sunset...you just can't beat that.

PHOTO #1 STRIATED UPDRAFT WEST OF CHANNING, TX
PHOTO #2 BRIEF TORNADO WEST OF DIMMITT, TX
PHOTO #3 BEAUTIFUL LP SUPERCELL NORTH OF NAZARETH, TX

5-24-10 REPORT

2010-06-04T20:45:00.001-07:00

I didn't nab any tornadoes today, but I still got some great photo ops. Started off near Pampa, TX with Bri Winkler and Will Coffin, as we worked our way down to Lefors, TX. Got south of town and had a great wall cloud develop and showed signs of rotation, but it never dropped a tornado. Fiddled up near Canadian, TX for a while and made the trek back home. On the way home, I decided to go south out of Pampa to catch a few photos ops of a storm at sunset. I wasn't disappointed at all. No tornadoes, but it was still a great day with some great photos to take home.

PHOTO #1 LARGE WALL CLOUD SOUTH OF LEFORS, TX
PHOTO #2 ANOTHER SHOT OF WALL CLOUD SOUTH OF LEFORS
PHOTO #3 NICE LOWERING SOUTH OF CANADIAN, TX
PHOTO #4 NICE SCULPTED UPDRAFT WITH MAMMATUS ON HWY 70 NE OF GROOM, TX
PHOTO #5 ANOTHER SHOT OF SCULPTED UPDRAFT
PHOTO #6 BEAUTIFUL ANVIL COLORED BY THE SETTING SUN NE OF GROOM, TX

5-21-10 REPORT

2010-06-04T20:32:00.001-07:00

Got on the storm SW of Groom, TX after traveling with Jay McCoy for the first part of the day. Got to photograph some incredible structure. What a day! I absolutely love TX Panhandle LP Supercells!!! Most shots from North of Clarendon, TX looking west. The last one is near Groom, TX. This was the most photogenic LP supercell that I have ever seen. Not only was the structure beautiful, but the fading sun behind the storm gave it special character that has made it one of the top storm photos that I've ever taken (PHOTO #2).

I did meet up with Brady Kendrick, Marcus Diaz and Steve Miller(TX) south of Groom to try to see some large hail. Earlier on, the storm produced hail that was about the size of softballs. When I got there (over an hour later) they were still the size of golf balls. Of course LP's are prolific large hail producers, and this one was no different.

5-19-10 REPORT

2010-06-04T20:12:00.001-07:00

First of all, congrats to those who scored today...I didn't fare so well. Left Amarillo late because I was at the tv station in Amarillo helping with cut-ins (I ran the studio camera) until 4am. I got up late, but met Bri Winkler at the station at 1:30. We took off and just jetted east on I-40 to make up some time. Never got in great position to see any tornadoes, but we did see some nice structure that was worth the price of admission. I'm one that doesn't have to see tornadoes to be satisfied with a chase. If I was, I'd be disappointed quite often. I can say this...at least I got out and tried, and to me it wasn't a bust. Anyway, enough of my boring summary...now to the photos! :-)

EDIT: Almost forgot to mention this. There was a lot of talk about certain individuals driving crazy on this day in Oklahoma. I had a special guest in my home that did a short talk about the antics of this day. I think you'll enjoy it!

CLICK HERE FOR INTERVIEW

PHOTO #1 SUPERCELL LOOKING NORTH FROM CLINTON, OK
PHOTO#2 SAME STORM AS PHOTO #1, BUT ABOUT 20 MINUTES LATER
PHOTO#3 SEMI TURNED OVER FROM A TORNADO NORTH OF KINGFISHER, OK
PHOTO#4 LOOKING SOUTH AT A STORM FROM WATONGA, OK
PHOTO #5 ANOTHER PHOTO LOOKING SOUTH FROM WATONGA, OK

5-18-10 REPORT

2010-06-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

Hung out at the tv station until things got going. It looked pretty good for severe storms so we were ready to go. Saw a storm firing west of Dumas and headed that direction with my current chase partner Bri Winkler. As we got closer to Dumas, we began to see features of the storm to our southwest. We stopped about 10 miles south of Dumas to get a glance, and it had already produced a decent rain free base and small wall cloud. We got to Dumas and headed west of town to get a better view. It looked really good. It had a large wall cloud with a tail cloud to boot. We waited and watched a few minutes and I decided to go south about 3 or 4 miles. We got a good perspective and it looked pretty good. After a while, the updraft began to get filled in with rain, and it took on more of an HP status. We continued to watch it as Warren Faidley pulled up beside us and chatted for a while.

We watched the cell slowly drift toward Dumas as the rotation got wrapped in rain. We could see some rotation on the back side, and we thought we may have seen a wedge develop for a brief time. We decided it was just a very low hanging wall cloud. If it had indeed been a tornado, Dumas would have had their hands full. We went east of Dumas for a while but were caught on the backside of the storm. Besides, the storm was drifting into an area with very poor road options. We broke off the chase at this time and hoped storms might form further south near Amarillo. That never happened, but it was a great chase nonetheless.

PHOTO #1 LARGE WALL CLOUD SOUTHWEST OF DUMAS, TX
PHOTO #2 STORM FEATURES WEST OF DUMAS, TX
PHOTO #3 UPDRAFT OF STORM FILLING IN WITH PRECIP
PHOTO #4 WARREN FAIDLEY'S CHASE VEHICLE. THE PERSON STANDING THERE WAS NOT WARREN. I THINK IT WAS ONE OF HIS TOUR CUSTOMERS.
PHOTO #5 RAGGED ROTATION JUST WEST OF DUMAS, TX

5-12-10 REPORT

2010-05-13T01:34:00.000-07:00

I got a late start to the day and tried to catch the cells coming from the Paducah Quanah TX area heading into Altus, OK. I wasn't able to succeed in that attempt and headed back west to get on the cells in the SE TX Panhandle near Memphis. Got a pretty good wall cloud with some rotation which tried to produce a tornado a couple of times and failed.

Saw Steve Miller TX in his new vehicle and we talked a few minutes. We headed towards Hollis, OK after a tornado warned cell. I headed north of Hollis and had a few attempts at wall clouds, but the storm just never did it for me. It looked really good nonetheless. Piddled around taking a few photos and saw some vortex2 equipment on the side of the road and decided to take some stills of the equipment with the storms in the background. Headed to Sayre and made the trek back home. No tornadoes today, but it was still a great day of chasing! Now to the photos:

PHOTO #1-Storm south of Memphis, TX
PHOTO#2-Anvil associated with the above image
PHOTO#3-Broad rotation north of Childress, TX looking west
PHOTO#4-Storm north of Hollis, OK
PHOTO#5-Photo north of Reed, OK
PHOTO#6-Small wall cloud north of Reed, OK
PHOTO#7-Another shot north of Reed, OK
PHOTO#8-Near Willow, OK
PHOTO#9-VORTEX2 equipment with storm in background southeast of Sayre, OK
PHOTO#10-Same as above
PHOTO#11-Looking towards Cordell, OK
PHOTO#12-Same as above, but different angle
PHOTO #13-Final shot of VORTEX2 equipment with storm

5-11-10 REPORT

2010-05-12T04:47:00.000-07:00

Started off in NW OK near Seiling, but decided to head south to I-40 at Clinton. Saw VORTEX2 in Clinton as I sat at the McDonald's waiting for storms to fire. Storms started going up SW of Cordell. I made my way to Cordell and saw a huge chaser convergence with VORTEX2, the TIV and lots of chasers. I met Ryan McGinnis and Kate Pfeister and we chatted for a while before parting ways.

The storm SW of Cordell died out but a new storm was forming to the NW. I made my way up SE of Seiling and stopped to chat with a friend. As I was chatting, the Weather Channel pulled up behind my vehicle and started doing video segments with Dr. Greg Forbes and Mike Bettes. I took a few still shots and some video and chatted with them for a while. I then made my way closer to the storm that eventually became tornado warned. It was a nice LP south of Woodward that had incredible structure. I saw Warren Faidley and pulled up and chatted while taking in the awesome scene. It was a great day of meeting new people and seeing old friends. I never get tired of that. Storms are cool, but seeing and meeting new friends is awesome!

MAYBE SOME ACTION AROUND MOTHERS DAY

2010-05-03T00:35:00.001-07:00

Well, after the March 22nd tornadofest, it's been relatively quiet around the southern plains. Of course the southeast has been pummeled with severe weather the last few days with mulitple tornado outbreaks in that area.

Now, around western, OK or the eastern TX Panhandle, it looks like it might ramp up starting this coming weekend around Mothers Day. Of course it's a week out, but I'll definitely keep you posted on any upcoming chases that I venture out on. From now until June 5th, there are only 4 days that I can't chase which are May 12-15th so I should get lots of opportunities to score big on some good chase days. Again, I'll keep you up to date on any chases in the next few days.

4-22-10 REPORT

2010-04-23T00:59:00.000-07:00

Bri Winkler and I stayed with Jay McCoy near the Groom-Alanreed area through the first half of the chase. Got a couple of tornadoes along with many funnels to the SW of I-40 and Hwy 70 right after meeting Lanny Dean and Jeff Smith. Was great to finally meet up with those guys, and what a day to do it! Then headed east, and then north of Alanreed and got great structure, but never saw a tornado. Then headed back east and sat just south of Lake Mclellan. Saw another brief tornado and lots of funnels along with 10 million other chasers. I briefly met Dick McGowan there and saw the Dominator. Said a quick hi to Reed and Joel and then we had to take off as the cell was starting to right turn on us with rotation wrapping up in rain just to our west/northwest. We actually had to take shelter at the Alanreed rest stop because I didn't want to chance being caught in a rain wrapped tornado.

All in all a great chase with lots of action. It was great to finally meet some of the guys on here. Lanny and Jeff are truly class acts, and it was great to be surrounded by great storms and new friends. Now to the photos:

PHOTO 1--Funnel looking SW from I-40 and Hwy. 70
PHOTO 2--Tornado from same location as photo 1
PHOTO 3--Nice structure north of Alanreed looking west
PHOTO 4--Meteorologist Bri Winkler next to the Dominator!
PHOTO 5--The "Dominator" Dominating in the TX Panhandle
PHOTO 6--One of the many funnels we saw
PHOTO 7--Lanny Dean and his chase tour company scoring big in the TX Panhandle

4-21-10 REPORT

2010-04-22T00:43:00.000-07:00

Decided to chase the S/SE TX Panhandle today and met up with Jay McCoy in Tulia to look at data for a while. My chase partner today was Bri Winkler, the morning Met at the station I chase for. We looked at data and decided to head toward Plainview since a storm had already gone up to our south. It looked pretty good, but lost strength after a while. We made our way towards the Floydada area where another storm to the NE looked really good visually. We had some really nice structure with a wall cloud, but it soon got wrapped in rain. We then made our way north of Matador where we saw a pretty nice LP structured cell to our west, and a nice supercell to our southeast. It was starting to get dark, so we made our way home. All in all, a nice chase tease to get ready for today. Now to the photos:

FLOODING IN AND AROUND SILVERTON, TX

2010-04-17T10:46:00.000-07:00

I went out yesterday and got some flooding video near Silverton, TX. That area has received 6-8 inches of rain in the last 3 days which made for some good video. Enjoy!

CLICK HERE FOR FLOOD VIDEO

4/13/10 REPORT

2010-04-14T00:20:00.001-07:00

I spent most of my energy battling winds of 40-50 mph on the way to Boise City, OK today. I hung around Boise City for a while and saw the convection initiating way to my SW. I headed down to Stratford and then eventually to Dalhart. I ate in Dalhart and then went west about 15 or 20 miles and found a spot to start taking photos of a spectacular sunset. This sunset was worth the price of admission! I haven't photographed a sunset this amazing in a very, very long time. I stuck around for a while as the storm to my SW put on a decent lightning show towards dark. It kept it's act together for a while, but eventually petered out. I traveled about 300 miles today with sunset photos to show for, but I think it was worth it. Maybe Wednesday will be a better day for storms around the area.

4/11/10 CHASE REPORT

2010-04-11T23:47:00.000-07:00

Well, it was good to finally get out of the house to chase for the first time since March 8th. I left Amarillo around 2 and fiddled around with convection around Tulia for a while but didn't really see much except for rain and a lot of CG's. Headed east out of Tulia and got onto some better storms that were going up north of Silverton. I initially headed south out of Turkey for a few minutes, but decided to get on the stronger storms between Turkey and Brice. I got about 6 miles south of Brice on Hwy. 70 and thought I might get into some pretty good sized hail since the VIL was off the chart. I think the VIL at times approached 70-80, but only small and very sporadic hail ever occurred in the area I was located. I was very surprised to say the least as I was getting ready for a hail barrage!

It was a nice drive on the way back to Amarillo as I got some nice pics of the sunset and some mammatus from the decaying anvils. All in all, a nice chase with hopes of many more to come!

YOUTUBE VIDEO OF CHASE

OK, OK

2010-04-01T23:06:00.001-07:00

Either very few follow my blog, or the joke was on me...not sure about that one!

NO MORE

2010-04-01T01:06:00.000-07:00

I can't go into details, but my chase career is over. SORRY... :-(

THURSDAY(APRIL 1st) POSSIBLE CHASE

2010-03-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

It's looking like a possible chase day on Thursday, but a fly in the ointment may keep t-storms from forming at all.

Everything looks pretty good for supercells on Thursday. A low will be moving into the southern plains which will draw up moisture from the gulf and also will be increasing the shear over the area. Forecast hodographs look very good for supercell development, but the cap at 700mb may very well negate these positive factors.

The models the last few days have forecasted 700mb temps from about 7-9 degrees Celsius. A positive note is that the models have cooled the layer down a little bit in the last few runs. That's good news!

I'll definitely update as the possible event gets closer. Stay tuned!

VERDICT ON TODAY: IT'S A NO GO

2010-03-24T10:34:00.001-07:00

After looking at a few things, I have decided to stay at home today. Northerly surface winds in the area that I was planning on going has all but ruined what I think may have been a decent day. I think the better chance is going to be further east near DFW where the winds have a southerly component, and the Td is a little better. I don't think I'll regret it later for not going. We'll see...

POSSIBLE CHASE TODAY (24th)

2010-03-23T22:01:00.000-07:00

The SPC has a slight risk for a large chunk of North Texas on Wednesday. I pretty much agree with most of their discussion, and I agree that the main threat will be severe criteria hail, but if conditions improve, a tornado or two can't be ruled out.

Positives--

*Decent Td for this time of year in the mid 50's
*Very good 0-6 km shear from 30-60 kts
*Cold air in the upper levels will help with lapse rates, thus improving large hail potential.

Negatives--

*Cloud cover may be a big factor for tomorrow. Models suggest cloud cover may be very persistent, thus preventing much instability from developing.
*Cold front may be further south than anticipated, thus bringing north surface winds to the area which may bring a negative effect to the supercell potential.
*Due to the front and cloud cover, daytime temps may have a difficult time reaching to the mid 60's in the threat area.

If the cold front can slow down and allow temps to climb into the upper 60's and lower 70's along with decreasing clouds, tomorrow may turn out to be a pretty good day. I'll update again mid morning to see what the verdict is.

RIGHT NOW, I'M LIKING THE AREA NEAR SEYMOUR, TX

FIRST DAY OF SPRING

2010-03-20T06:53:00.000-07:00

I think I'll go back to bed now and dream of high contrast tornadoes somewhere in Western Oklahoma!

EDIT: After looking at the long range GFS, March 31st and April 1st look like the possibility of some chasing fun. We'll see how things progress as the end of March gets closer.

FIRST CHASE OF THE YEAR= 1 TORNADO

2010-03-09T01:13:00.000-08:00

WOW!!! What a day. I almost decided not to go today because of the meager setup. Also, I almost went SE on 287 towards Childress, but I'm glad I stuck with my original target of Canadian, TX. I stuck around in Canadian twiddling my thumbs for about an hour, and thought real hard about heading back home. I looked at Grlevel3 one last time and noticed the cells to the SE of me looking better and better. I thought to myself, I might as well go after them since I'm out anyway. I hauled East on 33 to try to get to Roll and go south. As I got about 2 miles south of Roll, I got into some hail that ranged from peas to quarters. I called in the report of quarters and kept heading south. I met my buddies Brandon Green and Frank Blanscet and chatted for a few minutes. I was actually heading home when I saw the base to the SE and the funnel report on radar. I popped over another hill, and about soiled all lover myself! LOL! I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I really had to stop for a minute and tell myself that this was really happening. Anyway, I got video of it from just south of Cheyenne which was about 10-12 miles away from the tornado. Contrast couldn't have been better! I just wish I was a little closer, but I'll take it!

Oh, about halfway through the trip I noticed I forgot my still camera at home! I said to myself that something big would happen since my still camera got left behind. I wasn't quite expecting it to be this big. This may be the best tornado I've ever gotten on video.

HERE IS SOME WX ON FILM FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT: HAIL AND TORNADO VIDEO

FIRST CHASE OF THE 2010 SEASON (3/8/10)

2010-03-07T22:20:00.000-08:00

Well, it appears that I will be chasing on Monday. Right now, my initial target area is Canadian, TX. I'm really not looking for much in the way of severe weather, but some marginally severe hail along with a possible weak, short lived tornado is possible near the surface low. Really, I'm just going out to get back in the groove and check out the equipment for the meat and potatoes part of the severe wx season.

The low that is progged to initiate the thunderstorms will pretty much be right over the Panhandle on Monday afternoon. 500mb temps will be very cold which will help contribute to steep lapse rates. CAPE on the other hand will be very marginal at best. CAPE values may approach 800 j/kg, but cool surface temps in the upper 50's and cloud cover may keep it from reaching above 500j/kg. Td will be in the upper 40's and low 50's in the region which really isn't that bad for this time of year.

Maybe I can at least get into some severe hail and gusty winds, but right now I'd settle for a few Cg's and towering Cu.

INITIAL TARGET AREA: CANADIAN, TX

BUFFALO LAKE WILDLIFE REFUGE SNOW OUTING

2010-02-04T16:30:00.000-08:00

Got in a little photography today at Buffalo Lake Wildlife Refuge which is located about 20 miles SW of Amarillo on Hwy. 60. Some other photos were taken to and from Buffalo Lake. I'm pretty happy with the day!

MORE IMAGES OF SNOW

2010-01-29T14:46:00.000-08:00

Here are a few more images taken of the 1/28/10 snowstorm here in Amarillo.

IMAGES FROM 1/28/10 SNOW STORM

2010-01-28T21:46:00.000-08:00

Well, the event is over. Amarillo got around 7 inches on the east side of town near the NWS while the west side got closer to a foot. Not quite as much snow as anticipated, but it still impacted the panhandle with a lot of inconveniences. Here are a few images that I took today. I'm sure I'll get out tomorrow and take a few more.

CLEANING THE STREET I LIVE ON

I-40 AS I WAS LEAVING THE TV STATION

CLEANING THE WALMART PARKING LOT

A GUY WITH A SNOW BLOWER

SNOW STILL ON THE WAY

2010-01-28T00:31:00.000-08:00

It still looks like a pretty significant event for the area at this time. I think the transition zone between sleet and freezing rain will be in the SE TX Panhandle. In the Amarillo area, it's looking like a good bet for at least 7-10 inches. I think the biggest snow totals will be in the N/NW TX Panhandle where snowfall totals could reach up to 16 by early Friday morning. I'll definitely be out and about whether by car or on foot, so I should have some pretty good video and still shots posted on here late Thursday night into Friday morning. Also, blizzard criteria may be met with the blowing snow from wind gusts approaching 40 mph along with sustained winds in the 15-20 mph range.

Obviously I'm not a snow expert, but here is a map with snow totals. FCST MADE AT 2:55 AM THURSDAY MORNING. Hope I don't make myself look too much like an idiot with these totals. We'll see!!!

At last, some photos to go along with the theme of my blog. Stay tuned and see some winter wx on film!

SIGNIFICANT SNOW FOR THE TX PANHANDLE

2010-01-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

Looks like there may very well be a big time snow storm for the TX Panhandle on Thursday into Thursday night. Models have continued to agree on at least 10-12 inches of snow for the Amarillo area. Some locales in the Panhandle may receive up to 18 inches, especially for sections of the northern and northeastern Panhandle. I'll definitely be out covering this weather event with lots of still photos and video. STAY TUNED!

CAPROCK CANYON STATE PARK OUTING

2010-01-18T19:47:00.000-08:00

Due to the great weather we had today (mid 60's) I went to Caprock Canyon State Park located near Quitaque, TX. I was planning on going with David Drummond, but due to illness he wasn't able to make it. This was the first time at the park for me, and it was a great trip. Lots of nice scenery and photo opportunities were awaiting for my arrival. It was great getting out in the sun and mingling with nature. I need to do this more often. Now to the photographs:

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

2009-12-25T15:51:00.000-08:00

THE POSSIBILITY OF SNOW?

2009-10-29T04:53:00.000-07:00

Well, I was talking about severe wx yesterday which didn't pan out, but today the tables turn to some possible winter wx. The NW TX panhandle is currently in a winter weather advisory. I'm going to try to make it up to Cimarron county OK today to get some snow video for the station. Here is the NWS text for the advisory.

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
532 AM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

...SOME SNOW TODAY...

.A STRONG UPPER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE FOUR CORNERS REGION WILL
MOVE INTO NORTHERN NEW MEXICO TODAY. THIS WILL GENERATE MORE LIGHT
RAIN ACROSS THE PANHANDLES BUT AS TEMPERATURES FALL TO NEAR THE
FREEZING MARK BY THE AFTERNOON...ANY LIGHT RAIN WILL MIX WITH AND
CHANGE OVER TO SNOW ESPECIALLY IN THE NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE
AND IN THE NORTHWEST TEXAS PANHANDLE. SNOWFALL TOTALS OF ONE TO TWO
INCHES ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE HIGHEST TOTALS IN THE NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLE. SNOW SHOULD DIMINISH BY THIS EVENING AS THE UPPER LOW
SLIDES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PLAINS.

OKZ001-002-TXZ001-002-006-007-011-291845-
/O.NEW.KAMA.WW.Y.0006.091029T1032Z-091030T0000Z/
CIMARRON-TEXAS-DALLAM-SHERMAN-HARTLEY-MOORE-OLDHAM-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...BOISE CITY...KEYES...GUYMON...DALHART...
STRATFORD...HARTLEY...CHANNING...DUMAS...VEGA
532 AM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS
EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AMARILLO HAS ISSUED A WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW FOR THE WESTERN OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE AND THE
NORTHWEST TEXAS PANHANDLE...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING.

A MIXTURE OF RAIN AND SNOW WILL BEGIN ACROSS THE NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLE THIS MORNING. AS TEMPERATURES COOL OFF TO NEAR
FREEZING...THIS RAIN WILL MIX WITH AND CHANGE OVER TO ALL SNOW IN THE
NORTHWEST TEXAS PANHANDLE BY THE AFTERNOON. TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS
OF ONE TO TWO INCHES ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS SYSTEM...WITH THE HIGHEST
ACCUMULATIONS IN THE NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW...SLEET...OR
FREEZING RAIN WILL CAUSE TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR
SLIPPERY ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES...AND USE CAUTION WHILE
DRIVING.

A POSSIBILITY FOR STORMS TONIGHT

2009-10-28T05:33:00.000-07:00

A powerful upper level low is digging into the four corners area as we speak. As the day progresses, it will meander closer, and a cold front will sag from the north. These two features will work together to spark off a few severe thunderstorm mainly after dark in the eastern tx panhandle. Shear is strong, so if storms can somehow start off discreet, there may be a chance of a tornado or two. Even if storms start of discreet, they will quickly transition into a fast moving squall line with damaging winds and large hail being the main threat. I'll most likely be out covering the storms for the station I chase for, so stay tuned for some possible updates and photos/video.

A LOCAL FALL PHOTOGRAPHY TRIP

2009-10-23T02:24:00.000-07:00

Had a pretty crappy day today, literally! And no, I didn't eat at Taco Bell before I left. LOL
I went on Hwy.60 (80 miles NE of Amarillo) between Miami and Canadian to get some fall photo ops. Everything is going good as I'm taking photos in a small roadside park. I get back in the vehicle and smell the most God awful smell. I knew what it was as I looked at my shoe. Needless, to say, I found some grass and tried to get it off. I then had to try to get it off my carpeted floor mat. After that fiasco, I was back to taking photos. After about 10 more minutes of taking photos, my CF memory card in my camera failed. I was about done for the day anyway, but I didn't know if I could save the photos or not. Fortunately I could, and the failure just wouldn't let me take more photos. I had another memory card, but he light was fading and I wanted to go get that stink out of my vehicle. What a day!!! I think the crap on my shoe was worth the photos though!

WTAMU UPSETS ACU

2009-10-18T04:57:00.000-07:00

Most of you may not know, but I went to college at WTAMU in Canyon, TX which is just south of Amarillo. Hence, I'm a big WT fan, especially when it comes to their football program. WT has been doing very well this year, but this year they have struggled a bit due to 2 players going to the NFL and the others graduating from last years team. We have a young team this year which is the main reason we have been struggling. What hurt us even more is this. Our star running back, Keithon Flemming was injured in practice about a week before the season started and didn't get to play until October 10th.

Our record coming into Saturday October 18th was 2-5 which was disappointing after the great seasons we have previously had. We went into the game Saturday playing the #1 team in the nation which was Abilene Christian. Abilene has not lost a regular season game in 2 years! The last time they got beat, it was WT that did it. Well, I have great joy in saying that we beat ACU yesterday 32 to 21!!! In the history of WT football, we had never before beat a #1 ranked team before.

Running back Keithon Flemming had 4 touchdowns to his name and the Buffs defense looked incredibly good. I am so proud of these guys for showing true grit and determination when things didn't look so bright for them. They deserve this victory, and I think it's the most important win ever in the football program. All I can say is this:

GO BUFFS!!!

THE BELOW PHOTO IS WHAT THE BUFFS LOOKED LIKE JUST 3 WEEKS AGO. NOW, THEIR HEADS ARE HELD HIGH AFTER BEATING THE #1 TEAM IN THE NATION!

SELF PORTRAIT

2009-10-07T05:18:00.000-07:00

As you all know, I've been on a real photo kick lately. Nothing really going on with the weather around here so I have to do something. I haven't taken a self portrait in a while, so I took one today just for kicks. I went with the old black and white style with a little noise thrown in for character.

A LITTLE BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY

2009-10-06T17:42:00.001-07:00

I went out today with my new Canon 70-300mm lens and got some bird photography at a local park-lake. I got the lens last week and I have to say that I'm very pleased with it. I bought the lens for wildlife photography and I'm still new at this, so be easy on me. Here are a few photos.

A FEW PHOTOS FROM SUNDAY TURNED BLACK AND WHITE

2009-10-05T22:54:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorite photos from the foggy wx on Sunday turned black and white for more drama and effect. I personally like the b&w better.

DREARY DAY IN THE TX PANHANDLE

2009-10-04T18:53:00.000-07:00

It was a chilly and foggy fall day in the TX Panhandle today. Temps barely made it to the mid 50's today with fog and light mist most of the day. It was a great day to stay in and watch football, but I just had to get out and get a few photos.

A FEW MORE WITH THE ZOOM LENS

2009-09-29T19:29:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more images taken with the 70-300 lens at Buffalo Lake Wildlife Refuge.

A NEW LENS: CANON 70-300mm IS USM

2009-09-28T18:29:00.001-07:00

Well, after taking photographs a few days ago of the Discovery shuttle with my wimpy 17-85 lens, I knew I needed a zoom lens. I forked over some money today and got one at Best Buy. I've read reviews on this lens, and they were pretty good. No, it's not L series glass, but I'm not made of money and I'm not a pro. Anyway, I tested it today, and I really like it. I'm going to have fun taking wildlife photos and other distant subjects with this thing. Now, to a few photos:

FIRST MAJOR COLD FRONT

2009-09-21T18:40:00.000-07:00

Well, one day before the official start to fall, a major cold front came in. Temps dropped about 18 degrees in about 30 minutes! Winds gusted as high as 40-45 mph with this cold front and clouds blew in pretty quick on the backside of the front. I guess this is an open invitation for fall to come on in. Goodbye summer! I'm ready for the fall season.

Old Glory starched due to the gusty winds associated with the cold front. Also, note the cloudiness to the west and northwest. It was actually pretty chilly when I took this photograph.

DISCOVERY 747 FERRY FLIGHT

2009-09-20T13:15:00.000-07:00

The Discovery ferry flight made a stop in Amarillo today. It's headed to Florida, but it's making a few stops in between. I have to give great thanks to my friend Robert Ruley for giving me the heads up on this. Myself and Steve Miller (TX) made the trip to see it. Also, I have to give thanks to Steve Miller for pulling some strings and getting me close to see it come in and land. Here are some pics that I took.

Close up shot of the shuttle

747 Ferry and Discovery sitting on the tarmac

747 Ferry and Discovery getting ready to take off

Another shot of the aircraft getting ready to take off

The Pathfinder taking off. This aircraft takes off first to analyze wind shear and other details.

Security and police officers were everywhere.

And she takes off!

OUTING AT WILDCAT BLUFF

2009-09-19T17:40:00.000-07:00

Took a little time today to hike around and take a few photos at Wildcat Bluff Nature Center. Hope you like them.

A FEW MORE "PAINTING WITH LIGHT" IMAGES

2009-09-13T00:12:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more photographs that I did tonight. This is becoming quite fun because I have no idea what the image will look like until I see it in the viewfinder. ENJOY...

I GOT BORED, SO WHAT DID I DO?...

2009-09-12T04:47:00.000-07:00

I did a little painting with light. These images were done with a flashlight that had a red, green and the normal white light function on it. I was reading some photography websites tonight and got a little inspiration from an article that dealt with long exposures and abstract photography. Most of these images were done at f11 with about a 15-25 second exposure.

FOOTBALL PHOTOS FROM SATURDAY'S GAME

2009-08-29T23:25:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the photos that I mentioned taking from tonights game. WTAMU played a good game tonight, but they fell short by 14 points. The final was Grand Valley 37 WTAMU 23. Of course, I only had a couple of keepers from action on the field while shooting with a 17-85mm lens. Obviously, it's not a sports lens, but I tried my best. I got a lot of good keepers from shots in the stands and on the sidelines. Hope you like them.

FOOTBALL IS HERE

2009-08-29T05:36:00.001-07:00

Since there is no weather to talk about, I guess I can talk about the next best thing...FOOTBALL! Yep, the season is here. I'm anxiously awaiting the Division 2 WTAMU Buffs game tonight in Canyon, TX. The #11 ranked WTAMU is hosting #1 ranked Grand Valley State tonight at 6pm. Grand Valley is from Michigan, so they are obviously a long way from home. I hope WT can make their trip even longer on the way back.

Since I work with the media (KAMR) I have acquired a field pass for all the WT games in the 09 season. Tonight, I'll be on the sidelines snapping some photos of the game. I'm not too keen on sports photography, but I got a few good images from last year. I'll post some from the game later tonight when I get home. For now, here are a few teasers that I shot last year with a Canon 17-85mm lens. Definitely not the best for sports photography, but that's all I have.

CLOSE LIGHTNING STRIKE

2009-08-26T01:03:00.000-07:00

I have just gotten around to getting this done. I was out north of Amarillo filming some lightning about 2 weeks ago. I had the video camera running and got a close lightning strike. At first, I thought it might have been further than it really was. Going back frame by frame revealed it was a lot closer than I thought it was. I have to thank David Drummond for initially showing it to me frame by frame from his video camera at the SDS party a week or so ago.

The lightning hit a road sign about 50 yards from my location. The thunder was instantaneous. You can see by the vehicle that the strike lit it up, and also the pavement on the road.

By the way, here is a short vid clip of the lightning strike.
CLOSE LIGHTNING STRIKE

WELCOME

2009-08-25T22:21:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my new blog. Content wise, it's not much different than my stormchasenews blog. I just wanted a bit of a different name and look to the blog. I think WX ON FILM pretty much sums it up for me. I try to capture various weather elements with a still camera and a video camera. However, I do most of my work with a Canon digital SLR camera. Photography is a great outlet for me, and storm chasing and the love of weather helps bring it all together. When the weather is not cooperating, I will post random thoughts and various photos from excursions that I sometimes go on. Hope you like the blog, and thanks for visiting!