THE STORM CHASER'S YEAR
by Jason Foster, The Weather Warrior
by Jason Foster, The Weather Warrior
It is a cycle that each year, as the storm chaser goes from newbie to professional to veteran, the elements of that year become apparent. Some elements change from year to year, and some change from person to person, but it still follows somewhat the same cycle.
My year basically starts in early February, right around the time the National Storm Chaser Convention is held. Around this time, I'm starting to think about the annual expedition to the central United States. The convention itself is a showcase of the previous years highlights and introduces the new chase season which will begin in just a few short months. It often is cold and severe weather is fairly non-existent, so it's rest and prepare time.
March is quiet and the first part of April is usually the same. On occasion there is a storm to chase....an early springtime thunderstorm that yields a little activity. March and April can yield some severe set-ups in the Great Plains, so it give me a chance to practice my forecasting and follow along with other chasers who live in the plains and can chase these weekend warrior storms. For me, as an East Coast resident, I'm not likely to board a plane and chase a one or two day event. But this also wets the appetite for the upcoming bulk portion of the season.
May, now we're talking! May is the Christmas for chasers. Every year we look at May 1st with hungry eyes and wish lists of the toys we want and the pictures we "need" to get. May 1st, is the unofficial beginning of the tornado chase season. While many don't start on that exact date, it marks the spot where the number of tornadoes has the potential to start numbering in the hundreds each week. I typically don't head out until around May 12th - 15th. Each year I've gone out earlier each time, But it usually is around those dates. The chase season for me usually goes until around June 10th. The unofficial end of chase season isn't until the end of July, but does migrate a little north into the northern plains of the United States and a little of Canada.
After such a busy month of May, June usually comes with little activity, and recovery from the plains chasing. Logs are complete, websites designed and published, and video is compiled, edited and prepared for stock sales and highlight tapes. But, there is one thing too that begins June 1st each year....Hurricane Season. While the activity is very low in the first part of the season, June might and sometimes does produced significant tropical systems and the very rare occasional hurricane. But that activity doesn't really begin until next month.
Hurricanes really start their march across the Atlantic tropics in August, in the past I've intercepted major hurricanes like Charley in the month of August. August, September and October are the busy hurricane months, and a storm chaser is very busy during this time as well. He or she may not be actively in the hurricane / tropical system. However, they have to watch the storms coming off the African coast, and the Caribbean. They are watching model runs and checking buoy data. If they've intercepted one hurricane already, they also have to start editing video and worrying about production, sales, and marketing. Each year there is a new balance, and new formula for getting all this done and still chase.
November the hurricane season quiets down. Now it's time to concentrate on all the video. There is a frantic push to get the video edited and off to the manufacturers to start making enough copies for the Christmas season rush. The Christmas season rush begins earlier and earlier each year, but the general rule of thumb is right after Thanksgiving Holiday.
December is all about sales. Trying to get people to buy the DVDs (and VHS tapes) as stocking stuffers for their families. December also has to be balanced with one's own family time. After all, the entire year was just spent focusing on severe weather and storm chasing.
New Year's and the Month of January is about the only time off. There are wrap up items and still yet more website updating and now is the time to start thinking about leaving the previous season behind, and getting ready for the next season.
That is the storm chaser's year in a nut shell. It's frantic, busy, stressful, exciting, rewarding, punishing, and unforgiving. It has caused many relationships to go kaput, and those that survive, seem to become stronger. This is basically what I experience each year. I've had a hard time focusing on professional life because of it, and sometimes wonder if I need to do this full time as a profession since it takes up almost the same time as a full time job anyway. What do you think? Do you want live this life?