Ya know, I'm not going to worry about coming across as an a**hole here.
Chuck Doswell is one of the more knowledgeable meteorologist around when it comes to tornados and other types of convective severe weather. He's a former NWS forecaster who has moved onto academia. I quote from one of Mr. Doswell's web pages:
"Chasing is basically irresponsible activity (or, perhaps somewhat less pejoratively, self-centered activity), done by individuals who, for reasons of their own (some good, some not-so-good), want to see storms."
Frankly, the sensationalism of severe weather chasing that we are seeing on television has done legitimate storm spotters, who are providing early warning for the good of the public, and legitimate storm chasers, who are doing severe weather research for the good of the public, absolutely no good. Most of the current crop of "chasers" are out there for the own self-gratification. They are shooting video or stills that they hope to sell, they are conducting storm chaser tour services, or they are just stroking their own insane desire to dance with the devil.
ERIC, STAY HOME!
Yes, I typed that in caps because I want to get your attention. Until you understand what you are doing, you are an accident waiting to happen. You are either going to endanger your own life by getting caught in an unexpected storm or you are going to endanger someone else's life because you've pulled off the road in a blind spot so you can gawk at some interesting cloud formations.
Find an experienced storm spotter in your area and learn what to look for and how to be safe. Once you get several storm spotting experiences under your belt, then I'd suggest seeking out other chasers. Maybe you can find one that you can tag along with so you can watch and learn. At the very least, go read Chuck Doswell's
web page about chasing safety, courtesy, and responsibility.
I've been mobile storm spotting for about 15 years. In that time, I've seen one tornado. I did not have mobile radar with me at the time, so I listened carefully to reports that were coming in about possible locations of wall cloud and funnel cloud development. I positioned myself well south of where I thought the tornado might form and carefully worked my way north and east as the storm passed. Eventually, I came up on the tornado from the southwest. The tornado was moving away from me. All of this positioning was done so that I did not get hit by the tornado. I followed the tornado through farm country, but as I approached a major highway, what did I encounter? Storm chasers. There cars lined the sides of the roads. They were walking around with their video and still cameras on a public highway with complete disregard for traffic. As the tornado moved on, they jumped in their cars and took off after it. The traffic was a mess and very dangerous. I gave up my spotting activities right there because I was not going to get caught up in their mess.
Eric, you have been sucked in by TV. Based on what you've posted before, I get the impression that Reed Trimmer is now your biggest hero. I've heard experienced spotters, chasers, and meteorologists from the NWS, talk about Reed Trimmer and people like him. What these experts that I trust have to say about Mr. Trimmer and his ilk is not complimentary.
