Kansas Atmospheres

Some years it rains for all three days of the Flint Hills Rodeo. The longest continuously-operating rodeo event in Kansas carries on, rain or shine. This year was mostly rainy, but organizers weren't deterred by the forecast of scattered thunderstorms. That's to be expected on the first weekend of June in the Flint Hills. Plenty of humidity and heat help fuel the creation of pop-up storms, none severe thankfully. This little cell was the first of three that blew up and swept alongside Strong City while people were lining up along Cottonwood Avenue to watch the annual Rodeo parade. I made it to town well in time for the parade -- that meant I could do some storm watching while I waited. I drove in from Garden City, out in southwest Kansas, my hometown. I've moved back west, in a lovely plot twist, with the love of my life. It's an amazing start to a fantastic life together. My change in situation explains the lack of posting on this blog. Now that I'm also free from ...

Good morning! The first chase of the year is under my belt, and as I type this I'm preparing for the second one. First, Arkansas. My chase partner Mira and I met up at her home in Joplin on March 30, ahead of a forecasted outbreak of severe storms across Arkansas, with another risk area marking a bullseye over Iowa and Illinois. March 31 was the big day, as the Storm Prediction Center warned of the possibility of "strong, long-track tornadoes" in its forecast language.  The day before the big day, I stopped by a Walmart in Joplin to get some snacks and other supplies. The sky over the town was interesting, showing off some undulatus clouds and generally giving me an "ooky" feeling. My human barometer senses were telling me something was off. The next morning, March 31, the ooky feeling persisted. Mira and I set off for Jonesboro, Ark., as our first target. As we arrived in Jonesboro and got settled at a McDonald's to use wifi, darker clouds began to material...

Fun fact about me: Blood makes me queasy. Not in the sense that a papercut will trigger my gag reflex, but incessantly talking about blood loss will make me lightheaded. So, when one of the instructors for our little group at the Shawnee County CERT Awareness Course Jan. 27-28 kept talking about bleeding out and how to stop it, I had to excuse myself and go outside for a few minutes. Proof that I'm now aware of CERT. Courses for CERT, or Community Emergency Response Team, cover everything from search and rescue basics, situational awareness, and of course some emergency life-saving techniques. CERT is made up of volunteers, with teams designated based on the county someone lives in. With my sister Melinda now a Topeka resident and me being a former one, attending the Shawnee County course made sense. The instructors our class of five had were quite knowledgeable on emergency preparedness and response -- so much so, I literally couldn't bear it. One time in 7th grade, I passed o...

Happy New Year friends! I hope 2023 is being kind to you so far.  Mother Nature decided to mark the new year with her own fireworks , as severe storms impacted Oklahoma, Arkansas and other southern states Jan. 2. Several storm chasers caught footage of their first tornadoes of the year, including some that caused damage in Arkansas. No injuries or deaths have been reported, thankfully. I was in Joplin, MO, for New Year's, visiting my good friend and chase partner, Mira, and her family. The weather was unseasonably warm for New Year's Day, so we spent most of the day outside, walking her dog at a nearby park. The day prior was also pretty pleasant, so we ventured into Joplin to a local hardware store that's closing after 100 years in business. The store had a few interesting items, and I picked up a weather radio for my younger sister. Mira and I also got little LED flashlights. I've stashed mine in my backpack as part of my "just in case" gear. After the hardw...

I often apply the old "if a bear takes a dump in the woods" adage to storms.  If a storm gets tornado-warned, and it's out in the boonies away from phone cameras, does it produce a picturesque twister? If it's at night, the answer is, "who's to say?" South-central Kansas saw a rare mid-December supercell thunderstorm on Monday, Dec. 12. Conditions set up for cells to intensify in the southwest and south-central portions of the state, near my first stomping grounds in Comanche County. That part of Kansas is what I consider to be the quintessential landscape of the state. Rolling hills, creeks that swell with spring rains, century-old shelterbelts guarding farmhouses that've weathered all kinds of weather -- it's all found in the Red Hills region. I spent my elementary school-aged years (up to 6th grade) living in rural Comanche County, in a great old house, watching storms come and go over our valley. I went to school in Protection, which is on th...

Howdy folks! It's a mild December so far, which has me in a "ready for spring" mood. What do you keep in your car for just-in-cases? There's a few items I would recommend people stash in their vehicles to be prepared for longer-distance trips. Some of the obvious things are a spare tire, tire iron and car jack, along with a good flashlight and a multitool with pliers and a knife blade. I also keep a couple of spare 2-liter bottles of water on hand. If you're traveling in winter weather, a couple of old blankets and a bag of kitty litter or sand are good to have, in case of traction issues or getting stuck in a snow drift.  Mira's old Honda Civic Hybrid, the "Storm Stalker," from our central KS chase on April 14, 2012. I'm a fan of economical chase vehicles. For storm chasing, the car quickly fills up with gear. My chase partner Mira's little Honda Fit is surprisingly roomy inside, but we plan accordingly and pack light for maximized space. Ty...