Final chase days

Observations of America part 2

Here's part 2 of a slightly tongue in cheek set of observations made on my travels across the southern States: 

Extra large toilet seats in McDonalds achieves nothing except encouraging obesity

BBQ flavoured Pringles taste different. I am yet to decide which is superior.

Free refills of soft drinks are possibly the best thing invented. Ever.

All roads are very straight and therefore boring. It's now easy to understand why Americans don't make very good cars, there is no fun to be had in motoring here.

Americans can't be any good at sport. After all how can you have a World Series where only one country competes. 

American road signs are not helpful. Telling me the number of the road means nothing if I don't know where it is going.

Breakfasts in roadside hotels are awesome.

Final chase day

With nothing much going on yesterday was spent trying to get a tan by a beautiful lake in Kansas. It was super hot, and a great way to spend a down day.

Today on the other hand is looking anything but quiet. It is sobering to think, especially after seeing the destruction in Dallas a few days ago that by this time tomorrow potentially hundreds of people will have lost their homes, and the death toll could well exceed that of a few days ago. There will be severe storms, there will be large hail and there will be tornadoes. The best that anyone can hope for is that the worst of it occurs in a very remote rural area. That kind of prediction however is impossible, even this close to the event.

Continued 24hrs later

So sadly the initial hype of yesterday didn't really materialise for us. Tornadoes were recorded but they were never on the part of the storm we decided to go after. It was almost certainly the most frustrating day I've had out here. Up until now we have been blessed with having made decisions that have meant we have been on the right storms at the right time. Sadly yesterday other factors had to be considered, primarily not wanting to get drawn too far north, so as to be able to get to the airport on time today. As a result it was decided that we would pursue a cell that was making its way north across the Oklahoma border, however we struggled to get in position for it and for what ever reason it never really got going, despite looking promising for a time. The decision not to follow a cell to the north proved to be a mistake as it soon started producing several tornadoes across rural parts of Kansas, footage of which even made it onto the BBC News website. It was an incredibly frustrating way to end a trip which otherwise had been exciting, fun and fascinating, perhaps made even more frustrating by the fact that the forecast for the next couple of days looks extremely promising. It is pretty disappointing to be having to leave without having spotted the ultimate in storm chasing; a tornado. I guess it just means I have an excuse to have to come back and do it all again, sooner rather than later!

I'll leave you with some final photos of the past few days. The trip has been truly humbling in terms of being able to experience nature at its most violent, extreme, unpredictable and even deadly. I leave The Plains with a new found respect and love for my subject (something which had naturally been eroded somewhat with the pressures of final year exams). Like it or not, whatever the weather, there will always be 'winners' and 'losers', as I have seen being able to stay one step ahead is something that can make all the difference.