There were several tornadoes in the northern plains, out of my reach.
Today, we traveled from Liberal, KS to Ponca City, OK after a hole in the CINH coverage. We originally targeted Alva, OK, and as the cold front and dryline progressed east, our target moved east.
Unfortunately for me, I found out I am allergic to Dr. Pepper. I drank some and about passed out. My chase partner ended up driving the entire trip. I only ran a few counties on amateur radio, as I felt like garbage. I didn’t make the connection, so I woke up for lunch and drank more Dr. Pepper. I was fine for a half an hour or so, and then back to allergy-induced sleep.
In Ponca City, around 7pm, we watched a few towers go up and die in the capping inversion. Another day, another cap bust! This marks the first chase that I’ve tried to predict the capping inversion. Normally, I just look for a triple point and hope for the best, but with these mediocre days, I cannot rely on a triple point and a relatively easy chase. Instead, I am learning a few new skills- or at least considering a few new parameters. Today, I saw a hole in the CINH on both the GFS model and eventually the SPC Comp Map. Where does the SPC Comp Map data come from? What populates it? We saw the high CAPE, but when Norman, OK launched another sounding, the CAPE was considerably lower. The Comp Map pretty well modeled what the GFS had shown- is the Comp Map simply a GFS display, or does it incorporate real data from somewhere?
We ended up stopping for the night in the Rodeway Inn in Oklahoma City. Tomorrow, there is a see text along the dryline, so we might chase that.
Starting Odometer: 246483
Ending Odometer: 246901
High Plains Chasing 