Joey Ketcham is proof that you don't need a college degree to be a storm
chaser. However, even this young man knows you have to have an extensive knowledge
of weather and safety precautions.
Ketcham saw his first tornado at age eight. He began reading up on tornadoes
and then general weather. A few years later, Ketcham obtained a weather radio
and began recording observations whenever there was a severe thunderstorm
warning in his county. A few years later, Ketcham added a computer and Internet
connection to his weather research tools.
While still in high school, Ketcham was a storm spotter for KSN Storm Center.
After leaving KSN, Ketcham began chasing for meteorologist Jeff Welborn.
"Storm chasing to me is like baseball for Sammy Sosa," says Ketcham. "I
love the nature of storms, and if you want to learn it you have to be there
and see it in action."
Though he is still young, Ketcham takes a serious attitude toward storm
chasing. "Storm chasing is a hobby, and not a career," he says. "I would not
encourage anyone to take this up as a hobby because storm chasing is a very
dangerous activity. And the more people we get out there on the roads, the
more dangerous it is."
Martin Lisius, chairman and founder of the Texas Severe Storms Association,
or TESSA, believes the most challenging part of storm chasing is forecasting
where a thunderstorm or tornado will occur later in the day. "Also, logistics
involving an actual intercept [of a storm] can be tricky because roads that
appear on a map may not actually exist."
Lisius agrees that storm chasing is more of a hobby than a career. "The
average salary for chasers is no salary," he says. "Most chasers are not paid
anything. They have other jobs and chase in their spare time. Anyone can become
a storm chaser with enough dedication. Students can learn informally, or they
can go to college and get a degree in meteorology. With a degree, they can
work at a TV station or for the National Weather Service."
Don and Jennie Lloyd are storm chasers who conduct severe weather presentations
in Wisconsin schools.
A storm chaser's days can be very long and tiring. Don Lloyd says 14 to
16 hours is not uncommon, and "often they have to drive 600 to 800 miles as
well."
But if you think you'll get a realistic idea of storm chasing from the
hit movie Twister, think again. "That movie was totally unrealistic. It was
a fun movie, but storm chasing isn't like that," Lloyd says. "We aren't reckless,
and it's unusual to see even one tornado on a given chase, much less four
or five."
Many parts of storm chasing are challenging, says Lloyd. "Forecasting the
chase can take many hours of study and analysis of the atmosphere, surface
conditions and satellite images."
In addition, Lloyd says, "Staying a discreet distance from a severe storm
is a challenge. You want to be close enough to see the storm structure clearly,
but not so close that you get caught in heavy rain or bombarded by massive
hail."
Lloyd stresses that there is often no salary for storm chasing. "Most storm
chasers make money selling photos and video rights, but this does little to
cover expenses."
Storm chasers are not all men, either. "[Storm chasing] gives me this incredible
feeling inside," says Laura Duchesne. "It's hard to describe unless you've
chased a storm yourself, and then you'll understand."
For Duchesne, her biggest challenge is "trying to forecast if a convection
[thunderstorm] will occur and where, and then figure out if it will contain
severe weather or not."
Duchesne's most memorable chase happened on June 12, 1998. "It was the
most beautiful storm that I have seen," she recalls. "Without any intention,
we found ourselves in the core [of the storm]. It was not real hazardous,
but please tell students not to core-punch; you might be in the path of a
tornado!" (To core-punch is to take a vehicle into the heavy precipitation
core of a thunderstorm.)
Storm chasers should also remain aware of their location, says Sean McGee.
"What is in the area of the location, like power lines, trees and obstacles.
We always need an escape route if it is called for, so making sure there are
no obstacles is a challenge."
McGee says storm chasing has an extra element to it for him. "For me, it's
a spiritual thing; there is a certain beauty to storms that I can't fully
explain. And living in California, I don't get to see it that much."
Jon Mitchell finds storm chasing presents many challenges, "one of which
is to remain calm and focused even when the current situation is becoming
stressful." Mitchell says staying calm is necessary for staying out of danger.
Mitchell not only enjoys the excitement that goes along with "witnessing
the awesome power of Mother Nature's storms," he also believes he provides
a valuable service to meteorologists who study how and why storms and tornadoes
are formed.
Mitchell says the Internet plays a big role in many storm chasers' lives.
"Every morning during the busy season, storm chasers look at weather data
usually found on the Internet. From this data, chasers are able to make an
educated guess as to when and where the storms will be forming."
Ketcham advises students to "learn why storms happen and learn everything
possible. You should go to at least two SKYWARN spotter classes, which are
provided yearly by the National Weather Service. After that, go with a trained
chaser and get the hang of what it's like -- what you need to know, the positions
you should be at, etc."
Duchesne recommends reading articles, interviewing experienced chasers,
and visiting websites that deal with chasing.
Mitchell says students who are interested in storm chasing may want to
pursue a meteorology degree when they go to college. "This will enable you
to learn about weather and will provide a good base of knowledge for chasing
storms."