6/3 UPDATE - POSTSCRIPT Sorry for the lapse in updates, but phone connectivity has been horrible, and aol has once again decided that they don't appreciate the volume of mail going out at once when we send these updates out. AND we've been busy campers. Wednesday, thinking that the rest of the week wouldn't show much stuff, some of our chasers left for home, while others stayed behind and reformed. We were pretty beat up by Wednesday, and while some of the team wanted to go back to the TX/OK border for Thursday, others didn't think those storms would amount to much more than hail and strong winds. Who knew. At any rate, Wednesday night found us in Medicine Lodge, Kansas, and saying some goodbyes. With sunset approaching, Nancy and Grizz took off for some photo ops in the Gypsum Hills. Throughout the trip, we have ventured down what we refer to as "red roads". These are the mysterious little by-ways that appear on GPS and can lead to high adventure. Nancy and Grizz took a "red road" that led to some of the greatest scenes we have yet to see in the hills. What started as a road trip quickly became an "off road" trip, and the abilities of the Ram 1500 were once again challenged. We got some great footage, and had a ball, catching hawks drifting in the thermals with a sunset in the background, and reminding us once again that nature's gentler side is also capable of tremendous beauty. The next morning, we did it again with the rest of the team and then started to head northeast to Kansas City...where our departures were from. However, on the way, we started feeling very strongly that perhaps we might have yet another day of chasing awaiting us. A phone call from Josh Jans, who had departed with the others the day before, confirmed this. Josh was waiting for us in KC, and Friday was looking to be a real promising day all of a sudden. After a reunion with Josh in KC, we started looking carefully at the models, and felt that Friday had definate possibilities. With a limited team and limited resources, we put together one vehicle as the chase car. Sadly, Grizz couldn't stay as he had to drive back to Tampa, Florida, after dropping Doug off in Cincy. Allan and Chris had continued to Ohio (we later discovered Allan's car broke down in Indy...where it remains at this writing) and Brian was on his way back to Colorado. Remaining were Nancy, STeve, Deb, and Josh. We stripped Josh's chase car in lightning speed, making sure that the minivan had data capabilities and proper emergency lighting, and we chose Emporia as a target. It was a good call, as a very interesting cell started to develope early in the pm just west of Emporia....but road work and traffic made us realize that we'd never make it. We took a northern route to Interstate 70, and plotted an intercept course to the storm bringing a severe warning to NE Kansas, and a Tornado Watch as well. This required a jog to the and a track just below the storm to the SE. It was a textbook chase. We were able to keep abreast of the storm, but out of its track, paralleling it to the south as it headed ESE. One redeployment made us catch just a brief bit of a hail shaft, but sometimes that happens. No damage was sustained, and it was a magnificent storm. We'll be working on the pictures over the next week or so, and announce the update to the web page soon. Exhausting that cell, we pulled back to Topeka to intercept another, also a great storm, but not quite as easy to chase. We headed due south from Topeka to I35, and re-intercepted again as we headed NE on I35. It wasn't quite as exciting as the one in the North of the state, but it was amazingly cool, and gave us some good pics, and a great sunset. We logged on 450 miles that day. Amazing. The next morning, Saturday, was the final goodbye day. Leaving gets harder every year. We got some great storms, met a lot of really cool people (some of them chasers) and were presented with numerous opportunities to carry our message of safety and preparedness, to both businesses and the private sector. Most importantly, we were able to share together what each of us loves best on the planet; severe weather. We're trying desperately not to think about the moderate risk out there today....but realizing that what we got on any given day while we were out there was more beauty, joy, awe and amazement than many people get in a lifetime. Once again, we have enjoyed the ULTIMATE road trip. The storms were magnificent, mesmerizing, ungodly, thrilling high points, but not to be forgotten are the sunsets, the mesas, the dust devils on Rt. 66, learning, teaching, laughing and sharing. We got so many, many kind letters this year from you all, and will respond individually to each and everyone now that we're back home and able to. Sometimes in the wee hours of the morning, hammering out forecasts or updates, watching The Weather Channel (and Miss Cleo), it can get kinda lonely. But then....up would pop an email or an IM, and we'd get renewed by it. Meantime, tho we have placed some pix on our web page, best viewing at the moment is at www.allandetrich.com And now...on to hurricane season! Nancy and the MESO 2001 Chase Team http://www.mcwar.org