Should You Become a Storm Chaser?

Should You Become a Storm Chaser?

Do you have a love for the weather?  Do you consider yourself to be a weather fanatic or a weather enthusiast?  If you regularly find yourself tracking the forecasted weather or if you find yourself outdoors when severe weather strikes,

you may want to consider becoming a storm chaser.  Many individuals storm chase as a hobby, as well as for a career.

As nice as it is to hear that you can make a living or enjoy a fun hobby with storm chasing, you may be looking for more information.  For starters, storm chasing is defined as the pursuit of bad, severe weather.  Storm chasers often hop in their vehicles and follow severe weather.  As nice and as exciting as this sounds, storm chasing is a lot different than watching severe weather unfold from the safety and comfort of your own home.

Before deciding that storm chasing is the perfect career opportunity or hobby for you, there are a number of important points that you will want to take into consideration.  Storm chasing often involves a lot of knowledge and research.  Storm chasers rely on their knowledge of the weather, as well as severe weather alerts, and radar images to be in the right place at the right time. When it comes to the weather, do you simply just like to watch it?  Would you mind sitting around examining radar images or listening to weather alerts on the radio?  Although storm chasing can be exciting, it takes research, hard work, and determination to be a successful storm chaser.

Another one of the many points that you will want to take into consideration, when trying to determine if storm chasing is right for you, is your ability to quickly think on your feet.  Are you good at problem solving under pressure?  If you are not, storm chasing may not be for you.  As exciting as storm chasing can be, it is also important to remember the dangers that surround it.  When tracking super cell thunderstorms hoping to find a tornado, you may find yourself trapped.  If you ever found yourself in this type of situation, you will need to not panic, but quickly think of a solution that will get you to safety and fast.

As previously stated, many professional storm chasers rely on technology and research to get them right in the middle of severe weather.  Do you have the capability to do so?  Storm chasing involves more than hoping in a vehicle.  Do you have a television or a computer in your vehicle that you can use to access up-to-date radar images?  Do you have a weather radio that will provide you with constant updates in severe weather?  If not, you may want to refrain from storm chasing until you have these important tools.  These weather devices will not only help to improve your chances of seeing success, but they can also help to keep you safe.

Although it is more than possible to become a solo storm chaser, it is important to know the risks and dangers associated with doing so.  Storm chasers are more likely to be successful when they have a partner or even multiple partners.  Professional storm chasers often have a driver, one team member who monitors the weather radio or satellite images, as well as another team member who acts as a lookout.  In addition to seeing success, having another team member is likely to lessen your risk of injury, as a second or even a third set of eyes is always helpful in severe, unpredictable weather.

As outlined above, there is a lot more to storm chasing than simply hopping in your car and hitting the gas pedal.  Even if you are only interested in becoming a storm chaser for personal hobby reasons, as opposed to becoming a professional storm chaser, you will still want to proceed with caution.  Knowing what actions you should take and what situations you can expect to face as a storm chaser is one of the best ways to see success, as well as stay safe.