Blackie
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Posts posted by Blackie
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I am getting exactly the same as John - the spinning circle but no video, not even the daily briefings. Yet I did get video on the very first day, and I can watch streaming from TVN and video from other sites. But nothing since then, not even when other people have said they were watching it.
I just downloaded the latest Flash update and rebooted the PC, so it isn't that. And I had the 50MB broadband installed by Virgin Media early this week and am getting that or very close to it on speed tests. Come to think of it, I think I got the video streaming before I had that installed and haven't been able to get it since. The PC has been TCP optimised too.
Any ideas, Paul or any other techie expert?
Thanks
Peter
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Amazing pictures there, John. That is lightning to die for...well, photographically, not literally!
Glad you guys stayed safe. It certainly seemed to be going wild as things were kicking off. Hope you manage to spot an elusive twister today.
Good luck
Peter
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Thanks for that Peter, I missed that last too. Good read
Glad you liked it, John. Hope you liked the photos, too - my memories of last year include me photographing everything in sight and you videoing anything that moved!
Enjoy this year's chase
Peter
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Thanks for the Info Peter, Thought I had Missed the Times Article. If it does come out whilst I am away any chance of dropping one around my House ?? Or letting me know and I can tell Louise to get one for that Weekend!
Not been around much tonight as helping blow up balloons and wrap my Little uns presents as it is her 7th Birthday tomorrow!!
Last minute packing and checking everything as well but will catch the 11pm Charts to see how hot it will be upon Landing on Sunday
Paul S
No problem, Paul. If it comes out in the next couple of weeks I will drop a copy off at your place. After that and I will be away myself, in Miami, so will get someone else to get some copies and will save one for you.
Looks like you may have excitement from day one, which will be great.
Peter
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Not sure if this was posted on the site, but the article I wrote about last year's chase with Michael Fish in the March/April issue of The Travel & Leisure Magazine can now be seen online. Just click on this link: http://www.digital.tlmags.com/index.aspx?issue=issue08, then click on where it says Cut to the Chase on the front page.
It is on page 43 in case the direct link doesn't work. Brings it all back...
Cheers
Peter
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Good luck guys. Will be following your reports and thinking back to last year. Hope you have more luck than we did on Chase 1, but it was still great fun and we had some superb weather to watch and photograph.
Cheers
Peter
PS - Paul, I see you are still up and not tucked up in bed. The Times put the adventure supplement back again, so I don't know if it is coming out tomorrow now or whenever. It will be a Satuday when it does and it will include the storm chase story I wrote. The Echo editor never did return my emails, so it's their loss. Shame, but I might try him one last time on Monday and let him know you are back out there. Good luck again.
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Well done to all for some fine pictures but Congrats to Blackie and GB
Thanks Louby
You mean I have finally managed to win one of the monthly competitions? Yay
Now I can put that bridesmaid's dress away! I missed the voting as I was away once again. What were the final scores, please? They don't seem to be on this thread.
Actually, if I'm honest, of the three weather pics I entered I was hoping the one that didn't make it through to the final would win. The green hail core cloud we saw in Kansas was pretty amazing. I had never seen anything like it before. But then again, the others were spectacular too. Who needs a tornado anyway?
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Just back from an extended trip to the States, so here are my last minute entries...
All are from Storm Chase 1, with Michael Fish. No tornadoes, but plenty of great clouds.
Weather pics:
hail core
wall cloud masquerading as a tornado
"muddy" storm remnants with the setting sun
Non weather:
reflecting on the weather...three amigos from Storm Chase 1
Nodding donkey at dusk in Sherman, north Texas
"Silver Machine" Chevy Tahoe, reflected in truck wheel at 80mph
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Good luck with the storm chasing in Arkansas tomorrow, Paul. I see you online as well, Gorky. Where are you at the moment and where will you be heading tomorrow?
I am still stuck in Chicago. Would you believe the American Airlines flight I got switched to after my Virgin flight got cancelled was also cancelled, so they have put us up in hotels - I am in a Westin, with a very comfortable bed I shall test very soon - and we will be on an 8am flight tomorrow. So I will eventually get back at 10pm instead of 8am! :lol:
I thought I saw John online when he should have been on his flight, and assumed he was on the same American flight as me. But I couldn't see him in the queue for the hotel voucher, so maybe he was on the earlier flight and just logged in quickly from the gate area.
Anyway, I have to be up at 5am, so I shall head off to bed. That will be the most sleep I have had on this trip so far! :lol:
Enjoy your chasing, guys. Look forward to seeing the photos and videos.
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OK, latest update is they have decided they can't fix the first plane, and a second one may or may not take off at 10pm - but they don't want to get our hopes up. :lol:
I have just posted some pics from our last night on the Day 11 thread and will now try and find a power socket, a beer and John. Not necessarily in that order! :lol:
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Nice pics from yesterday, Nick.
Here are just a few of the ones that I took at the NWC and also on the road to Decatur, plus the final group photo at the Cow Camp. Thought I would post them while I wait for my delayed flight, which is the one I got put on after my original flight got cancelled...
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Hi Peter
Cannot believe you are getting back later than the rest of the guys, so glad you enjoyed it, we enjoyed every single minute of the Trip with a fantastic group of guys. Ian has phoned the Hotel in Sherman and someone has handed in the Camera and Tripod so we will drop by their in the next few days, just about to go out to a Seafood Restaurant and will be fully charged for tomorrow.
Paul S
Hi Paul
That's great news about Ian's camera. I bet he is so relieved at that. Also great that all the footage he shot won't have been lost either.
Latest news on my flight is that they have pushed back the departure to 10pm. I think I am having one of those days... :lol:
Oh well, if nothing else I may post the odd pic or two from yesterday before the laptop battery dies.
Edit: I see John, our resident leprechaun from the last 10 days is still online. Hey John, guess you are on the same flight as me. I am just to the right of the service counter by gate 16. Let's say we go have a beer or two? And maybe the odd chaser... :lol:
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Seems my flying jinx is in perfect working order today. My American Airlines flight is now delayed so I won't get in until 11am tomorrow...asuming it isn't delayed any more! :lol:
I hope John isn't on this flight, otherwise he may not make his connection to Cork. And that would seriously Swearing AGAIN him off.
Any word on Ian's video camera Nick?
Edit: I see the swearing filter is still working then! :lol:
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Guess whose flight from Chicago got cancelled? D'oh! I get to DFW at 10.30 for a flight five hours before the rest of the gang, and will end up arriving back at Heathrow two hours after everyone else having been shunted onto an American Airlines flight. I can't remember which flight John is getting from Chicago, but it could be the same one!
Anyway, really sad to leave today. A big thank you to both Paul Sherman and Paul Michaelwhite for all the driving, and to Nick and of course Michael Fish for all the expert guidance in getting us to the right places at what should have been the right time. And to everyone else for making it such a fantastic and enjoyable experience. I am currently in Chilis Too in Terminal 3 at Chicago O'Hare, with ,y flight due to take off in about 50 minutes. I am having serious withdrawal symptoms already. Mind you, I saw they have a vodka called Skyy on the menu, so I decided to have a Skyy chaser with my Corona Extra. It seemed onlynatural after watching the skies and chasing for the past 10 days...
Hope the rest of the group had better luck with their flights than me, and look forward to hearing reports from Paul, Ian C and Nick from their extended chase.
I am still sorting through my photos, so will post some more galleries from the rest of the trip over the next few days. I did take quite a few, apparently.
Hope everyone at home has been enjoying our exploits. I will watch with envy when the next groups fly out to join the guys.
Thanks again to everyone on Storm Chase 1 for such a fantastic experience. And for anyone even remotely thinking of joining one of next year's chases, go for it. You will not regret it.
Hi Nick
I see you are online, so I guess you have found your bolthole for tonight. Where are you? Did Ian call the Hampton Inn about his video camera? I hope he gets it back. That would be a real bummer if he has lost it.
Good luck guys and happy storm chasing for the rest of your trip. Hope you catch some motherships and the odd tornado or two.
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Here's a few pictures of where we ate last night, a sports bar called Jax in Garden City, Kansas. The lads were a bit thirsty...
Fancy a pint, anyone?
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Hi guys
Sending this from Wichita where wse just arrived for tonight's stop. Tried to post while en route in the Chevy, but the Verizon signal has been very patchy, so it was difficult to stay online for long. The wind was really blowing as well, so it was hard to type while on the road.
Greensburg was very moving indeed. I was photographing the devastation and stopped to talk to a couple of ladies. One of them sat on the steps of what was a large church and told me she came from not far away and tht it was her favourite place to visit. It had been converted into an antique store. She bent down and picked up some smashed porcelain and helf them in her hand, and just broke down crying - saying how sad it was. I choked up and started blubbing with her.
Not been able to post any photos for the past day or so because of the poor internet signals. Should be able to post a few tonight. No weather ones yet, of course, but hopefully tomorrow we may get our first supercell. And it will be our first real day of chasing storms that might flare up. So far we have just been positioning ourselves.
If we get any decent storms I will try and post them online from the road. That would be a first for me. Still trying to sort out the GPS tracking and geotagging the photos. I have only just got both programmes and the GPS tracker, and nothing seems to be doing what I want it to. But we have our resident IT whizzkid, John, who should be able toget it sorted. Then I can upload a Google Earth track of our daily journeys, with some photos plotted in along it. Should be neat...if it works!
Cheers for now
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Hi all - this is the storm chase team, broadcasting live from Higway 287 en route from DFW to Decatur for tonight's stop. We picked up Stuart (Stu_London) and Martyn (bristolwx) from the airport, so the Fellowship is now complete!
Not certain where we will head tomorrow. We will see how the systems develop.
For those who asked about the dinner group, from the left they are:
Ian Pickering (Anyweather)
Paul Sherman
Ian Cameron
John Hanrahan (Nicorette)
Paul Michaelwaite (iethe big cheese
)Michael Fish
Nick Finnis (Nick F)
Plus out host for dinner, Margaret, from Irving Convention and Visitors Bureau and her husband
I am taking the picture, so am obviously not in it!
Hopefully over the next few days we can upload some live chase info and photos, and maybe a track of our journey on Google Earth - if I can work out how to use the new GPS tracker I bought last week.
Signing off for tonight.
Cheers everyone
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OK, we are just about to hit the road now, then later on once we pick up the two remaining chasers we set off for Wichita Falls for tonight.
I thought I would quickly post some photos from yesterday's meal, DFW Airport and one of the two Chevy chase vehicles - the one Paul Sherman is drooling over, and which of course he is driving! Just 60 miles on the clock, leather interior. A real boys' toy!!
More to come later...
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Looking forward to meeting up with you tomorrow, Martyn. I guess you must be landing around 2-2.30pm if you have an early flight. I had an unused Virgin ticket that I bought last year, so had to come the one-stop route. it is a bit of a pain, but security was very good here in Chicago. It only took 10-15 minutes to get through and get my luggage.
Sorry you will miss tonight's meal. It should be good. But we will have the odd drink for you as well.
See you in Dallas.
Peter
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Well, I'm here in the good old USA now. I am flying via Chicago and waiting for my connecting flight, which leaves in just over an hour. I guess the rest of the guys must be in Dallas now and en route to the hotel if not already there. I will catch up with them for dinner at the Cool River Cafe. Looking forward to having a few bevvies tonight, then getting ready for the chase.
I've brought three cameras and three tripods with me, plus a few assorted lenses - just in case we get lucky with the weather!
Bring it on... B)
I am testing a GPS tracking device I bought last week, and used it on the plane, after forgetting to switch it on until an hour into the flight. Hopefully it should be able to provide a daily track of our journey on Google Earth, and if I can sync it with the cameras it should show where the photos have been taken. This is going to be a bit of a learning curve, so it could take a few days to get the hang of. But it will be fascinating to be able to see where we go, and hopefully it will be of interest to all of you following our progress.
Cheers for now.
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Snowing here in Shoeburyness now, really didn't expect this a very nice surprise.
I thought we were going to be too far east to get anything.
Glad to see a fellow Shoeburyness snow-watcher online, Michelle
Yes, very unusual for us to get much with a set-up like this. We usually need to have the winds coming in from the east or south-east off the Continent to pick up the moisture off the North Sea. It isn't settling as we are too low, but still nice to see.
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50p-sized flakes now...and still not settling, of course.
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Been snowing here since before 8am and still snowing lightly now, but not settling. Now if this had been a couple of months ago...it probably wouldn't have settled either!
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Just got back in from a stunning view of the total phase, with skies 80% clear and such cloud as was about to the south rather than east. Moon well up above horizon (7:30 pm PST) with bright Saturn to left and almost as bright Regulus above.
Moon's disk was generally dull salmon-pink in colour but trending to brighter gold in southern hemisphere, this probably due to earthshine effect with more light reflected from Antarctica at this time of year (from daylit side of earth, light refracts around through our atmosphere, although not shining directly on the Moon).
Generally speaking the Moon was darkened but by no means without ambient luminosity, it looked like an old red tennis ball that had been sitting in some water for a few months. Through binoculars it was quite sublime in appearance with the craters in the deep twilight just barely discernible except for those closer to the southern limb (which appeared more to the right than the lower part of the orb due to the perspective of the orbit at this time of year).
We got some rather dodgy pictures on a digital camera, main problem was the long exposure required, these will probably need some editing before being even marginally suitable for viewing, but it was a very nice eclipse, certainly one of the brighter eclipsed Moon sightings I can recall.
Now the excitement shifts to possible man-made meteor shower, if the U.S. military blows up the wayward satellite, the fragments are supposed to shower down on our part of the world later tonight. Going to try to find the details for that possible event now. Anyone heard anything?
Glad to hear you got a good view, Roger. Would love to see those pics, if you can post them later.
Such a disappointment it clouded over here for the actual event. I was really hoping to capture the eclipse so I could compare it with last year's one I photographed. I stayed up until 3.45am but you could only barely make out a bright patch even in the odd cloud break. So I gave up and went to bed. Oh well, roll on 2015 or whenever the next one is!
If you do post some that you took I will see if I can find one or two from last year to compare how the moon appeared both times.
Cheers
Peter
Now I can put that bridesmaid's dress away! 
Live Streaming Of The Netweather Storm Chase
in Storm Chase USA
Posted · Edited by Blackie
I meant to add that I can watch the weather forecast video from the link you posted, Paul. But otherwise I am getting exactly the same as John, even down to the strange message that he got when he clicked on the April 29 video. Not sure if it was the same one I got it for, but it was certainly one of them.
Oh, and I am using IE7 on a dual core PC with loads of RAM.