Tour 3 - Day 3 (1st June 2023) - TX Panhandle - SLGT Risk

[MikeUpjohn]

 Day 3 of Tour 3 started in Portales, NM, with a target for a tiny SLIGHT Risk in the TX Panhandle around the Lamesa, TX to Lubbock, TX area as a boundary sinking South could produce a couple of severe and possibly tornado warned storms. SPC had issued a SLIGHT Risk with 5% tornado risk, 15% wind and 15% sig severe hail risk. 

After lunch at Jason's Deli in Lubbock, TX, where it was raining when we went in, but steaming roads with broken clouds when we came out, we headed out to Lamesa, TX and held out for an hour or so in the gas station there. A small storm went up, and straight over the top of us taking a baking 84F down to 65F in minutes, but to experience torrential rain but it still be red hot is something else. As quickly as the rain came down (with a little thunder), it had dried again, showing you the power of evaporation out there.

Got onto a storm that breifly looked tornadic, which happened to be the storm that went through Lamesa, TX as a general storm. Wrapping rain-curtains were noted along with inflow tail and a low rotating wall cloud. This became obscured by rain and hail, and ultimately died out, though it did try and hang on for as long as it could. We sat watching another storm from the road side North of Vealmoor, TX. Ultimately the boundary crashed through and did not interact the way it was expected, and by 7.30pm, storms were dead, leaving just blue skies.

Back North with a couple of other chasers to Lubbock, TX for dinner.

[MikeUpjohn]

Also, if anyone ever did look at the Netweather T&C's for storm chasing, and saw the bits about all the creepy crawlies that you need to watch for, here's one of them. This guy (who was already dead), is a Tarantula Hawk Wasp, who has reportedly, the second most painful sting on the planet. It's otherwise harmless, but apparently, not something you want to mess with. Did not put my hand next to it for scale, just in case, but this one was around 3 inches across on the ground.