Showing posts with label Winter Storm Warning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Winter Storm Warning. Show all posts

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Hunkered Down

It's a good thing the weather's been frightful because I've been cleaning up after my lost wallet all day! It's 2AM now, and I just made a nightcap...

Still Life With PiƱa Colada
I never realized how many monthly bills I've automated! I think an encrypted document with everything in one place is in order, with a copy on CD stored in the safety deposit box!

I talked with one helpful Customer Service agent in Ohio, and they've had an unseasonably mild winter too...

My day began  at 10AM when Mrs Landlord called. She said she was down with a chest cold and taking a sick day, that Mr Landlord was on the road, and not to worry about taking out the garbage and recycling...she'd made arrangements for a special pickup Friday!

I couldn't have agreed more! The wind blew like crazy all night (It's still blowing now) The DaveCave's front porch is still clear of snow, but up in front of the garage, copious drifts have accumulated.

I told Mrs Landlord that I'd blow the berm as soon as the plows came by. The sooner you get on a fresh berm the better.

I made a pot of French Roast and did the dishes. Looking out the kitchen window, I could see the neighbors' driveway was still berm-free. An hour or so later I clicked on Where Is My Snowplow and saw that there was a plow getting close to the neighborhood.

It was now noon newstime...I tuned in Channel 13 for the Blue Canyon Live Remotes and the forecast...about 15 minutes in I heard the plow lumbering up the street. I was already in long pants with shoes and socks on. I wanted to wait until KCRA3's 12:40 weather report before I suited up and hit the driveway/berm project. At 12:30 the plow made it's downhill pass, I watched it go by while warming up my coffee. I felt a pang of guilt when I sat back down and waited for the KCRA3 weathercast.

While watching the radar images the plow ran up the hill again...that's a lot of snow! Pulling on my slicker and putting in my ear plugs, I heard the plow make it's second downhill pass...that's gonna be some berm, I thought...

The front stairs were almost scoured of snow as the wind was blowing a steady 15-20. The drifts between the cars in the driveway were two feet at the garage door giving way to 18" or so out at the berm. This was the highly prized Champagne Powder...Utah's Finest, so to speak...

I blew my way out of the garage and through the berm...not much resistance...perfect timing! I blew the berm in front of my car first...It's the downhill direction...The wind wasn't making this easy...Five passes, and I turned around and began blowing the berm across the street.

The wind was definitely on my team now...I blew the berm past Mrs Landlord's Subaru and Mr Landlord's Pickup. The deep snow and the stately speed of the plow made the berm very manageable. I left a solid pass in front of our cars to help catch the next berm.

Sometime around 6PM I went down for a "nap"...I awoke at 8:30...I may have missed the plows, but hey...It'll wait till morning! This snow is so dry, even if the berm has 12 hours of set-up time it'll be a piece of cake to blow!

Well, the 3:09 AM AFD says there's more snow on the way, and that the big winds will blow again between 5AM and 10AM Winter Storm Warnings are up...looks like the wind will be on my team again when I blow the driveway berm!

Good night, thanks for reading!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Settled Down...Kinda

About last night...

Stutter-step start...not in my fave BR350
Nice to be grooming in falling snow again...
Didn't need the cloud deck settling in just before dawn...
Really didn't need the cloud deck to turn to rain...
For want of a silly cable, I went tuneless all damn night...

I remembered a very funny bit that Jimmy Fallon did the other night. I promised Driller I'd embed it.


The fire between Reno and Carson City is behaving...for now.

Gonna be another Interesting Day...

Another wild night on tap...may end in rain again...grrrr...

Friday night update:
Tonight's shift is gonna begin with rain...hurry cold front!

Thursday, January 19, 2012

The Worst Is Happening

I got off early this morning, then fell asleep before noon. When the wind shook me awake at 2:30PM, my Twitter timeline came alive with news of a wildfire in the Washoe Valley between Reno and Carson City.

Evacuations are mandatory, and a few homes have reportedly been consumed. KOLO8 TV has preempted regular programming for fire coverage. Their WeatherDude reports steady 35 MPH winds in the Washoe Valley and 100MPH gusts up on the ridgetops.

Hwy 395 is closed, and Vice President Joe Biden's speech at Galena High School has been cut short to allow time to evacuate!

The fire has a name now, The Washoe Fire. It's not the only fire either...I looked at Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center page and saw The Jack's Valley Fire.

KOLO8 is streaming their coverage now, and will cover a live press conference at 5PM.

NWS Reno has extended Wind Warnings and Red Flag Warnings until 10PM.

It's just beginning to snow in Truckee, and 4 miles west, Chain Controls are up over Interstate 80's Donner Summit

More Weirdness

My head hit the pillow at exactly bedtime today, 2PM. I got off work a little early, picked up the mail, and picked up a few things at the Auto Parts Store.

Back at the DaveCave, I put out the garbage and recycling stuff, did some chores in the garage and driveway, and Pow-Wowed with Mr Landlord on our plan to get my pickup, Mrs Landlord's car, and all the other winter crap into the garage before the storm arrives for real Thursday afternoon. Then I made a killer breakfast...a pastrami and cream cheese omelet...yummy...

I woke up with a start...no dream...probably another big gust of wind...it's blowing like a storm is really coming in...and one is...followed by most of a week's worth of juicy drought busters! These are the first serious westerly winds of my season to date!

I tuned in the 5 O'clock News looking for an idea of exactly when the snow would start flying. Imagine my surprise when the weather map had a wide ranging Red Flag Warning for my neck of the woods, alongside a Winter Storm Warning on the West Slope, and Winter Weather Advisories to the north and south.

Warnings for everybody!
Weird...my Twitter Timeline has tipped me to several Prescription Burns around the Tahoe Basin that the Forest Service is conducting. I heard an advisory on the radio on my way home from work...Carson City was getting a lot of smoke from Prescription Burns on the El Dorado National Forest.

I won't lie starting fires in wildlands during Red Flag Warnings gives me the Heebie-Geebies.

I'm still up...not good...I guess I'm a little too excited. I get back in my favorite BR350...it's been down for a couple of days getting a new injector pump. Thursday night's shift is the one that's pumping this extra adrenaline through my fevered brain.

Damn, am I ever ready!

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Thoughts on the Passing Scene

It's 2:18PM PDT. I just lit the pilot light on the heater. NWS Reno has issued a Winter Storm Warning for tonight into Wednesday afternoon. Snow level lowering to DaveCave level by morning.

My brief brush with our dystopian digital future has turned into a trend.  I ran into Reno Friday to pick up some specialty mechanic's tools, and provisions. On my way down the Truckee River canyon, I noticed CalTrans was busy trying to wrap up their paving project on Westbound I-80 before the rain arrives. There was a two mile long backup in the Work Zone, and I made a mental note that I might want to go home via the Mt Rose Highway.

It was a lovely day in Reno...90°F of nice desert-dry heat. I filled up at COSTCO but demurred on the warehouse visit (I don't do COSTCO on Fri/Sat/Sun) I heard a traffic bulletin about the slow going on WB 80 as I wrapped up my errands and turned south towards the Mt Rose Highway.

The desiduous trees were beginning to show their autumn color as I reached the summit. There was a heavy haze in the air (It's prescribed burn time in the Tahoe Basin) There was lots of fellow motorists up there on the mountain...that traffic bulletin I guessed. Even obscured by smoky haze, there isn't a better vista than Lake Tahoe looking south from high above Incline Village. I reached Lakeshore Drive, and headed towards Kings Beach...where I ran into another road construction project. I wasn't following close enough, so the flagger twirled the SLOW/STOP semaphore to STOP as I arrived.

I watched the eastbound traffic go by for 7:00 minutes...on the radio the news of Bank of America's new $5/month Debit Card Fee was breaking...I payed it no mind and gazed instead at the lake views and fancy boats playing on the glassy water.

Hours later I tried to logon to BofA's site to balance my checkbook, and it was unavailable. A few minutes later the website's troubles were a story on the 11 O'clock News. It was Sunday before I could do my online banking. Millions of BofA customers were logging on to file complaints about the new $60/year fees, slowing the website to a crawl. I washed my hands of the whole thing...I want perfect performance, without any drama or glitches when I'm banking online!

Tuesday I ran up against crashing websites everywhere again! About 10AM PDT Tuesday morning, I (and millions of iPhone Fans around the world) hit various tech websites to find out about Apple's latest whiz-bang gizmo. Rumor Central said the iPhone5 was going to be the greatest thing since sliced Blackberries...

Now none of these websites were streaming live video of Apple's presentation, these were LiveBlogs, where geek journalists type a sentence or two every minute or two, that are posted to the various websites for visitors to read. Very low bandwidth compared to video, and still these websites were driven to the brink...several lockups, drop-outs, and 404 errors...my, my... the power of Apple's marketing is really something!

I gather the Apple Fanbois are a little crestfallen since the iPhone 5 didn't make it's long lusted for debut. Apple followed their usual MO and introduced the iPhone 4S. A new faster, dual core processor, new camera and 1080p HD video, an new operating system with 200 new features and voice control, all in cahoots with iCloud, Apple's move to cloud storage and computing.

So, what was I doing...paying attention to the iPhone hoopla? I don't need a smartphone. Well I was hoping some of the new goodies would show up in the Generation 5 iPod Touch...especially the fullHD video and the upgraded camera. No such luck...

My iPod is now two years old. It's a Gen3 without the cameras. I've got a month and a half to follow along with the early adopters who upgrade to the new iOS5 before deciding to get one on Black Friday, the only day of the year to get Apple products on sale. I've never upgraded to iOS4 because so many Apple iPod owners had tons of trouble with their upgrades...specifically their battery life dropped by half...no thanks.

I have all the capability of the 5th Gen iPod between my 3rd Gen iPod and pocket digicam now, except for Apple's FaceTime and iCloud. I fancy FaceTime the iOS Video Chat/telephony app, but I can wait until next October in case the iPhone4S' chips, cameras, and video capabilities trickle down to the Gen6 iPod.

Ten hours later, all the Geek Websites are firing on all cylinders. I'm happy to soldier on with my bag of digital goodies until there's a pocket-sized quantum leap in Gadgetville. Technology never sleeps.

As I get ready to call it a day, I can hear the rain pelting the front door. I might be shoveling snow in the morning...that's OK...the weather is supposed to warm back up by the weekend.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Tongue Tired

What am I doing up? Perhaps last night's trouble free shift didn't take enough out of me?

So I woke up at 5PM...the TV was on (I fell asleep watching something on my DVR)...amazingly the tube was showing Regularly Scheduled Programming, not Special Storm-Watch News!

I changed channels...no worries, KCRA3 was offering the "Severe Weather First Alert" version of their "KCRA News at Five"...lots of flooded roads, satellite maps, and weather-beaten reporters on remote feeds from the most telegenic locations.

Interstate 80 is closed for zero visibility and avalanches...one reporter waded into the debris field of a slide that landed on the number two lane westbound...I saw some small debris fields on the shoulder on my way home this morning.

I guess I'm just numb...yeah the TV people are reporting that the CHP has closed the Interstate until at least midnight...I'll just talk my way on like I do every time the highway is closed...it's a Brothers In Arms deal...fellow Storm Fighters gettin' 'er done...yeah, yeah, SOP, whatever...

I guess, I'm just worn down...no snarky retorts ...or thoughts for that matter...all my crew have become automatons...work...sleep...drive home...drive to work...work...sleep...do it over again...and again...

The weatherman says we'll get a break next week...I'll enjoy it when it gets here...meanwhile, call me tongue tied...

I take solace in knowing that Baseball Season begins in earnest in under seven days...put me in coach...

Good night!

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Now the Story Can Be Told

No, there was no embargo on my story...It's an organic limitation...no time, and not enough sleep conspired to keep me from my keyboard.

The story has a happy ending though!

Blistering cold temps arrived with the cold front...already cold, temps haven't been above freezing on My Mountain in 13 days. The cold front dropped the mercury into the teens and twenties...that's the High Temperature for the day!

High winds and copious snowfall made for interesting grooming conditions...to say the least! My crew handled it with aplomb...I'm very happy with how these guys are jelling into a solid team.

So we persevered, but Mother Nature prevailed...she closed our lifts, one by one, and closed Interstate-80 with her gale force winds and heavy snowfall combining to make white-out conditions.

Jeweler offered his futon, and I wisely accepted. Talk about hospitality, when we finally got to Jeweler's place, his room mate Trevor had a beautiful plate of hors d'oeuvres on the kitchen table, and plenty of good conversation.

Trevor made pork chops and mashed potatoes for dinner, but I slept through the seating...I enjoyed the pork chop in my lunchbox that night...Trevor can flat out cook!

Friday night, the storm was all but over at midnight. No snow, no flurries after 0100, and decent seeing made for a triumphantly enjoyable night! We got plenty of corduroy made, did the digging, and were still out of there by 11AM!

I made my way home to find the driveway buried under three feet of snow with a berm...my evening away had allowed the ski-lease across the street to get their driveway cleared, so I poached the spot to park the pickup in, and waded into my garage and fired up the Honda snowblower.

The snow was deeper than the Honda's box was tall, still ol' reliable did it's usual yeoman's job dispatching the snow...an hour and 45 minutes, and the driveway was buffed wall to wall and the pickup was in the garage...I'm Saved!

Shoveling my way into the DaveCave, I didn't dilly-dally...straight into a hot shower! I made a pastrami and cream cheese omelet, a screwdriver cocktail, and collapsed...it wasn't even 2PM!

10 seconds later, my alarm went off...10PM...uggh...up and at 'em, Saturday night looked much better!

All hands on deck! We did it again...my guys kicked it, and we were off the hill early. I blew home at 65MPH and hit the hay...just a nap...I had an unavoidable meeting at 2:30PM...on my first day off in six days...I'm OK with it...the grooming crew Ruled the Universe...again!

Come on up! The skiing is incredible, and I am Outta Here!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Back and Beat

After not making it home for the first time since the DaveCave's inception, I'll just make a quick note before I'm enveloped in sweet sleep's deep embrace...

100MPH winds, and heavy snow did the Devil's Work Friday morning. My crew beat back Mother Nature's Best all night, only to lose one lift after another...first Wind Hold...all the Mountain Top Lifts...then the radio crackled with the closures, one by one...next up (or down if truth be told) the Mid-Level Lifts...wind hold...then closed for the day...Today's lift ticket will be good for another lift ticket any time...

Finally, a 73MPH gust on the Bunny Hill sealed our fate...no damage except to our pride...

Discretion being the better part of valor, I jumped at Jeweler's offer to crash at his abode rather than brave the closed highway in the abysmal daylight white out conditions...

Thanks Jeweler for the Cot n' Hot!

I'll tell the whole story Sunday...call it a bonus...try not to think of it as a Makeup Blog...

Good night!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Just Damn!

So...here I am...layin' in bed, twenty minutes before BedTime, Wednesday...the trouble is, I'm fully adrenalated...yes, adrenaline is fiercely coursing through my veins, preventing my lesser sleep hormones from doing their assigned tasks...it's my tiredest cliche...for lack of a more creative thought, I'm like a little boy on Christmas Eve...yet again.

I followed my own best advice, and stayed up all night. Not difficult really, the wind was makin' plenty of noise...and every hour or two, a large Ponderosa Pine Cone would slam into the DaveCave's protective skin or front porch causing a momentary Fight or Flight Response.

At 0430, the Local TV News Shows began their "Storm Watch" coverage...plenty of wild remotes of windswept reporters, snowy webcam feeds, rulers in gloved hands measuring the snowfall, and viewer photos of puddles and ponding...what's not to like? After a month+ of fair weather, you could say: "I Live for this stuff!" Sadly, I fell back to sleep around 0630, and woke up at 0830...d'oh!

Here at the DaveCave, I cleared an honest foot off my front porch at 1100. The wind had abated, and the trash and recycling needed to go out for pickup...Wednesday is Garbage Day in my subdivision...and it was still snowing!

I took some snaps as the storm dawdled, finally arrived, and the snow piled up. The Winter Storm Warning continues, and the Reno NWS Office says:

ANOTHER WINTER STORM IS LIKELY FOR THE SIERRA STARTING THURSDAY
AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY EVENING.

View from the mouth of the DaveCave 2/14/11 6:37PM

12:20AM 2/15/11
Lull in the action 2:12PM 2/16/11
So far, so good!

Competing for my attention, my niche sports are all trumpeting their latest Siren Calls...
Bicycle Racing: 
Lance Armstrong announces his retirement 2.0
2010 Tour de France Champion Alberto Contador is exonerated of Doping Charges that would have stripped him of his TdF Victory.
All of AMGEN Tour of California's Stage Details are now announced.
Motorsports:
Middle East Unrest gives pause to Formula One Organizers over the March 3rd beginning of three days of testing, and March 13th's Bahrain Grand Prix...the verdict still out...
Daytona 500 Pole Sitter Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrecks racecar in morning practice session, will start Thursday's qualifying race in backup car.
America's Cup News:
More challenger syndicates announced, bringing total to five including the Australians back for their eighth challenge.
Exhibition America's Cup Racing to begin this July 2011 on San Francisco Bay!
Non-Niche News:
World Champion San Francisco Giants begin Spring Training in Scottsdale, AZ- Pitchers and Catchers reported Monday 2/14, position players report Friday, and full squad practice begins Saturday. The Giants open their season Friday, April 1st at the LA Dodgers.

No wonder I can't sleep...

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Storm Door Re-Opens Pandora's Box

Tom Petty sang: "The waiting is the hardest part" No truer words were ever crooned.

The pre-frontal winds arrived before dawn Monday. The sun came out at the DaveCave, but flurries were blowing in from the Sierra Crest, about four miles West, as the snow flies... I ran errands, straightened up my side of the garage, put the pickup in the garage, and began my weekend of hunkering down. (I wussed out on my trip down to the Ancestral Digs...the forecast has snow levels way down to 2000ft on Wednesday, when I planned to return, and the thought of 50+ miles of chain controls is more than I'm prepared to endure!)

Here on Tuesday afternoon, the sun is still shining, the roads are clear, and the wind is still howling. Interstate 80, while Chain Control-Free, was closed for a time Tuesday morning Westbound for a tipped-over hay truck just West of Donner Summit...it even made the Sacramento TV News thanks to the miracle that is Skype and cell phones...whatta mess.

I did some Spring Cleaning in the DaveCave proper, ran a load of laundry, edited the DVRs, and got the recycling done. I was listening to the radio, and had the TV on with the sound off...the better to watch the approach of the storm system...only it didn't get any closer.

I took a break for lunch (a Homemade "Bakesale Bette's" Fried Chicken Sandwich, with a Gordon Biersch Czech Style Pilsner) I looked around my weather websites for some intel, and the forecasters were moving the storm's arrival back...web serendipity being what it is, I found a story on what type of drivers will be the first to get in a wreck when the snow starts falling, and chain controls start marching down the mountain...

Duh...SUV Drivers! All Mountain People know this...KCRA3 has the story with video. Who hasn't cursed one of these fools as they blow past you like Mario Andretti, only to enjoy the schadenfreude a little later when you pass them while they're high-centered on the median or guardrail?

Ah ha! My 9:30PM check of the webcams told the story...the wait is over! Chain controls are up from Drum to Truckee...there's a growing inch of snow on the DaveCave's front porch, a Winter Storm Warning is up, and the WeatherReaders on the 6 O'clock news all agreed, the worst was coming overnight...damn, and yours truly with the night off!

I won't be able to sleep tomorrow, for tomorrow night I get to play again!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Getting Dialed

Good coyote! Watching Boreal's groomers
Funny, my sleep schedule this season is shaping up as a two part affair...fall asleep during the Noon News, wake up for the 5PM News, nap from 8-10PM...so far it's workin' OK

So between sleep shifts I check the web for weather intel...I read the AFD's, scan the PWS's, watch the weatherman's standup on the TV News...Winter Storm Warnings have been issued for Noon Friday through 4PM Sunday! Today I even received an email newsletter on the forecast deluge. This one gave me pause. It's from The Storm King, Mark McLaughlin our local Tahoe Weather Historian.

Here's the takeaway that might keep me awake:

"Weather watchers like me have been somewhat expecting a potential flood
event this winter, especially in December. The influence of the strong La
Nina event
in the Pacific Ocean trends toward a weather pattern that can tap
a moist subtropical flow known in the West as the “Pineapple Express.”
Virtually all of California’s most destructive floods have occurred during
La Nina-influenced winters, so this approaching potent system should come as
no surprise. Another one is expected next week."

"This winter is off to a strong start; precipitation in October was 253
percent above normal and November dumped all that snow. The saturated soils will be unable to absorb much of the expected rain which increases the flood potential. Interestingly, this winter’s precipitation plot line is closely following the trajectory of 1982-1983, the wettest year on record. During the winter of 1983, nearly 90 inches of precipitation inundated the region,
including 56 feet of snow measured at Donner Pass."

So, maybe we'll be making history this season...O, how well I remember 82-83!

Weather Geeks and History Freaks couldn't do better than subscribing to Mark's Newsletter: Tahoe Nuggets. Mark's always a fascinating read, especially for those of us lucky enough to live in the Tahoe Sierra, with all this history under foot...and at times...falling from the sky.

More good times!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Results So Far

From the TV overview this morning, they're really gettin' slammed up in the High Sierra.

I've got KMAX31TV's "Good Morning Sacramento" streaming on the laptop and KCRA3 on the tube. The storm coverage is fun to view from the cozy comfort under the covers...chain controls are all the way down to Colfax on Interstate 80. KCRA3 showed an awesome view of Lake Tahoe complete with the dark gray squall line right down on the lake.

All the webcam views are spectacular...winter wonderlands or near white-outs.

The the Thanksgiving table last evening, the Ancestral Digs were treated to lots of thunder and lightning, and the flickering power to remind us of our true place in this world.

Most of the lightning strikes were five or more miles from the Digs, as were the heaviest cells of rain. The Bay Bridge even sustained a lightning strike that was captured and posted to Facebook by KTVU2's senior meteorologist, Bill Martin.

Forecasters promise two more waves of moisture before all is said and done. Snowfall totals are in the midrange of the forecast...18-24 inches from each wave, not the 24-36 inches at the top end of the forecast range.

Four resorts are open this morning: Boreal, Northstar, Squaw Valley USA, and Mount Rose.

Temps are frigid, so snowmaking can run around the clock for the next few days. Lots of resorts will open in time for Thanksgiving.

In my post-turkey torpor last night, I snuck away from the family long enough to do a quick lap round my weather websites.

The latest 90 Day Outlook Discussion is up at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center. This month's discussion says we have a "borderline strong La NiƱa", and there's a lot of cold water across the Eastern Pacific, and it's over a huge portion of the Tropical Pacific.

At 9:30AM Sunday, CalTrans closed I-80 again for accidents and spin-outs in the High Country.

It always happens during the first big winter storm...human nature being what it is, most folks are clueless when traveling over the High Sierra until they have their eyes opened by chain controls, a scary white-out, or a spin-out. Welcome back to reality! Now, pay attention!

White-out at Boreal means white-out on I-80 too!

I'll be back up there this week...I can't hardly wait!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

In The Bag

I had a fun and productive weekend here in the Inland Valley. KirkVallus was in town and we spent some time working on SturgeUrge's boat Friday afternoon. Saturday, KV was off to the Big Valley for a Dog Race called "Lure Coursing" where he plays with his whippet Rose...or as KirkVallus told me with a straight face..."Rose, it's short for Rosy"

KirkVallus told me that his sister read my blog from time to time, and said: "I don't get it...he's always writing about the weather" and stuff. I looked at KV and said: "Well, duh..." We went back to riffin' and laughin'...

We always have a lot of laughs when we get together...we've earned the title: "The Kirk and Dave Show" over the years from our closest friends...so it came as no surprise Sunday evening, when we laughed ourselves into tears over at SturgeUrge's house. SturgeUrge is in sales, so he knows a joke or two as well...suffice it to say, hilarity ensued...in spades.

In a little lull in the laugh-track, I queried the boys on the phrase "Baggy Trough" Nothing but crickets...then back to the wholesale hijinx. KirkVallus was anxious to get home to work, so he was going to miss our Monday halibut trip. SturgeUrge and I decided we'd pass on Monday too, and go up to Tomales Bay for crab and halibut hunting on Friday instead.

I've been digging in the garden early...until the heat causes me to retreat. Today I called it a morning in time to catch the weather on the Noon News. While waiting for the weather segment to air, I scanned the 'Net for fishing reports, Marine Weather Forecasts, and I went back to the Reno AFD from last Friday to look again at the "Baggy Trough" reference. Still puzzled, I ran through the AFD Archive to see if I could get a clear idea of just what a baggy trough is. No such luck. I clicked on YellowPages.com and searched National Weather Service near Reno, NV and gave 'em a call.

After a fairly short computer phone triage, I pushed zero and got a human on the line.

I explained that I worked in the Ski Industry, and that I was a regular reader of their Area Forecast Discussion, and I was wondering what a Baggy Ridge was.

The guy on the phone was one of the forecasters, and was just like my Dad (and every engineer I've ever met) all business. He explained haltingly that a baggy trough was an elongated trough that wasn't well organized as opposed to a closed low which is an actual storm system. "Kinda like a Slacker Trough?" I asked...well, he allowed...maybe..."Sloppy?" I asked...yeah, kinda, let's just say it's weak and disorganized. Sounds like Slacker to me, I thought.

Once I recognized that I was "workin' a tough room", I started thanking him for his office's level-headed forecast work, especially in contrast to the Sacramento Office and their Chamber of Commerce style. I told him that I thought of the Reno guys as cowboys...not out to pasture, but realists, conservative with their forecasts, and thanked him for missing the snowfall predictions to the light side. He said: "We try to hit it right on the button"..."I know you do" I replied, and said you guys are conservative, not Pollyanna types. I told him that every time the Sacramento Office forecast the "End of the drought" for the weekend, and it turned out to be nice, it costs us a quarter million bucks. I could hear him smile when he volunteered that Sacramento has a "different threshold for warning criteria"

I reminded him that Sacramento posted a Winter Storm Warning the Friday night of Memorial Weekend, that it did snow, but the mess on the Interstate was due more to unsuspecting revelers caught in winter weather and chain controls for the first time, and not from copious snowfall. I said a Winter Storm Watch was more like it, and he said "We'd call an Advisory"

I smiled hearing the Engineer-Speak, and thanked him again, and asked: "how's the weather in Reno today?" Cheerfully he told me, and said it was the kind of day he'd rather be outside. In passing, I whined about the Spring-long North Wind Regime's effect on my fishing plans, and asked if it would return to normal any time soon. He said the winds should become onshore by this weekend!

We chatted about the Bay Area, the "Natural Air Conditioner" (they must have a chapter on Weather Cliches in meteorology school) and the prevailing coastal winds and their effect on upwelling. I tried to pry some La NiƱa intel from him, but he didn't have any other than the quick exit of El NiƱo conditions. I thanked him once more and told him to "keep up the good work" I could hear him smile as I hung up. I smiled too, knowing my opinion of the culture in the NWS Reno Office was spot-on.

I always smile when the World is spinning in greased grooves...

Thursday, April 29, 2010

After Action Report


0530 Tuesday
Well, if you consider layin' about surfing the 'Net for weather data to be actual action...

I've lost last night's skirmish in the BodyClock Reset War. Gusty winds woke me from my unplanned nap. The winds freshened for three hours after I awoke at 0130, then the power flickered four times in two minutes around 0440...amazingly it stayed on!

The latest look at the Mountaintop Sensors show the peak gusts may have passed. The top of Slide Mountain El.9650, is showing 70 gusting to 95, while the top of Squaw El.8700, shows 65 with gusts to 120+

Slide's numbers are easing...down from 90 with gusts to 120, while Squaw's are still inching up from 60 with 100+ gusts. The Reno AFD says the wind will blow all day..the Wind Advisory expires at 5PM tonight, then the Winter Weather Advisory kicks in until 9AM Wednesday.

I tuned in Sacramento's CBS Television Newscast. and they're doing a bunch of live remotes of rain, wind and downed trees across the Big Valley. They opened with the Weather, it being all telegenic and all...Sacramento's NWS Office jumped the shark and issued a Winter Storm Warning through 11PM Tuesday. Reno's Office says the Eastside (venue for Jerry Otto's Fish Camp) won't get hammered, and stands pat with Advisories...check that, Reno's upgraded to High Wind Warnings 'till 5PM now (0637PDT)

0648 Tuesday
The Sun rises earlier through the miracle of Digital Video than it does for unaided human eyes...looking at the webcams around the region, shows a bunch of dry scenes...strangely, the radar says it should be falling at the DaveCave, and has for better than two hours...lookin' out the window, it's a dry front porch.

From my position as the lowly Rear Guard in the BodyClockWar, it's looking like a steep uphill battle to wind the stem back to sleeping all night...sigh...

Wow! Power's flickering again at 0700, and the Local TV News is showing live Skype Video of wet roads in Colfax...here it comes!

D'oh! The snow is starting to fall at the DaveCave...7:08AM...Good Night Dear Readers..I'll just pull the White Flag up over my head and close my eyes now...I don't have the energy to wave it this morning.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Winter Returns

Last night was the last of a long string of "Hero Snow" nights. The first flurries of the 2010 Summit Siege began around 0500. Nothing to write home about, so anemic that it looked like it would take a day to amount to an inch. I motored down into the Mountain's WiFi cloud and looked at the Radar images on the iPod...Oh, it's coming all right...it's taking it's damn sweet time though.

The first big blast should arrive this evening. The Winter Storm Warning goes up at 4PM, and lasts through 4AM Tuesday. The storms are lined up like airliners coming into Chicago's O'Hare Airport. They say another storm every 18-24 hours all next week...with the average 5000ft snow level, they're promising 10 feet at 7000ft by Friday the 22nd!

I'm actually looking forward to a good ol' fashioned siege...it's been too long! When Mother Nature gives us her worst, I love the way all the folks pull together, to just get it on. The Mountain Spirit is in full display, and many hands make light work. It's sort of an enlightened "Bunker Mentality" for lack of a better phrase.

Last night, as I was blasting around the Mountain at Full Stick, I looked at all the stuff that will disappear over the next few nights...here's a tree that we drove right over...dozens of times a night...that we haven't driven over yet in this Century. Soon, it might even be downhill from the piste to the lodge decks! Bottom lift terminals will live in huge pits, and our guests will gaze down at our big trail map billboards.

I'm keeping this short today...I'm already husbanding my energy. Tonight's my night off, but I'm going to work anyway. I missed all the early season fireworks, and I don't want to be on the sidelines this time!

I have a feeling that getting to work tonight is gonna be a Grade A Bitch...My neighborhood is plugged with Holiday Weekenders...all of 'em parking on the street...which is against the law this time of year...the Town of Truckee clearly isn't enforcing the Parking Regulations...their snowplow crews are gonna be hating life tonight...my street is going to look like a Bobsled Track once the plows come through! (Unless the Snow Removal Boss calls out the tow trucks first!)

I'm gonna fire up my Police Scanner when I hit the sack this afternoon...first time this winter...it can't help but be way better than TV. Never any reruns on the scanner. Go Vikings!