When storm chasers come to mind, one typically thinks of a team of meteorologists seeing tornadoes on every outing, but that’s far from the truth — just ask the Ball State Storm Chase Team.
Although the summer months are not usually when the team goes out, the Ball State Storm Chase Team hit the road and headed south toward Columbus and Seymour on their most recent chase May 10.
Not much happened, said James Foster, director of the team.
“We expected very little when going down there,” he said. “All of the thunderstorms that produced tornadoes occurred south in Kentucky. Indiana did not have a single report of severe weather that day. But, hey, that’s what storm chasing involves.”
But weather is always changing, and the chase can feel like clockwork.
“A typical chase day usually starts a couple days, or even a week, before the event is said to happen,” team member Brad Bishop said. “In the days leading up to a chase, we are constantly checking the SPC (Storm Prediction Center) for updates, as well as looking at weather models on our own to try to figure out when we want to deploy and where our target area will be.”
The morning of a chase involves hours of planning and finalizing before departure. Bishop said storm chasing involves a lot of driving.
“I would have to say that a typical chase day is 90 to 95 percent driving, and 5 to 10 percent actually chasing storms,” he said. “The fun thing is, you never know where you will end up.”
With the hours of driving they've done on their trips, the team has made some crazy memories.
One day, Foster and a few members decided to go on a chase where the team needed multiple cars to fit everyone.
“I was driving second in line behind another one of our chase vehicles and suddenly, I saw a windshield fly over my car and off to the side of the road. The back windshield of one of our cars actually flew off,” Foster said. “We had to pull over and we eventually found it on the side of the road, to our surprise.”
The team then used duct tape to secure the windshield back on and went on to continuing chasing storms without any problems.
The team not only has fun on their chases, but also works to help the community when severe weather hits.
“We like going out and aiding the warning process in severe weather situations. The National Weather Service is only warning based on what they see on radar,” Foster said. “We essentially are the eyes of the National Weather Service. Just two months ago, we reported a tornado to the NWS. ... It definitely feels like we are helping communities.”
You don’t have to be a meteorology student to get involved and join the team, Foster said. To join, all you have to do is attend most meetings and take a test online to become spotter certified.
“Anyone can join the team,” Foster said. "In team meetings, we talk a lot about the basics and essentially teach everyone how to chase and how to chase safely. Chasing safely and ethically is our top priority.”
The overall mission of the Ball State Storm Chase Team is to give students the opportunity to observe weather safely and enjoy it for themselves, he said.
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