May 26, 2000 Chase Summary
This was a fun day with a great storm "intercept" that didn't produce a tornado and a day
that concluded with a very entertaining view of hundreds of chasers invading Graham, Texas.
We correctly assessed the correct place to go initially and were in a great position relative to the
storm as it came into Young county.
The view to our west as we moved to our position.
As we waited alone just south of Newcastle on Hwy 251, we had a very good view of the
increasingly outflow dominated storm. As outflow reached the area, there was an impressive dust foot feature and a short lived gustnado just to our north (which I suspect is the source of some of this day's tornado reports).
Several video captures of the dustfoot and then the gustnado to the north.
To avoid probable hail and limited visibility, we moved back to the south and back east toward Graham.
We stopped at the intersection of FM1769 & US380 where we watched hung out in the outflow for awhile
as it got darker and the the chasers got thicker.
Chasers getting really thick...
Realizing that we were dealing with an increasingly weak storm and darkness, we headed into Graham
to use the facilities and wait for the storm to pass to the north of us so we could head home.
The most rediculous thing I've ever seen chasing occurs at Allsups as we find dozens of "chasers",
chase tours, and assorted Yahoos at Allsups. I can't imagine what the cashiers in the store must have been thinking.
We did return
home after this break at Allsups.
You can see the storm split with the left split being chased by many in Oklahoma. Watch the storm as it approached and crossed Young county.
This is a precipitation totals radar estimate from this day, clearly showing the storm's path.
