STORM2K

Well I am going to do my basic skywarn class on the 30th June. I cant wait..

Can anyone tell me what they discuss in the basic class? Just so I know what to expect.

I took the basic class on April 15, let's see if I can remember...

It's a really easy class. They show a series of slides, they tell you what to look for to determine if a storm is capable of producing a tornado. They tell you what to look for in a down draft, or a wall cloud, depending on your distance from the storm. They also give you a booklet that recaps everything that has been covered. There's no quiz at the end or anything. All you do is sit and listen for 3 hours and you get a certificate. That's not to say it's boring...I learned a lot.

But they didn't talk about hurricanes though.

Where's the fun in not talking about hurricanes,LOL.
After all tis the season.

Debbie

At the skywarn class up here in central va, they talk about tornadoes, hurricans, winter storms, severe thunderstorms and any other types of weather that people ask about...

The Skywarn classes in Lincoln, talk about tornadoes, winter storms, severe storms and just about anything.......other than Hurricanes. I guess they figure that the chances of us getting a hurricane is slim!

Thanks for the info guys. I am really looking forward to it too.

I am going to the county Hurricane awareness class on the 25th, so I will get a chance hear all about the cane season from a local point of view Steve Letro, Meteorologist In Charge from the National Weather Service will be the instructor for the class.

Have fun, Bron. Let us know anything interesting that you observe at the Skywarn Training Session.

What if you for some reason or another do not understand what you are observing in the slides they show you and/or the information in the booklet they give you?

It sounds like something I would like to do, but first of all I have no where to get there, my brother lives down the street from the National Weather Service in Melbourne, Florida. You have to be comfortable enough to go and actually know what is happening.

Well Momlett and I went to the skywarn class, and really enjoyed it.

They covered pretty much what you guys had told me, there was a very small section on hurricanes.. (Last friday we went to a hurricane class held by the NWS.. that was really really great, and very informative) we did not get to keep the spotters guide thogh but thats ok cause I just downloaded the pdf file from the skywarn home page

Now all we need is some weather to report.

Tom, If there was something I did not understand, I would just ask the speaker to explain. They are very understanding people, and love to share there knowledge about weather, so if I had a problem, I would not have hesitated to ask for an explanation.

Right, you can only ask for explanations so many times... if you still don't know something to the fullest that you should understand and obviouly do want to understand to be a Skywarn Spotter. For some reason you may know what you think you need to know, but they don't think so and then you put all this time and effort into something.

What happens if you are unable to report to the National Weather Service time after time for a variety of reasons... or you want to and don't get a chance or for one reason or another aren't able to report the information to them... what happens then?

I'm apparently not getting my point across to well. Sorry.

Amanzi, I signed up for an August 8th class. Like you,
I can hardly wait!

Annette, I know you will enjoy it..

Actually on Aug 8 Im going to take a tour of the NWS in JAX with the guy who took the hurricane awarness class.. how cool is that! IM SO EXCITED

Let us know how it goes

Congratulations Bronwyn... You are officially a SKYWARN spotter now! You will have plenty of weather to report in the future. Best way to get the reputation of a good spotter is to always be sure to be accurate with your reports even if they are not as dramatic as some of the reports coming in from other places.

I remember reporting pea-sized hail when media was reporting quarter-size. Sorry...my hail was pea-sized and that is what I reported.

I just talked with our SKYWARN coordinator at NWS Phoenix last week, Steve Sipple. I'm into my fifth year here and have the 800-number programmed into my cell phone in the event I have a chance to report a condition they want to know about.

Good luck to you too Annette!!!!

I'm getting jealous!!! Skywarn classes aren't offered here after the one OHD took until next spring. I was signed up for one and the dude died before we had the class! There weren't any others after that! I guess I'll check again just to make sure.

Thanks, Steve - like Bronnie, I know that I will
enjoy it very much!

David, that's awful that your instructor died before
the class! Are there not any classes posted on NWS
that are even close to you, in the next county or two?
I saw classes that were posted for 50-75 miles away,
and, I was patient, and, held out - low and behold, a
class came up 25-30 miles away!

The SkyWarn class was very informative! Hurricanes were
merely mentioned with this class, as well. I suppose that
more emphasis is put on them in hurricane-prone areas.
I did have a great time learning about supercells and tornado
formation. Folks had a lot of good stories, as well.

Bron, how was that NWS tour at JAX?

Here in Central Florida ( tampa bay region). the advanced skywarn class they offered last year did talk about hurricanes a good part of the class. Both classes( basic and advanced)were informative:):)

Thanks, Mike! We got the book on hurricane
preparedness, and a few quick notes, then,
back to supercells. I have the book in case I
ever move to a hurricane-prone area!

Guess I'll keep my eyes posted for twisters
wind, and, hail here in mid-southern-TN!