Why do you like/dislike hurricanes?

[hurricanetrack]

Ok, over the years, I have posted questions about why people are so "in to" hurricanes. Some people clearly make a living in the hurricane business, like I do. Others are quite interested in the whole process. Even still, there are those who have developed a deep hatred for hurricanes and anyone who "likes" hurricanes. It is all a very strange phenomenon and I hope to one day write a book about it. But my question here today is this:

Why do you either like or dislike hurricanes and what about them do you like or dislike? Is it experience? The draw of the awesome power? You suffered some kind of loss? Maybe you are in the business. I think this would be an interesting case study but for now, a great discussion. Please keep it friendly and don't get offended by those who thoroughly enjoy a hurricane making landfall. That's like getting mad at a cop for being a cop or a fire fighter for being what he/she is. We all know that hurricanes can be lethal, but still, something draws us to them- one way or another- what is it for you?

[punkyg]

I started liking hurricanes back in 2004, when hurricane charley made landfall
and came close to orlando. it was exciting, then came frances and jeanne and now
i love being in hurricanes or should i say when they hit close to my area.

[jojo]

Living in the Uk, we don't tend to get extremes of weather other than lots of rain and the odd beefy storm, even snow has become a novelty - something to predict and then follow for a few days to see if setups are perfect enough to bring on some of the white stuff. It's exciting to try and predict something that's so unpredictable.

With hurricanes, it's a similar thing - even with all our knowledge, technology, satellites, etc, it's one of nature's extremes, not as unpredictable as earthquakes and volcanos but capable of making us feel very small, hopeless and insignificant. They look so beautiful and perfect from above on satellite too, knowing that under that image they are whipping up the ocean like that's insignificant as well.

The devastation and sadness of loss is the downside to it but where there's beauty (like choosing to live somewhere with amazing ocean views), there's usually dangers to balance that out and I don't think there'd be many people willing to give up the beautiful things in their life to swap that for a guaranteed safe one.

[z-bail]

Well, reason number 1 first and foremost is that I am a surfer and summer time is just flat as a pancake here in Central Florida. Actually, I prefer they just sit off the coast a few hundred miles and produce nice swells because once they hit land the swell source is gone and it goes flat again.
Another reason I also like them in general is because it kind of just makes me feel alive and that something exciting is happening. Everyone is watching where it is going and predicting and it's just an electric type of energy when they do get close and you know you are going to be getting some strong winds from it. It just makes the summer so much more exciting. Obviously I don't like devastation or cat 5 hurricanes to hit land but the smaller ones are fun. Kind of like surfing I guess, I don't want to surf 30 foot waves because I don't want to drown but some nice 6-8 footers sure are fun and exciting !!

[SkeetoBite]

Hmmm... You can see, it, you can hear it, you can feel it and you can track it. You can see where it came from and where it's been, you can see what it's doing and what it's done. It's the most powerful weather system on our ball of dirt and water and it's scary fun. Scary because you know what it's about to do to thousands of lives and fun because of the adrenalin rush during the hunt, especially if the track moves over your house.

[Frank2]

Hate to say it, but, when my class was asked as to what type of weather we liked the most, I answered "thunderstorms"...

So, guess I dislike hurricanes because of their destruction potential - usually, the public doesn't need to evacuate for a thunderstorm (but it's exciting to experience, especially when at home - unless a bolt hits the house)...

[DESTRUCTION5]

Hmmm... You can see, it, you can hear it, you can feel it and you can track it. You can see where it came from and where it's been, you can see what it's doing and what it's done. It's the most powerful weather system on our ball of dirt and water and it's scary fun. Scary because you know what it's about to do to thousands of lives and fun because of the adrenalin rush during the hunt, especially if the track moves over your house.

This is Brilliant Skeeto..But I will add the Dis-likes...No power for 2 weeks, the roof coming in on you, the different kinds of molds that form there after, Ohh yea and the triple the norm ins bill that comes the year after.

Just remember sometimes you can wish for more than you can bargain for..

[jrod]

I surf and am from Florida so naturally I love the offshore hurricane, I love the bigger surf, though most spots in Florida cannot handle a swell over 8ft. I do enjoy being in a storm too, I stayed in Cocoa Beach in 2004 and find it awesome when the evacuation is issued and it becomes a ghost town. I've never been in the eye of a storm and hope someday to experience that. No sane person likes the destruction, I see hurricanes as inevitable and an awesome demonstration of nature's power.

[Tampa Bay Hurricane]

I love weather in general and find the hurricane and its
atmospheric physics and thermodynamics to be fascinating and a
powerful source of physical study. I also enjoy breezy
conditions that occur in a 40 mph tropical storm.

I don't like the damage hurricanes cause though, like
the roof tiles flying and generators exploding.
The damage is horrible.

But hurricanes are intense and powerful to
watch and observe as a meteorological process
and atmospheric dynamic that act as figures
on the atmospheric stage of planet Earth.

Also, I enjoy math and physics and the calculus involve,
For example to determine the total energy in a hurricane
you can perform an integration of the hurricane shape
plotted in three dimensions and integrate on an x,y,z axis
and allow parameters of thermodyamics to help determine
energy amounts.
But I am an amatuer, what I state above is only one
aspect of theoretical calculus applied to hurricanes,
so I may be wrong because I have yet to take the physics.

But nevertheless, hurricanes are intricate scientific
processes that help to stabilize the earth.

[Windsurfer_NYC]

Hate to say it, but, when my class was asked as to what type of weather we liked the most, I answered "thunderstorms"...

So, guess I dislike hurricanes because of their destruction potential - usually, the public doesn't need to evacuate for a thunderstorm (but it's exciting to experience, especially when at home - unless a bolt hits the house)...

Thunderstorms cause plenty of damage -- just check out yesterday's SPC Storm Reports or NCDC's Storm Data (when they can get their site running). Flash floods, lightning, and high winds from thunderstorms kill more people per year than hurricanes by far.

[Aric Dunn]

two words!!

Chasing
Surf...!!!

I love standing in the eyewall of hurricanes.. you feel a complete sense of humbleness.... it is the most incredible thing to be standing in hurricane force winds.. and filming objects that you know weigh a lot .. just blowing around..

i cant stop a hurricane or wish it one way or the other.. so there is no harm in wanting to experience them .. since i know they will come eventually

[Frank2]

Well, I don't mean supercell thunderstorms that spawn damaging hail or tornadoes, but, garden-variety type convection known more as thundershowers (I call them small thunderstorms, since they usually last more than 10 minutes, but, no more than 30 minutes)...

That's what we usually get here in South Florida...

[Comanche]

Two reasons really.

First- I trade energy futures for a living, and these things cause great volatility for the markets.

Second- Call me crazy, but I like the disruption in the everyday routine of commute, eat work, commute, eat, sleep-repeat. We lucked out on the evac from Rita, (took me 3 hours only from Clear Lake to Huntsville), but the family was all together in a different kind of environment. Vacations are not quite the same.

[Andrew92]

Two likes and two dislikes for me.

Likes:
Exciting to track
Most awesome storms on the planet

Dislikes:
Damages and death they cause
Rising gas prices if they hit the Gulf

-Andrew92

[Frank2]

Paying $5 or higher for a gallon of gas isn't worth the "excitement"...

[CrazyC83]

The aftermath of hurricanes are the worst part. If I were to go through a storm, I'd want a way out when it is over (not easy!)

[TexWx]

Hmmmm.
I think it's the atmosphere, but not just the weather atmosphere....

The only "true," hurricane I have experienced was Hurricane Alicia.
Living in Texas City then, it was pretty frightening to a 12 year old.
But, the "atmosphere," I'm talking about was the way everyone in the neighborhood reacted to the situation. No one really panicked, (although everyone seemed pretty nervous), they just handled the situation.

Boarding up, trips to the hardware store, trips to the store for water/food/supplies. It was really nice to see everybody helping everyone get prepared.
And with Alicia, there wasn't really enough time to fully prepare.
I met neighbors that I had never met before.

Basically, it was exciting. A change from the "norm," if you will.
Then the wind, clouds and rain started moving in made it that much more exciting.

But, now that I have to take care of my own house, it's not that exciting anymore.

[Opal storm]

I have a love/hate relationship with hurricanes.

My first hurricane I experienced was Opal back in 95 here P'cola. I don't why but ever since then I have been fascinated by these phenomenons of weather. I think experiencing a hurricane is amazing, especially for a thrill seeker like me.

With that said...do I like seeing lives wrecked and my own community destroyed? Do I like spending weeks w/o power and water? Ofcourse not. I guess you can say I'm like a tornado chaser or a photographer who takes pictures of lightning...I just like to witness the beauty and power of mother nature.

[AL Chili Pepper]

There was a time when I really wanted to experience a hurricane, back before I bought my first house and experienced my first extended period of time without electricity during the dog days of summer. While I'm still intrigued and love the tracking, wobble-watching and silently making my own predictions, I can honestly say that I don't ever want to experience another major. Reasons:

1) Insurance
2) Gas prices and panic buyers (long lines)
3) I like my house just the way it is
4) I have to work overtime during hurricane warnings
5) Other less-destructive sources of adrenaline rushes are available

[Tampa Bay Hurricane]

I don't like hurricanes. They cause way too much
human suffering. I respect their power, but I cannot
say I like them.
Hurricane Jeanne did a lot of damage here,
and according to official stations we had tropical
storm force winds that did the destructive damage.
I remember walking outside the evening of September
26, 2004 after Jeanne roared through and I thought:
This damage looks bad, granted not as bad as other places,
but the worst I'd ever seen my area look.