Date: May 7, 2015
Time: 4:00 - 6:00 PM CDT
Place: Lubbock to Anson, TX
Distance: 628 mi (323 positioning, 149 chasing, 156 to hotel)
Camera: T3i, GoPro3 Silver
Warnings: SVR
Rating: S3

The Chase

10:30 AM: Multi-day chase trip on tap as a significant systems starts digging into the western US!! Today is probably the day-before-the-day-before the event, as the upper level energy is still on the California coast. But I'm taking a vacation day anyway - leaving ABQ now!

12:09 PM: Gassing up in Santa Rosa, NM now. A big morning Mesoscale Convective System (MCS) is currently ongoing over the southern TX panhandle. Complicated setup, but I'm betting we can get a nice storm near the intersection of the MCS and dryline.

1:39 PM: Just saw a Predator drone land at Cannon Air Force Base as we drove past. Never seen one IRL before.

2:12 PM: Coming into Muleshoe, TX as we speak. The western edge of the morning MCS seems to be stalling and breaking into more discrete cells. Targeting south of Lubbock as there might be a sort of pseudo-triple-point where the MCS and dryline come together. That's the hope at least.

3:31 PM: Eating a late lunch at the Wienerschnitzel on the south side of Lubbock. A new outflow boundary (OFB) from the morning MCS is currently right overhead and sinking south. If this can interact with new development from the south, we might get something interesting.

4:07 PM: Leaving Lubbock now. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the orientation of the outflow boundary is totally wrong for any storms that would develop to our south. They would move exactly perpendicular to the OFB and cross it in an instant - no chance to move along it and get enhanced vorticity.

4:46 PM: Just drove through Post, TX - awesome little town. We are desperately trying to get out on the southeast side of the morning MCS. So far behind!

5:21 PM: About to core through the MCS as we drop southeast on Hwy 70 towards Rotan. Nice lightning on the back of this storm.

5:46 PM: Heading east out of Roby, TX as a new cell blows up right on the outflow boundary. We are FINALLY back in the warm sector - the cold outflow from the MCS is just crushing south with no mercy.

6:15 PM: We've stopped for an intercept at last just southwest on Anson, TX at the corner of 2746 and 3116 - not too far from where we watched Chancey two weeks ago.

6:17 PM: DANG IT! North wind again. That cold outflow is unstoppable. The storm to our west is being undercut as we speak.

6:23 PM: I am freezing in this cold outflow. Imagine what the storm must be feeling. There is some neat dust picking up to our south as the OFB sinks south. I think our day is done. There is no outrunning this cold air.

7:27 PM: Stopped at a neat bridge where Hwy 283 crosses Collin's Creek. Totally given up on the storms now as they congeal off to our east.

7:39 PM: Having to detour off Hwy 283 towards Woodson, TX due to flooding. There's a nice rainbow up ahead as the storms continue to escape east.

8:03 PM: Gassing up in Throckmorton next to some cows.

9:29 PM: First time ever in Wichita Falls, TX. Staying at the Hampton Inn. Gonna grab some Buffalo Wild Wings for a late dinner. Man, this day just wasn't meant to be a good chase. Behind the eight ball all day.

10:44 PM: Just got asked if I want some dessert nachos. #DayRedeemed

Recap, Filmmaking Notes, and Lessons Learned