June 5, 2018
Statistics
Summary
Marginal chances for warm sector supercells in central North Dakota. Targeted Bismarck, but only elevated, shallow showers developed above stout cap.
Crew and Equipment
Solo chase. Equipment: Sony AX100, Canon 60D, Samsung S7 Edge.
Video
Details
Just to further add to the bust, an angry old farmer shooed us away from where we were setting up to get some evening time lapse shots. Without a gate, sometimes it's not apparent what's a public use road and what's somebody's private drive.
Conclusion
I don't mind a long distance cap bust. It's part of the game. But when it costs us a great storm or tornado, that's when it really stings. Chasing that far east into North Dakota and that late in the evening put us out of position for what was one of the most photogenic tornadoes of 2018. We saw the play coming together near Laramie. It was long shot, but the signal was definitely there, and because it was a long shot we weren't inclined to get up ridiculously early or drive late into the night to try and make it. Nick Nolte wound up scoring it instead while we played a secondary target that didn't pay out nearly as well.
Lessons Learned
- Don't ride a cap bust into oblivion if it's going to cost you better opportunities the following day.
- Watch out crotchety farmers when pulling off the road.
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