 Total Miles Today: 539 [ Updated @ 1100PM ] Expected Departure: 0900AM Memphis, TN Expected Target: North Arkansas, North East Texas, South East Oklahoma Expected Activity: Too messy to figure out..have to wait until morning. We are expecting a morning squall line that we hope will kick out some storms ahead of the line. If that doesn't pan out...which is highly probable...we are hoping for a nice shelf cloud. Not bad for a random day in late April. [ Updated @ 0945AM ] Departure: 0930AM Memphis, TN Target: Texarkana, TX Expected Activity: If the storm gods are smiling on us we will see something...anything. But probably not. [ Updated @ 1035AM ] We hit rain just inside the Arkansas border [ Updated @ 1245PM ] Van 2 is having EGR valve problems keeping top speed below 60mph. Van 1 had this problem a few weeks ago and it was fixed by Dodge...but Dodge claimed it was a 1 in a Million thing. Well...Van 2 has the same problem as confirmed by mechanic in Little Rock. Paul is spitting nails. New plan is to go to Dallas, TX and hang out until Monday morning for Van 2 to be fixed. No good chase weather anyway so no real loss. [ Updated @ 0150PM ] Lunch is Wendy's/McDonalds in Malvern, AR Paul allows 10 minutes (turns out to be 30) because we need to be back on the road. [ Updated @ 0306PM ] Just so happens, or is that Paul's meteorological prowess?, that an MCD shows up in our path 40miles outside of Texarkana. We've gone into intercept mode...even with a broken Van. hooowaaa [ Updated @ 0320PM ] We stop at TA truck stop in Prescott, AR for a quick break and gas. [ Updated @ 0500PM ] Blevins, AR is the first target but we quickly turn around and head back to where we started. Some back road driving and a quick stop to look over the line coming in and nothing. Trying to squeeze every possible opportunity out of the storm before pulling into Dallas for 2 days, Paul decides to send us back after the storm. Some pretty pictures is about all we got. [ Updated @ 8:30PM ] We arrive in Dallas and check into the Fairfield Inn in North Dallas. Paul gives us 10 minutes to drop our bags and get back to the Van's so we can go to dinner. [ Updated @ 1145PM ] Just got back from Randy White's Hall of Fame BBQ where the majority of the group drank too much beer. Nothing up for tomorrow other than some local tourism so meet up is at 10AM. [ Updated @ 1245AM ] Looks like a group went down to the pool/hot tub while I was cleaning up the blog. Roomie, who joined them, says a few are going back out into town. Me?...I'm going to sleep. |
| 1430 UTC departure. Van's are loading up and people are waiting for Paul and Matt to decide where the storms will be today. | |
| Might as well get some sleep while we drive. | |
| The air conditioning works!!!! The term "meat locker" was thrown around several times. | |
| A stop for fuel before the squall line, and I use that term VERY loosely, reaches town. Everyone jumps out for a few quick pictures of the day. Kent is over looking under the hood of Van 2 seeing if he can check all the connections in hopes of finding a fix for the ongoing issues. | |
| Ewwww pretty. Looked like a couple times things were weekly trying to do something but there was just ZERO CAPE (instability of the air) in the entire area and the storm was pretty much grunge. | |
