I am not a professional storm chaser. I am an enthusiast with a dash cam, too many browser tabs open to radar sites, and a healthy fear of hydroplaning into a bar ditch. That said, I drive toward storms sometimes. Not into them. Toward them. There's a difference, and the difference is whether you're helping or becoming a statistic.
Dylan's Novice Rules (Non-Negotiable)
- Never chase a tornado warning into an urban area. Traffic, panic, debris — you become part of the problem.
- Always have an escape route mapped. East option, south option, "turn around don't drown" option.
- Pull completely off the road to look. Not halfway. Not "just for a sec." Fully off.
- Yield to pros and first responders. If the truck has real equipment and antennas, they get the good pull-off spot.
- Night chasing is for people with more skill than me. Full stop.
The wall cloud is mesmerizing. I get it. When you see one for the first time, every cell in your body says drive closer. I still feel that. But the supercell doesn't know you're a fan. It will drop hail the size of softballs on your windshield and keep rotating like you were never there.
I'll chase again this season — from a distance, with a plan, with someone else in the truck. Until I've got more training and better instincts, the wall cloud gets my respect from two miles away through a telephoto lens. That's still pretty cool. And I get home for tacos.