ok, ok, so im an idiot, you can stop dogpiling on me now!

 

Im sorry, but I just have to clear my mind about this...im kinda peeved at the responses on this...I thought you all would be more understanding....I hate that this is the steriotype that storm chasers have gotten. I am not just a redneck who watched the movie twister, and goes out, sticks an antenna on his old beat up truck, and calls himself a storm chaser...that is one of my biggest pet peeves. I have 6 years of experience doing this and its not for an adrenaline rush...its a hobby and its also part of my job. For an adrenaline rush, I go fly my friends aerobatic airplane.
In the 6 years of my experience, I have been to several different training seminars and have spent hours upon hours studying different weather phenomena. I have done work alongside kansas, oklahoma and texas television stations and National Weather Service meteorologists. During storm season I drive an average of 20,000 miles and a season usually lasts 3 months.
I agree...driving 85 was stupid and wreckless. I have no excuse for that. I only drove that fast for a few miles, the rest of the time i make sure I dont get above 70. I apologize to everyone that was affected by it. I hope this has cleared a few things up.

 

if its any consolation I drive 80-90 regularly on the freeways here in California and I get passed constantly like I'm sitting still

 

You have that problem too?
Good to know I'm not the only one... Out here I don't think it's really speeding unless you double the limit...

This weekend I was out in Newport driving around with a bunch of $100,000 cars in my Dodge... THAT was just depressing.

 

Rat, the "gentleman" I talked about in my earlier post, that left a full body impression on my hood, was a KU Proffesor, and two of the other vehicles were "proffesional storm chasers".......
I am sorry if you took the responses personaly, it wasnt meant that way.

IF you think chasing the storm is more important than the human beings affected, or that COULD be affected by what you are doing, then I think you need to re-assess your prioritys.
If you use common sense, and try not to be part of the problem, then more power to ya....but driving 80 during a pending emergency situation doesnt make it sound like you are thinking about the officers, paramedics, and firefighters who would have to respond out into that same situation to rescue YOU when you wreck or cause someone else to. Ya know, most cops have wives and kids who like it when they come home alive at the end of their shift. We all get a little irratated at folks who make that harder.
My honest opinion is that the trooper didnt stop you soley because with a Tornado on the ground or threating the area, he probably had much higher prioritys than a traffic stop. Thats the only reason there hasnt been a whole lot of "chasers" in jail 'round these parts for reckless endangerment. Although I do know a few who have been charged and convicted.... judges tend think its reckless too......

It has nothing at all to do with being "some redneck who watched a movie" and everything to be with thinking more about your fellow man than about your interest in a storm regardless of whether that interest is proffesional or not.
and for the record, I am using the pronoun "you" to mean any storm chaser, not Rat in particular.....

 

Yeah sorry i took things so personally everyone...its just been one of those weeks where everything has gone wrong and I needed to vent some frustration somehow...I agree with everyone, this was stupid. I was actually considering quitting the whole storm chasing thing on the way home from that chase because its just getting too crowded with people who go out and follow storm chasers. Thats part of what made this a bad week. Its just not that fun anymore to chase storms, its more of a job now and I hate that. When I first started I didn't have to worry about other people following me just because they see the antenna's and wind instruments on top of my car. I think this will be the last season for me until they come up with some kind of training regulation or something for storm chasers. Once again, sorry for being a jerk. Thanks for everything,

Patrick

Edit: On a side note, I would never be a jerk like that KU professor was. I cant believe a person would act like that and hold up an ambulance! Thats just wrong!