Weather Gods Tornado Chase Tours

The difference is simple. Weather Gods targets tornadoes and not just storms. Other chasing companies will tell you that storms look great. Well some storms do look great, but let’s face it you as a customer are looking for one thing, that is a tornado. Good looking storms are just an added extra, not what you are looking for.

Why does Weather Gods only chase 2 weeks?

The reasons for this are my children and my wife. If I were to change my career at this time and start chasing full time, I would be away from my home for 2+ months. This is something that I will not do. I am very active in my daughters’ lives and could not be away from them and my wife for that long a period of time.

Does Weather Gods carry insurance?

Yes Weather Gods has commercial insurance that is required.

Weather Gods is the new company in tornado chasing, why did you decide to start taking people out tornado chasing?

There are a couple of reasons for starting up our company. First I have had numerous people ask me to take them out chasing and have been bugging me for years. Well here is their chance to sign up.

Second, I’ve been chasing for decades and I just enjoy it. Two years ago my brother called me and asked about a T.V. news show on a junior college that took students and citizens out chasing. My brother was shocked to hear that people had paid money to go out chasing and in their first two weeks they saw nothing. My brother made me start to think about it when he said “Mark you always come back from chases with videos of tornados and funnels. How could they pay all that money, and come away with nothing?” Then I watched a show about chasing on the National Geographic Channel where Doppler On Wheels and chasers had constructed an armored vehicle that they were trying to get into a tornado. I had seen the vehicle while I was out chasing and was curious how many tornados they had seen. They went six weeks without seeing a tornado. They went from some time in April, through May and into June without seeing a tornado. Six weeks! To me, that is unacceptable. So it really hit me that, I need to share my talent for catching tornadic storms with others.

Does Weather Gods see large hail?

Actually if you are looking to see large hail or lots of hail, Weather Gods is not the company for you. This was another surprise for me after talking with other chase companies and looking at their vehicles. They will regularly get into some very large damaging hail, losing wind shields and getting their vehicles to look like golf balls. Weather Gods will stay in areas with a good view of tornados but out of the hail areas of the storm. Even with that said we will see some hail but it is usually smaller than golf ball size.

Does Weather Gods get into high winds?

When you are chasing on tornadic storms, seeing strong winds will come with seeing tornados. The time that most tornados form is when a storm is getting clear slotted and cold air is wrapping around a rotating updraft. Also some tornados are formed from a microburst. The two go hand in hand when you are tornado chasing, but with our experience, we will know when the show is over and it is time to get out of the storms way.

Why does Weather Gods chase last 8 days and 9 nights?

Weather patterns in May can produce good chances almost daily for tornadic storms to form. However, sometimes you can have 2 to 3 days or more with limited activity. Eight days is enough time to get a couple of good chances at seeing the tornadic storm you are looking to see.

What chase territory will Weather Gods cover?

Every season someone asks me where I am going on my chase vacation. My usual reply is whichever way the wind blows me. Weather Gods tries to limit the boundaries on where we will go. I have chased storms from Montana to Indiana to Texas and everywhere in between. There are limitations to everything. We stay away from mountains and heavily forested areas.

How long would we be driving daily?

Weather Gods has no routine day. Our tour is at the mercy of the Weather Gods. Some days, if we are lucky, we will be close to the area that we are targeting for tornado chasing in the afternoon. Quite often we will be getting up early based on the forecast the night before, driving to a target area and making adjustments during the day as we download information on the road.

While out on a weekly tornado chase we will be on the road a considerable amount of time. We will be driving between 3000 and 5000 miles in 8 days. So if you get motion sick, tornado chasing may not be for you.

What would we eat while we are on the road?

Eating depends a lot on how far we have to drive. If we need to “Make Time” and have long distances to drive to get into the battle zone, we will be eating plenty of fast food. Sit down meals at restaurants are only when we have the time. I will keep a cooler in the van with water and beverages for when we are driving. We will find some snack foods that you as our customer will like that we can keep in the vans. This is due to the timing of the Weather Gods. Most tornados occur in the afternoon and early evening caused by heating of the day, right when it should be dinner time. So on most chase days we will be looking for storms to fire up or will be chasing on storms already. This forces us to have late dinners and do some snacking in the van.

What are the risks in Tornado Chasing?

While we are out tornado chasing, risks from any tornados is very minimal. Higher on the risk list is traffic accidents, high winds, and next lightning strikes. Safety will always be at the forefront of Weather Gods tour guides minds. There will be a degreed meteorologist on every chase with decades of tornado chasing experience and schooling behind him.

Will Weather Gods have customers sign a waiver?

Yes. We have a form that anyone chasing with Weather Gods will need to sign.

What hotels will we stay in while out on the tour?

We will stay in Holiday Inn Express, Days Inn, Comfort Inn, basically any nice looking hotels. We have been around the plains states for years and know where the better hotels are located.

What type of vehicle does Weather Gods use?

We have an air conditioned 15 passenger van that we will be chasing in. Only 8 customers per van will allow everyone to have a window seat.

What equipment will Weather Gods be using on the chase?

We will have GPS navigational equipment, laptop computers, lightning detector, in motion satellite tracking, satellite receivers, PDA with cellular connections, anemometers, thermo hygrometers, thermometers, barometers, weather radios, and ham radios. For any tornado chaser, getting weather information on the road is important, but the skill lies in how you interpret it.

Will Weather Gods be teaching about storms and tornadoes?

Yes. However this is secondary to catching a tornado. Other groups will take all morning to talk about storms, losing valuable positioning time. We will talk about storms when time allows.

Can we bring cameras on our chase vacations?

Yes.

Does Weather Gods take pictures of lightning?

While out chasing there are situations that are great for getting good pictures of lightning. Weather Gods will show you how to take great photos of lightning. If you are interested in that, you will need a tripod and a camera with a shutter release button.

Does Weather Gods chase at night?

Chasing at night can be very dangerous. Weather Gods will usually not do this; however, under certain circumstances we have chased and caught tornados at night. Several factors have to be right for us to be willing to do this. Storms and synoptic situation must be a certain type and road networks must be very good for this to happen.

Will Weather Gods do sightseeing?

Usually we are chasing every day or positioning for the next day’s storms. The only way to catch a tornado each week is to concentrate on that and that alone.

What about lightning safety when chasing?

While we are out chasing the only way to be 100% safe from a lightning strike is to stay in the van and not touch anything metal. We will be having some unbelievable lightning while we are chasing. Generally we will allow people to exit the vans when lightning is considered not close enough to be hazardous. While we are in and around storms, we must remain attentive and follow the directives given by Weather Gods tour guides.

Does the cost of the tour cover airfare and food?

No. You will be responsible to fly into Kansas City on Friday evening and fly home the following Sunday afternoon. You will also need to bring money to cover your food expenses and any incidentals on the tour. Weather Gods will pay for your rooms, van, gas, insurance, and tour guides.

How often does Weather Gods take bathroom breaks?

Weather Gods will take ample restroom breaks while traveling. However while we are chasing on storms and looking for tornadoes, there will be times when we are literally out in the middle of nowhere about to see a tornado. There may not be a restroom around for 20,30 or even 50 miles. So Weather Gods staff and customers will be needing to "Hold it" for a little while.

Can we drink alcoholic beverages during the trip?

While we are out chasing, we will not allow alcoholic beverages or any illegal drugs on the trip. This is for obvious reasons. We are not looking to get arrested or to have anyone nursing hangovers in the van. One last note our vans are smoke free.

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