Jun 12, 2008 4:54 pm US/Eastern
Grandma Puts Away Golf Clubs To Chase Tornadoes
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
The pictures are stunning—killer tornadoes cutting across the heartland. The preliminary count is 1,500 and rising.
"I've always had a thing about weather and as I've gotten older, the more severe, the better it gets." Meet Connie Kolman, an interior designer and grandmother, just back from the tornado chase of a lifetime. "We probably saw 15 or 16 tornadoes."
Connie participated in a 10-day chase run by
Silver Lining Tours, a business that takes clinets on the hunt for severe storms: "It started spawning tornadoes and they were right there, 200 or 300 feet away. It was mesmerizing. We had a few white knuckle moments, as I call them. We were getting pelted with large hail. In fact, one of the windshields got a hit."
Connie says she finds severe weather alluring. "Seeing weather in its most powerful state, its most violent, and from a chaser's perspective -- most beautiful. It was quite an experience and was my best chase season yet. We had three vans out there with 19 guests and six guides."
Rich Hamel, a local air quality meteorologist, was one of Connie's storm chase guides. "This rotation was spawning satellite tornadoes every minute or two. We probably saw seven or eight tornadoes in 10 minutes. We want guests to really experience the storms first hand, but obviously the priority is not to put people in danger."
According to Rich, half of their clients are international tourists and chasing only seems to be growing in popularity. "There are so many people out chasing these storms that you will literally have traffic jams out in the middle of the prairies."
The tour group covered 5,000 miles in 10 days. Rich noted that he's "been chasing for eight years and this is by far the most active season [he's] ever seen." His "friends for the most part think it's odd, but they are supportive."
As for Connie's family--"They'd probably be happy if I just decided to stick with golf," she said.
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