Maybe I’m not the right person to write this post. Or maybe I would have been had I written it during a time when I was active. (It’s almost six years since the last time I went storm chasing, how much longer can I pretend that it’s a thing I do?) But here on Blog Fiasco, I get to make the rules, and Rule #1 is “Ben gets to write about whatever the hell he feels like writing about.”
At any rate, it seems that storm chasers have one thing in common: we/they really like to criticize the motivations of others. The most common target are the chasers who get in extremely close in order to get the perfect shot for TV. They take risks that most of us won’t (whether or not those risks are justified are left as an exercise for the reader). As a result, they’re dismissed as merely thrill-seekers by the “serious” chasers.
He’s in it for the money, not the science.
As my friend Amos said, “there’s no single explanation for chasing. It’s like trying to count all the reasons tourists visit Paris.” “Serious” chasers like to think they’re doing it for some altruistic reason. That could be scientific research, warning the public, or whatever. These things definitely happen, and they’re very good reasons for participating in an activity, but I doubt it’s what primarily motivates people.
Warning can be done by stationary (or nearly stationary) spotting, which also probably means you’ve developed some kind of relationship with the local authorities or NWS office. Some kinds of scientific research can only happen in situ, but that also requires a degree of discipline that many don’t want. Storm chasing is a very boring hobby that involves sitting on your butt in a car for hours on end in the hopes of seeing something interesting. It takes more than a sense of civic duty for most people.
I used to think I was doing it as a learning exercise or in order to serve the public. At some point I realized I was kidding myself. I chased (and hope to chase again) because I enjoy the thrill of the hunt. Can I figure out what the atmosphere is doing? Can I stay ahead of a dangerous beast while keeping myself safe? I’ll absolutely report severe weather I see, and I’ll share pictures with the NWS and any researchers, but that’s not the primary motivation. Now to get myself back out there…