2023 would go down as my best ever storm chasing season… 20 years after I started my “professional” storm chasing career, I would eclipse every other season by leaps and bounds. So many new personal records were set, including the most tornadoes in a season, culminating in my very first 50-tornado season. A new all-time number one chase occurred on June 21 where I saw almost half my year’s total count in just a couple hours. Several other incredible chases highlighted a year so filled with amazing sights, I’ll probably never have a season close to this again! This happening in a season where I blew a transmission in the middle of over 40,000 road miles, also a new personal record. Some great hail chases and even a few awesome lightning photos rounded out this incredible year where I logged over 60 events. But it will be remembered for its insanely epic tornado intercepts, and so so many of them over 17 tornado days.
2023 Storm Chase Logs
| TOTAL MILES: | 42,360 (1st Most) |
| TOTAL CHASES: | 43 (1st Most) |
| TOTAL TORNADOES | 50 (1st Most) |
| TORNADO DAYS: | 17 (1st Most) |
| TORNADO AVG: | 0.395 |
| TOTAL SPOTTER: | 19 |
| TOTAL ALL LOGS: | 62 (1st Most) |
| 1K CHASES: | 11 |
Full Write-Up
Northeast Colorado
Chase Miles:
551
In a season full of incredible tornado chases, why not have another one! Incredibly photogenic tornado intercept near Yuma that I did a live standup in front of.
Tornadoes:
4
Hail:
3.00"
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Eastern WY/Western NE
Chase Miles:
449
In any other year, this would've been a top day, but two days after Akron, this SEVEN tornado day was just going through the motions, but added to an already career season!
Tornadoes:
7
Hail:
2.00"
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Northeast Colorado
Chase Miles:
383
The tornado chase of my lifetime, hands-down the all-time number 1! One of the most beautiful tornadoes ever photographed, one of nearly THREE dozen to touch down on this historic Colorado day.
Tornadoes:
19
Hail:
2.75"
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Southern Iowa
Chase Miles:
992
Four tornadoes in Iowa sounds a lot, but when they all barely combine to equal one, it's a stat-padder kinda day. None-the-less, I saw four tornadoes in Iowa! Woot!
Tornadoes:
4
Hail:
None
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Northeast Colorado
Chase Miles:
574
After the hailfest in western Kansas, we had a landspout-fest in northeastern Colorado. Saw several spouts before a mess of storms put an end to the chase.
Tornadoes:
3
Hail:
0.75"
Flooding:
Street Flooding
Full Write-Up
Northeast Colorado
Chase Miles:
80
I spotted this storm from my house, raced out the door, and intercepted a great hailer and a classic Colorado landspout tornado outside Keenesburg!
Tornadoes:
1
Hail:
0.75"
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Southwest Iowa
Chase Miles:
1,377
Another Iowa chase, another Iowa tornado! This part of a trifecta that included monster hail and some great lightning photography!
Tornadoes:
1
Hail:
2.50"
Flooding:
None Observed
Full Write-Up
Southeast Iowa
Chase Miles:
755
Any shred of my Iowa curse left was absolutely annihilated when Ed Grubb and I had a top 10 career tornado intercept outside Radar O'Reilly's hometown of Ottumwa on a massive, close-range EF-3 monster!
Tornadoes:
1
Hail:
None
Flooding:
None Observed
