I’m often asked by people at presentations, on the street, and during media interviews, why do I like to stand in hurricane winds? Well there are a few reasons, but probably the main reason for me personally is, because I love the powerful feeling of the wind and because after days of monitoring the storm out over the ocean by satellite, I just want to feel the power of the storm that you and no one have any control over. It is kind of hard to explain this personal feeling, but standing, smelling and listening to the wind roar is something awesome, really. I mean this is a huge work of art, a powerful wind and precipitation machine, and all anyone can do is let it run it’s course and try to ride it out.

Standing in direct hurricane winds is very dangerous, and there are many things I and anyone that I’m chasing with look out for before attempting to do this. We always first try and find a location were there is no possible debris up wind that can fly in our direction, also looking out for any power lines, tree’s, and rocks, because you don’t want anything coming at you at 80mph. Normally a buddy is looking in the surrounding area to make sure everything is cool with any possible dangers, while someone or myself “samples” the strong winds. Really the only hurricanes that I and my possible chase partners stand in, are normally in the category one stage with winds no higher that 80mph. Anything stronger becomes too dangerous to stand in, because of possible flying debris. It all depends on the location around you and the winds. Safety first… always. Watch video of Hurricane Chasers standing in the wind. 

The feel of the winds on your body is very impressive and bending into the winds and hearing the roar in the near by tree’s and poles is just as impressive. It’s easy to get knocked over or pushed to the ground as the violent winds interact with you and possible surrounding buildings and such. Filming and recording weather observations while in the eyewall of the hurricane are important, but sometimes I just need to stop and really experience the hurricane for myself. I have a huge passion for these storms, and I have been chart tracking them since I was 12 and chasing since I was in my early twenties. I’m now in my thirties, and have learned so much from these storm intercepts and all the wind sampling I have done. Being a Hurricane Chaser, I respect the storm, because the storm can take your life in a second. I also respect the surrounding property and people that I come across while intercepting the hurricane. Many times people are loosing personal property, and possible family members, and you need to respect that this is a ongoing natural disaster.

Living in South Florida my entire life has giving me the chance to encounter some of the largest storms on earth. I’ll likely be placing myself into the eyewall of a hurricane long into my old days. Listen to the roar!

Related: See these video in our Home DVD Collection.

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