Public Servant Lifestyle

Thrill-seeking Brits are hitting the USA for a holiday with a difference - storm chasing.

The excitement of seeing a potentially destructive tornado in person is drawing an increasing number of British tourists to the Midwestern U.S. for their annual holidays.

Severe storm expert and tour operator Todd Thorn said that British visitors, eager to experience thunderstorms, lightning and tornadoes, make up 30%-50% of each tour group and comprise nearly all his non-US business. "This type of holiday seems to appeal to individuals who simply enjoy the excitement of being on the open road without any set schedule or destination other than a target storm spotting area,'' Thorn said. "Of course, the payoff for a day of travel comes each afternoon and evening as we witness some of the most powerful, awe-inspiring forces in nature."

Tornadoes

Last year, British storm chasers were not disappointed - there were seven tornadoes and dozens of supercell thunderstorms in the Great Plains area alone. Experts help holidaymakers chase down the elusive but potentially dangerous storms, by utilising the latest data-access satellite technology. "By using an advanced tracking system, storm chasing holidays has been very successful in putting tour guests in the right place for safely viewing severe weather as it develops." continues Thorn.

Adventurers from across Britain travel to Oklahoma to begin their five to 12-day chasing experience with Thorn. Utilising an eight-passenger van, equipped with satellite navigation and ongoing US Weather Channel coverage, guests are often treated to a backroads tour of rural America on their way to a chasing location. "As severe storms form over Texas and Oklahoma in May, we concentrate our storm chasing effort in an area known as `tornado alley' before moving to more western areas of Colorado and Nebraska during June and July for late-season storms that also form tornadoes,'' he said.

Adventurers

Thorn, who has been a tour operator for four years, said he is expanding his season to 10 tours for 2002, including additional five-day tours, due to the high interest in severe weather phenomena. "A lot of our tour guests have been interested in seeing a tornado or severe weather for years, but have never met anyone with similar interests,'' Thorn said. "Our job is to bring these folks together so they can experience the excitement of violent weather from a safe vantage point.''

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