There were a few intense moments along the way like almost going to the wrong town (with the same name), detouring around a car show, sliding around on a very muddy road, asking curious townsfolk for directions to an abandoned schoolhouse, and leapfrogging past a tractor ride. The navigating and intensity level is similar to what we experience when storm chasing which is why we wanted to participate.
We placed 14th but came in only 18 minutes behind the winner in a 5 hour rally so we're pretty happy about that. We didn't drive very aggressively because we were (overly) concerned about coming in before the "secret minimum time". We were passed repeatedly by a few of the same cars so we must have been driving a good route. Next year's rally will no doubt be bigger than ever and we'll be there!
We tested our new dual-camera picture-in-picture setup for the first time when we streamed this event and it worked great. A bit CPU heavy though so it's time for a hardware upgrade. We had 140 views to our streaming video...not bad!
Last week I mentioned that seeking shelter under an overpass is dangerous and is no place to seek shelter. So what should you do if you're about to be struck by a tornado and you're out in the open or you're in a car with no suitable shelter nearby? Last year the American Red Cross and the National Weather Service issued a joint statement after a year of "evidence-based research" that they have revised their recommendation in this case. If you cannot quickly walk to seek shelter in a basement or sturdy building, they now recommend that you:
Immediately get into a vehicle, buckle your seat belt and try to drive to closest sturdy shelter.
If flying debris occurs while you are driving, pull over and park. Now you have the following options as a last resort:
Stay in the car with the seat belt on. Put your head down below windows, covering with your hands and a blanket if possible.
If you can safely get noticeably lower than the level of the roadway, exit your car and lie in that area, covering your head with your hands.
Your choice should be driven by your specific circumstances.
Eight tornadoes were reported Sunday in North Carolina causing significant damage and injuries in some areas. This video shows a tornado tearing through High Point, NC where it damaged dozens of homes and businesses. Cars had stopped on the interstate under an overpass to avoid hail and/or the tornado and were blocking traffic leaving the cars behind them in the path of the tornado. This illustrates exactly why stopping under an overpass is a terrible idea.
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