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Reminder: Chris invited you to join Facebook...

facebook Hi SkyBLOG, The following person recently invited you to be their friend on Facebook: Chris Collura 141 friends 32 photos   Other people you may know on Facebook: Bobby Eddins Dallas / Fort Worth, TX Stuart Robinson Mike Birdsong Sonoma / Napa, CA Bill Hark Matthew Hartman Grand Forks, ND Tarmo Tanilsoo   Facebook is a great place to keep in touch with friends, post photos, videos and create events. But first you need to join! Sign up today to create a profile and connect with the people you know. Thanks, The Facebook Team Facebook is free and anyone can join. Sign Up To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below: http://www.facebook.com/r.php?re=bea626dc1ab8e8f256f32dfa28fb720b&mid=a27aaeG58238613G2870d5G46 This message was intended for cdcollura.sky-chaser@blogger.com. If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook in the future, please click here to unsubscribe. Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

Chase Trip 2009 POSTPONED (5/18)

My yearly chase trip to the Central USA, with great regret, has been CANCELLED / POSTPONED. This is in response to conflicting work schedules and (most notably) a very quiet and inactive pattern over most of the Central United States due to a persistent thermal ridge over that area (high-pressure aloft).



There are basically two options ... Take the chase trip and wait about a week and hope a trough (low pressure aloft) moved into the Western US (after the ridge breaks down), or second, cancel / postpone the trip, wait for activity to increase, and then head out for a shorter (but more promising trip).

I have chose the latter. Most likely, late May / early June will hopefully bring better chase prospects. The reservations for the Dallas flight on May 21 were changed for a California trip in July (with big fees to change the tickets). For more information on the status of the 2009 chase trip, please refer to the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/mwcl2009.htm

Sea-Doo RXP-X - 255 HP (4/17)

I got hold of one of the new 2008 Sea-Doo RXP-X 255 HP watercraft in April 2009 using most of the "extra" funds (thanks Jim Edds!) from Hurricane Ike in 2008 ... This monster has a supercharged engine developing 255 HP and reaches 50 MPH in 2.9 seconds.



This machine absolutely screams! I replaced the factory intake grate with an after-market R&D intake adding an additional 3-4 MPH on top of the blistering 75-80 MPH top speed (like that is not fast enough?) ... I even have a USCG approved light kit installed on the boat for dusk operations.

You can check out this as well as many others in my OUTDOORS section of my web site by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/outdoors.htm

FL Keys Chaser Picnic (3/28)

Veteran hurricane chaser Jim Leonard (noted for storm chasing since the 1970's and typhoon intercepts in the Pacific) invited some of his hurricane (and storm) chaser friends down to lower Metacumbe Key in the middle Florida Keys for a great cookout / barbaque, fun in the sun, food and drinks, and hours of fantastic storm footage at his place on March 28, 2009 - Thanks Jim!



You can check out this as well as many others in my STORM CHASER PICNICS AND EVENTS 2009 section of my web site by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/picnic09.htm

Shuttle Launch From Airliner (3/15)

I had a unique opportunity on a return flight from Chicago, Illinois (to Fort Lauderdale, Florida) on March 15, 2009 (at about 7:45 PM EDT). I always bring my cameras on every flight - and get a window seat - for a good reason! In the pictures above, space shuttle Discovery takes to the sky about 80 miles east of my flight path (between Tampa and Orlando, Florida at an altitude of 38,000 feet).



The setting sun (and dusk terminator provides a dramatic effect on the smoke plume) ... You can check out this as well as many others in my FLYING section of my web site by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/flying.htm

St Patricks Day (3/14)

Saint Patrick's day is celebrated in Chicaco, Illinois in a unique fashion - Since Chicago has a large Irish comminity, each year they toss about 40 pounds of a non-toxic, bio-degradable green dye into the Chicago river, painting it a brilliant green color that can last up to a week!



If you enjoy this kind of footage, you can check out much more in my OUTDOORS section of my web site by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/outdoors.htm

Now on Facebook (3/8)

I set up a Facebook profile where I can post my pictures, videos and events and I have the capability to add friends that can see them. Joining Facebook is a great idea and easy way to "network" with many people - Especially storm chasing!



To sign up for Facebook, or search for myself (Chris Collura) on it, follow the link provided for it below (you will need to sign-up if you have not done so already) ...

http://www.facebook.com

Hang Gliding (2/21)

I was able to take a really exciting and fun flight aboard a tandem (dual-place) hang-glider and have the pictures to share it! Nothing is more peaceful (and exhilerating) than flying miles above the earth hanging from (basically) a "kite" with the wind in your face and feeling like a soaring eagle.



You can check out this exciting sport, along with many other extreme sports, in my SKYDIVING section of this web site by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/skydive.htm

Storm Chaser Convention (2/14)

The 11th annual National Storm Chaser Convention took place from February 13-15, 2009 in beautiful Denver, Colorado and was a blast! I was able to attend this event from February 14-15 (late arrival due to a delayed flight) and was greeted by a HUGE turnout of storm chasers and scientists alike!



We thank all for attending, as well as Tim Samaras and Roger Hill for organizing, and making this a better and better event each year! More details on the NSCC 2009 can be seen by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/picnic09.htm

L-39 Jet Fighter Video (1/25)

Ever wonder what it's like to fly in a jet fighter? The link above is from an edited video that puts YOU in the cockpit of an L-39 jet fighter!



See what it looks like to buzz clouds at over 400 knots and pull in excess of 5 G's ... You can see the 10-minute video by clicking the image-link above, or by clicking link provided below ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvrCetZVofc

Below is the link to my FLYING section, including more about the L-39 jet fighter and aerobatics ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/flying.htm

2009 Everglades Boogie (1/24)

The "Everglades skydiving boogie" is a rather large skydiving event that was held again in 2009 (in it's second straight year since 2008) in Clewiston, Florida at Air Adventures. This event was held from January 23-25 and had a large aircraft lineup ... For skydiving: 2 twin Otters, a Sky-van, a Bell 412 helicopter, and a Pitts Special. For rides: An Extra 300, hang gliding, and an L-39 jet fighter!



What an awesome event, fabulously put together by the great folks at Air Adventures! You can check out this event, along with many others, in my SKYDIVING section of my web site. You can also jump right to the link by clicking link provided below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/skydive.htm

New US President - Barack Obama (1/20)

The United States just sworn-in our new president, Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States just after high-noon on January 20, 2009. Obama is the first African American to become president of the United States, and hopefully will be a message to both our country as well as an influence and inspiration many others here and around the World.



The United States is going through rather hard times right now as of 2009, and it's going to take a good president AND a good heart to put the USA back on its tracks. We all welcome our new president and hope he fulfills his duties to its fullest and wish all of us the best of luck!

Great White North Boogie (1/17)

The "Great White North skydiving boogie" is a small skydiving event held each year in mid January in Lake Wales, Florida. The Florida Skydiving Center in Lake Wales is a great place to skydive and is a facility undergoing major rennovations, including a new hangar, nearly 5 years after being devastated by hurricane Charley back in 2004.



You can check out this event, along with many others, in my SKYDIVING section of my web site. You can also jump right to the link by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/skydive.htm

New Year Of 2009 (1/1)

Welcome to 2009 and a whole new year! Like 2008, which was a fantastic year for me personally and especially for storm chasing, 2009 should be hopefully the same if not better.



The 11th annual National Storm Chaser Convention will again take place in February 2009 and I will be attending this event. The NSCC web-site can be seen by clicking the link provided for it below ...

http://www.chaserconvention.com

Storm chasing logs are completed for 2008 and can be seen in the STORM CHASING section of this web site. In the storm chasing section, all chase logs, including chase trips and "regular" logs are up to date as of the end of 2008. You can jump right to that section by clicking the link below ...

http://www.sky-chaser.com/stormc.htm