Going all in

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Central California was in the midst of a hot streak over Labor Day weekend, and Madera was no exception. My general rule of thumb for the heat, and with sunny skies is to always bet on the over. That is to say, it will probably be a little warmer than the forecast. Also, in clear dry nights, the temperature bottoms out a bit lower than the forecast. By following those two rules of thumb, Victoria-Weather was able to collect the victory in central California.
Actuals: Sunday – High 100, Low 55
Monday – High 103, Low 61

Grade: B-D

A small taste of autumn

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While for many, it has been a long, hot summer, it’s actually been a bit truncated and cooler than normal in the southeastern United States. The remnants of Ida caused terrible destruction in the Northeast, all while trailing a cold front that developed as the storm became extra tropical, which tailed through north Florida as we forecast for Hinesville on Wednesday. As the work week concluded, Hinesville was able to enjoy some mild temperatures, along with the sunshine. It’s not often they get to see those two in concert, particularly in the summer. Also rare was Forecast.io’s solo victory.
Actuals: Thursday – High 90, Low 73
Friday – High 86, Low 67

Grade: A-B

Failing to meet expectations

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It seems like in so many circumstances lately, the weather has met the extreme ends of forecasts. Intensity, heat, rainfall, it just seems that we are reaching the worst case scenario all too often. When we get a record high potential in the forecast, as we had in Hickory for the past weekend, and it fails to come close, that seems like big news too! Instead of surpassing the mid-90s record highs over the weekend, It didn’t even hit 90 on Sunday, and stopped at 90 on Saturday. Weatherbug is usually helped by forecasts that stay on the cool side, and it was no different in Hickory. WB gets the W.
Actuals: Saturday – High 90, Low 70
Sunday – High 89, Low 70

Grade B-C

Spokane sees a refresh

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Temperatures in Spokane were downright delightful last week. After a long hot summer, they deserved the mid – 70s that they saw, though admittedly, the bit of drizzle early Friday morning was a bit of a tease, given the wildfires and drought encompassing the western US this summer. The Weather Channel collected the top forecast of the day, narrowly, and would have had something special if only they had accounted for the drizzle.
Actuals: Thursday – High 77, Low 53
Friday – Trace of rain, High 75, Low 55

Grade: B-C

Victoria-Weather expresses our grief and wishes for a rapid recovery to southeastern Louisiana and the residents that have been so heavily impacted by Hurricane Ida. We encourage readers to donate to hurricane relief via the Red Cross.

Time best spent outdoors

Ryan Henning Leave a comment

Summer can be brutally hot through the center of the country. 90s with humidity aren’t out of the question in Springfield in August, so anything less than that is a treat. Consider last weekend to be a treat, then. On the 14th, there was supposed to be a bit of rain, but it was unseen in Springfield, leaving only the completely tolerable temperatures that maxd out in the 80s. The lows were a little warm, especially the 71 on the 14th, but much more accommodating on the 15th. Victoria-Weather and The Weather Channel were optimistic enough to put together these relatively pleasant days in their forecast, and shared the forecast victory.
Actuals: August 14th, High 86, Low 71
August 15th, High 86, Low 64

Grade: B-C

Showers and storms are the only relief

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We are a nation divided. Any watch of the news will tell you that, but also, we are divided climatologically right now. Its hot and dry west of the Mississippi, and it’s been tolerable but west to the East. Such was the case in Bloomington, Indiana at the beginning of last week, when temperatures were allowed to remain in the 80s, and on Monday, the ground soaked up half an inch of rain. Surely, half the country would appreciate the wealth being shared. Victoria-Weather stepped up and earned the top forecast.
Actuals: Sunday – High 87, Low 67
Monday – .53″ of rain, High 82, Low 69

Grade A-C

Dog Days in Muscle Shoals

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It was a slow start to the summer in the southern US, with temperatures that were actually fairly comfortable. It couldn’t last, of course. It never does, and in Florence and the rest of northern Alabama, it was a taste of what residents usually come to expect in August. Temperatures were in the 90s by Monday afternoon, with dew points well into the 70s. It was a steam room just being outside on Sunday and Monday in Florence. Granted, it’s a couple degrees warmer than normal, but it’s also not as far out of the ordinary as the cooler start was. Weatherbug had the top forecast for the period.
Actuals: Sunday – High 89, Low 70
Monday – High 94, Low 74

Grade: B-C

Hazy hills

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It’s been a summer of low air quality in the Boulder area, and this past weekend was no exception. The heat, however, was not as oppressive as it’s been, or certainly can be in the Front Range, which is a blessing to be sure. Forecasts that tended to the cool side of the mark did best, which typically leads to a win for Weatherbug, as it did this time around. Sunday was a warmer day than Saturday, by 10 degrees after it was surprisingly comfortable to begin the weekend. Still, 91 in the mountains is better than it could be. If only it didn’t smell like a campfire.
Actuals: Saturday – High 81, Low 63
Sunday – High 91, Low 61

Grade: A-C

Cool mountain air

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I admit that perhaps I don’t have a full comprehension of what Cleveland, Tennessee is like, but it seems as though many of our forecasting counterparts are in the same boat. Temperatures overnight, even in the dog days of summer, sure get comfortable! Low temperatures, closer to – and on Thursday lower than – 60 were well off the forecast mark. Showers and storms never reached the region, further bewildering many outlets. Two of the dry forecasters were at the top of the table, with Victoria-Weather following Forecast.io for the win.
Actuals: Thursday, High 91, Low 58
Friday – High 89, Low 60

Grade: C-D

Backwards

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I wrote the forecast for Fayetteville before I wrote the post about cold fronts failing to take hold in the center of the country. That should tell you something about how this forecast went. Sure, there was a weak boundary sinking through the area earlier this week, but I thought it would bring a bit of northerly flow and some more comfortable air to northwest Arkansas. Instead, temperatures went up by a couple of degrees as the temperatures simply reflected the amount of rain that was seen in the day. A heavy AM thunderstorm on Sunday helped temperatures stay below 90, while they climbed over that mark on Monday, a drier day. The top forecast was split between Accuweather and the Weather Service.
Actuals: Sunday – .28″ of rain in thunderstorms, High 89, Low 73
Monday – .03″ of rain, High 92, Low 72

Grade: A-C