November 7: The perfect tornado, and all the chasers are there

Yes, there are tornadoes in November. Not often though.

Rarely do you see a tornado forecast like November 7, 2011, with a focused target area in southwest Oklahoma that looked like a potential outbreak in April or May.  That focused target area contained a bullseye for tornadoes, even large ones.  Such a forecast brings out chasers by the scores.

According to official reports sent to the Storm Prediction Center, only one tornado formed in all the storms on November 7.  But for chasers huddled around Tipton, Okla., it was just about the perfect storm:  1) in the middle of nowhere, but with good roads, 2) open land, 3) flat horizon, 4) open skies behind the tornado for visibility. 

At least 2 chase crews (Reed Timmer's Dominator team and Andy Gabrielson) tried to intercept the storm directly, and you can see their results in these 2 YouTube clips.