Surprise, Surprise -- Winter Storm Watch for Friday 1/7

Hmmm....very interesting. It looks like things are perking up for tomorrow's storm. A narrow band (50-100 miles) of intense snow had been predicted in a corrider extending northwest from NYC and on into the Catskills. This narrow band was supposed to have dropped 6-12 inches of snow in a very short period (8-14 hours). Now, though, some forecasters are shifting this narrow band northward about 100 miles. This means the Berkshires are very much in play for this intense Alberta clipper. This is definitely a weird one and unpredictable even at this late stage.

So, the official GSD word on the storm is....plan on coming to school. Boo, hiss. The timing just seems too late, and the real heavy dumpage will come in the afternoon. When it comes down in the afternoon and early evening, it's going to come down hard. GSD will be so bold as to say that all afternoon activities will be cancelled, so all you athletes can officially start your weekend at 2:21. An early release is highly unlikely.

We'll monitor this storm throughout the afternoon and late into the evening, but there's definitely a 50/50 chance of a snowday at this point.

Clipper (1/7) Going Down...but Big Storm Looming

The timing of the storm has moved into the EXCELLENT category, but this clipper unfortunately will not produce enough snow fast enough to delay or cancel school. The roads will be snow-covered on Friday morning, but the snowplowing crews will have plenty of time to keep route 7 safe.

It will probably snow all day and then even pick up in the afternoon and evening on Friday, putting any games that night in jeopardy.

Fortunately, there is good news about a storm for Wednesday into Thursday of next week. It looks like it could track out of the Mississippi Valley, catch the coast and move towards the northeast. Right now it doesn't look like it will pack the punch that the Dec. 26th storm did, but it could be sizable snow-maker, certainly enough to cancel school.

The GSD vibe on this one is very good--we love it when Accuweather says the following  about a storm: "Keep checking on this one as it is likely to impact travel and schools in a big way."

Alberta Clipper 1/7

Generally speaking, Alberta clippers are weaker snow producers and rarely produce snow days. In fact, only three Alberta clippers have produced cancellations or early releases in the last ten years in our school district. They tend to produce lower snow amounts (3-6" inches), they often occur during the day or early evening, and they move fast like a clipper ship.

All reports are leaning toward Friday's storm being a snow producer, especially it forms a low off the mid-Atlantic coast and then shoots north-northeastward. It won't produce a lot of snow (6" at most), but all we need is six inches to be predicted during the day if the storm begins early enough.

Unfortunately, our staff at GSD has had the time to review the early weather models and the timing is NOT working in our favor. The only hope is that the Alberta Clipper will jump on the back of that big ol' jet stream and make it to the coast lickety split. If the storm "goes coastal" in the wee hours of Friday morning, we could be in business.

As always, the next 48 hours will tell us a lot--keep checking in.