Deck Pic Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 In terms of my favorites going back 20 winters, it is 5th...so I give it a B+...very nice winter...It could actually tie or even maybe beat 2013-14 if we got some sort of insane March 58 event and maybe another small event, but it's very unlikely 2009-10 A+ 1995-96 A+ 2002-03 A 2013-14 A- 2014-15 B+ the rest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I do agree with gymengineer about the past few weeks. Was thinking that last night. Not too typical we just keep seeing winter come at us.. let alone so late. Last yr was brutal at times but all very transient. Any above climo year is a good one here when it comes to snow.. I don't feel that much differently about this winter than last on that angle, and as noted there were good daytime events this yr which is a plus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fozz Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 LOL, there you go Fozz. Adapt your own personal opinion to fit everyone else's. Serious question..why would anyone else's thoughts impact your own? It's YOUR opinion. Wrong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mappy Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 LOL, there you go Fozz. Adapt your own personal opinion to fit everyone else's. Serious question..why would anyone else's thoughts impact your own? It's YOUR opinion. glad it wasn't just me who saw that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fozz Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 glad it wasn't just me who saw that. nah, you called me out because you thought I was telling other people what to rate it, not because I changed my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gymengineer Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I do agree with gymengineer about the past few weeks. Was thinking that last night. Not too typical we just keep seeing winter come at us.. let alone so late. Last yr was brutal at times but all very transient. Any above climo year is a good one here when it comes to snow.. I don't feel that much differently about this winter than last on that angle, and as noted there were good daytime events this yr which is a plus. My parents' retirement move to CA has made the "special-ness" of a snow day much harder to experience. Their house was in a typical subdivision where our street would be plowed last, after highways, then primary roads, then secondary roads. My school years were full of memories of waking up to the entire world being snow-covered and us being snow-bound for the day. My condo unit literally faces a primary road. Before they moved in late 2010 (thankfully it came after the 09/10 winter), I would just spend the night/nights at their house during major snowstorms so that I could have the same experience of seeing everything snow-covered. After they moved, though, my only option is to look at the primary road outside my windows. Even after 13" of snow overnight last February, the road was already plowed down to pavement by the time I woke up at 7:30 am. I couldn't take one single picture of everything covered by snow because even the sidewalks around the building had been completely cleared by day-break. The same exact thing happened on St. Patrick's Day morning. So, I was really happy to have three snowstorms (1/6, 2/21, 3/5) this winter where I could walk around during the day and take photos of everything blanketed by snow, including the primary road. It's not nearly as good as having a neighborhood street covered to same amount as the grass, but it's a lot better than looking at black-top surrounded by deep snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 My parents' retirement move to CA has made the "special-ness" of a snow day much harder to experience. Their house was in a typical subdivision where our street would be plowed last, after highways, then primary roads, then secondary roads. My school years were full of memories of waking up to the entire world being snow-covered and us being snow-bound for the day. My condo unit literally faces a primary road. Before they moved in late 2010 (thankfully it came after the 09/10 winter), I would just spend the night/nights at their house during major snowstorms so that I could have the same experience of seeing everything snow-covered. After they moved, though, my only option is to look at the primary road outside my windows. Even after 13" of snow overnight last February, the road was already plowed down to pavement by the time I woke up at 7:30 am. I couldn't take one single picture of everything covered by snow because even the sidewalks around the building had been completely cleared by day-break. The same exact thing happened on St. Patrick's Day morning. So, I was really happy to have three snowstorms (1/6, 2/21, 3/5) this winter where I could walk around during the day and take photos of everything blanketed by snow, including the primary road. It's not nearly as good having a neighborhood street covered to same amount as the grass, but it's a lot better than looking at black-top surrounded by deep snow. Funny was thinking that exact thing yesterday walking around on the Mall. There weren't even footsteps in most places.. It is harder to get "great" shots during a mod/hvy snow for many reasons but it's a fun experience, and if you wait till it's done, it takes almost no time for everything to be trampled over around here. I was sort of in an afterglow last night which I don't usually feel after storms. Not a big fan of overnight snow other than the fact it usually helps for stickage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterymix Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 It's been a fine winter. Events to track Ground covered societal impacts Good snow without telleconnections We had it all, warnings verified, snow, sleet, freezing rain, snow squalls. Any thunder snow? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlaskaETC Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I as also think the back to back above climo winters are very noteworthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HighStakes Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 B+ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchnick Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Tough call. Probably the most stunning turn around I can recall when it comes to snow, which makes up 90% of my winter rating. It was different than the 99/00 winter because that was a lousy winter with a 3 week period of great winter weather while this year always felt like winter but constantly feeling like the rug was being pulled out from under our snow chances. So I am torn between 7.5 & 8, and will settle on 7.75. Of course, if we get any more accumulating snow, it will obviously bumped up to at least an 8, but higher with a mod storm or greater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HighStakes Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Tough call. Probably the most stunning turn around I can recall when it comes to snow, which makes up 90% of my winter rating. It was different than the 99/00 winter because that was a lousy winter with a 3 week period of great winter weather while this year always felt like winter but constantly feeling like the rug was being pulled out from under our snow chances. So I am torn between 7.5 & 8, and will settle on 7.75. Of course, if we get any more accumulating snow, it will obviously bumped up to at least an 8, but higher with a mod storm or greater. It would be nice for BWI to break 30 inches 2 winters in a row so I'm rooting for one more event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncletim Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 5. A little cold is fine, but that was way too much cold. Getting to seasonal seemed like a one day heatwave in February. Snow amount for the season and from storm to storm was good, with two storms hitting over 6". Having ice stuck on the sidewalk for three days sucked when I was trying to get to/from my car. December was nice. To solve the ice problem, try getting a set of "ice cleats" to put over (or I guess it's under) your shoes. Saw them around for years and I always wondered if they worked. Finally got a pair a couple years ago to try during an icy stretch in NE and now I wouldn't be without them. The ones I have called "stabilicers" (others may be good as well) and they are worth their weight in gold - no problems walking in the recent ice storms. Much better than risking a broken wrist/arm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowfan Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Tough call. Probably the most stunning turn around I can recall when it comes to snow, which makes up 90% of my winter rating. It was different than the 99/00 winter because that was a lousy winter with a 3 week period of great winter weather while this year always felt like winter but constantly feeling like the rug was being pulled out from under our snow chances. So I am torn between 7.5 & 8, and will settle on 7.75. Of course, if we get any more accumulating snow, it will obviously bumped up to at least an 8, but higher with a mod storm or greater. if I break 30 I'll bump to 8. Not sure what our realistic chances are, but I need less than 4". Consecutive 30"+ winters hasn't been done at bwi since the mid 60s. Would be damn impressive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WxUSAF Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I'll call it a 8/10. I should probably wait it lower given how bad December was, but I guess I'm a victim of recency bias. I think January was actually pretty decent. It was cold and had several small-moderate storms that added up to about average January snow for MBY. Was a bit frustrating because it seemed like we could have done better, but objectively it was still good. Obviously the last 3 weeks were deep winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SomeguyfromTakomaPark Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 8/10, cold and snowy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastCoast NPZ Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 If you make the winter rating the mean of its monthly ratings...... Dec - 0 (tempted to give this a negative rating) Jan - 7 (and that is being generous) Feb - 10 (great month) I'll round up and even give a 1 point bonus based off yesterday and today. Avg - 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jebman Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 To solve the ice problem, try getting a set of "ice cleats" to put over (or I guess it's under) your shoes. Saw them around for years and I always wondered if they worked. Finally got a pair a couple years ago to try during an icy stretch in NE and now I wouldn't be without them. The ones I have called "stabilicers" (others may be good as well) and they are worth their weight in gold - no problems walking in the recent ice storms. Much better than risking a broken wrist/arm... I walk just fine on the ice, In fact I run and slide every chance I get. Take it easy and stay safe on the icy sidewalks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEATHER53 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Regrading it now to a 9.5 for cold and 8 for snow. Really only 1977 had lengthier extremely cold temps. DC area -13 average for 3 weeks with a -20 week is unique. That Saturday night arctic blast in was special. So many single digit lows. -20 wind chills. I think Mr Z or I*n has done lists of like last 25 winters. Since 1985 there have been some stinky streaks but I think if we really look at the last 30 and compare it to how frustrated we feel at times- I think we do pretty good around here winter wise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WVclimo Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I give the winter an 8/10. Any season with less than 15 days of 50 degree highs is a good winter here. I had 7 days 50+ in December and 1 in early January. Half of February had single digit lows or lower, including a few below zero. Another couple in March. Several record lows. Frozen rivers. No big rain storms. A stretch of three weeks of snow cover, another streak of two weeks, and a 5 day stretch. 125% of average snowfall, including double-digits in January, February, and 9 so far in March. Definitely in the top 20% of winters for this area in my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterymix Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Let us step back a moment and ensure we have realistic expectations. Phew. So... -Did the winter provide any surprises? Are you kidding? Was anyone 90% to 100% skillful with weighing the models and nailing forecasts? -Did we get plowable snow? Did we get banding, squalls, periods of moderate to heavy snow? -Was the snow beautiful? -Were there societal impacts? -Were any records set? -Was the snow good enough for sledding, making snow humans, making snow balls? There you go...a good winter, somewhat frustrating at times and at other times, robust and potent. Top 20%...at least an 8. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fozz Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I think it was either a 7 or 8... I've waffled a bit and it's hard to pin down exactly but the difference is like splitting hairs. To me, 2/14 to 3/6 was just as good as any stretch last winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aldie 22 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Todays warm temps might knock it down a notch for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huffwx Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I'm at a solid 8, and if we sneak something later this month it would go up. Above climo 2 years in a row and 12-13 was an inch below or so.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MillvilleWx Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Solid 8. The cold was incredible in February and the snow chances were plentiful last 4 weeks. We had 2 great arctic fronts with one dumping snow on the region in some spots with thunder and lightning. Not often that happens. 492 dm into Western PA at one point which is extremely anomalous and we got 2 nice 4+" snow storms in a short span. Very backloaded, but I'll take it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Chill Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Todays warm temps might knock it down a notch for me Knocked it up a notch for me. Time to melt out and spring into sprung Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clskinsfan Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 7/10 for me. I am 30% over climo for snow. But December was extremely painful. I am surprised how similar last winter and this winter are. The late 20 inch storm last year is really the only major difference between the two winters as far as snow cover goes. Both were wall to wall cold though. And who knows. Maybe a surprise HECS pops up and we get close to last years totals. It is still March after all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gymengineer Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 I have tons of photos from the past two seasons to chronicle the progression of each storm. Obviously, photos after dark are a challenge, but there were some nice lamplight pics. By far, though, the 2/21 and 3/5 storms from this year yielded the best pics--- every surface covered in snow, reduced car traffic, and people walking around in the snow enjoying the day off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deck Pic Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 It's interesting. I've been going through our history to see what winters may have been similar to this one in terms of ground truth and impact, irrespective of 500mb pattern, and there are very very few. I think this winter gets a lot of points for being unique. 1977-78 is probably the closest going all the way back to the 1800s, and even that is not a great match. But in terms of progression, impact, snow amounts, cold, etc, I think that is our best analog. And of course that was a hallowed winter. So, I do think we had something pretty special here even without the big big storm. In my opinion, this winter is decidedly better than the "bad" winters of the 1960s. Going back 50 winters, I think for DC area incl burbs, this winter would be 10th best qualitatively in terms of snow/cold/impact. Tied with 77-78, 81-82. And those were damn good winters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEATHER53 Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 It's interesting. I've been going through our history to see what winters may have been similar to this one in terms of ground truth and impact, irrespective of 500mb pattern, and there are very very few. I think this winter gets a lot of points for being unique. 1977-78 is probably the closest going all the way back to the 1800s, and even that is not a great match. But in terms of progression, impact, snow amounts, cold, etc, I think that is our best analog. And of course that was a hallowed winter. So, I do think we had something pretty special here even without the big big storm. In my opinion, this winter is decidedly better than the "bad" winters of the 1960s. Going back 50 winters, I think for DC area incl burbs, this winter would be 10th best qualitatively in terms of snow/cold/impact. Tied with 77-78, 81-82. And those were damn good winters. Great stuff. This winter was not extremely overall cold but it did have an extreme 3 week period. I would think it would not be outside of the top 5 for ground truth and impact cold wise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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