wisconsinwx Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I would give it a C overall, but it felt worse than that, I'm just feeling generous today. If I was a snowcover lover I'd probably give it a B+. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmc76 Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Most people seem to do monthly, so a monthly breakdown of my grades would be: Nov: A Dec: F Jan: B+ Feb: A+ Mar: B+ However...I need to make clear I DO NOT grade based upon an equal distribution of the months (someone joked about my generous grading curve in the other thread where we discussed grades some). I am more like Bo, my grade is based upon a number of other things in the winter overall. Order of importance would be: Snowcover, snowfall frequency, snowstorms, cold. Snowfall frequency was about average, total snowfall a bit above average but not nearly as above as many recent years have been. Another thing was the amount of large snowstorms, those too were not in abundance as they had been in many recent winters as there was only one biggie this year, however it was the biggest storm of life at 16.5". The cold we saw in February was unlike anything id ever seen before from a sustained standpoint, and unlike many others, I found the arctic air invigorating. Lastly and most importantly, snowcover was excellent. Not just from a sustained standpoint, but how deep it was. The lasting length of deep snowpack would have been unlike anything Detroit had ever seen had it not been for the epic winter last year, so instead its a distant 2nd (but again, far better than anything else wed seen pre-2013). Which really puts the 2013-14+2014-15 winters in uncharted waters for the outdoor winter rec enthusiast in SE MI. I could have given this winter a solid A if not for the disaster December. 2014-15 final grade: A- I know its all subjective but I don't understand the B+ for the month of March. If this month is a B+ I would be afraid to see what an F is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daddylonglegs Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Keep this simple... Dec was horrible..what was it...3 weeks with no sunshine? Jan was ok..mild...but not much snow... Feb was horrible...too cold. March has been up and down...overall grade maybe a B+ for temps (it really wasn't that cold outside of that Feb stretch) and D- for snow (less then 30 inches if you don't include last Sun)... Overall a solid C winter here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michsnowfreak Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I know its all subjective but I don't understand the B+ for the month of March. If this month is a B+ I would be afraid to see what an F is. Well first of all, to see an F, simply see 3 lines above the Mar grade next to the word "Dec" Its really very simple. I can break it down with statistics: Snowfall was below normal (75% of Marches have seen more snowfall than this March), but snowcover days were well above normal, with only 8% of Marches seeing more snowcover days, and only two Marches (1900 & 2014) have seen deeper snow. Temps were also below normal, continuing the pattern weve been in for 2+ years. Or I can break it down more simply. We had deep snow the first third of March, and the ice-sheened snowpack (following the snow/ice storm of the 3rd) was something I had never seen before. It lasted a good 4-5 days, and not only provided for stunning pictures, but the real-life sight of it was something that cant be described unless you witnessed it (you guys didnt have that up there). A picture may be worth a thousand words, but its a limited, non panoramic shot of what was a glass-covered deep wonderland. At night when you would look outside it was the most surreal gleam everywhere. Im a winter guy more than an active weather guy. But as you said, all subjective. You gave winter a B-/C+, powerball gave an A-, yet you spent way more time enjoying this winter than he did lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Did you really give last winter an F- with 53.5" of snow? Yep. 3rd winter in a row without a warning event combined with numerous "grazers" as Chicago and other nearby areas cashed in repeatedly. Very frustrating winter despite significantly above normal snowfall as a whole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michsnowfreak Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Yep. 3rd winter in a row without a warning event combined with numerous "grazers" as Chicago and other nearby areas cashed in repeatedly. Very frustrating winter despite significantly above normal snowfall as a whole. That is understandable. We had 6 storms of 6"+ last winter, not sure how many Chicago had. Its impressive in its own right that you made it to 53.5" WITHOUT a 6" snow, shows you must have been getting grazed from all directions. As the theme is though, the grade is always in the eye of the beholder! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slow poke Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 For a winter to get a A+ form me it would have to start in mid Nov, and end in mid March. A solid 4 months of cold and snow with a white Christmas for sure. Also have above normal snowfall with above normal snowcover. Last winter had all that pretty much but below normal snowfall in northern lower where we spend a lot of our time so I couldn't give it a A+. This winter gets a B- from me because of the crappy December, crappy 3/4 of March and below normal snowfall in northern lower once again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Yep. 3rd winter in a row without a warning event combined with numerous "grazers" as Chicago and other nearby areas cashed in repeatedly. Very frustrating winter despite significantly above normal snowfall as a whole. Reminds me of 2010-11 over here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmc76 Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Reminds me of 2010-11 over here. 1995-1998. Here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 1995-1998. Here. I thought those were lean years overall for SE MI? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerball Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I thought those were lean years overall for SE MI? Yep. Take away GHD 2, and this winter would have been more like 1976-1977... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Yep. Take away GHD 2, and this winter would have been more like 1976-1977... Yeah, that's what I thought. So the mid/late 1990s weren't winters where you were getting decent total snowfall but missing the big storms. They were just generally cruddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michsnowfreak Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Yeah, that's what I thought. So the mid/late 1990s weren't winters where you were getting decent total snowfall but missing the big storms. They were just generally cruddy. Yes. 1994-95: 33.5" 1995-96: 27.6" 1996-97: 43.1" 1997-98: 23.4" Better than the 1940s, but downright laughable compared to todays standards. Whats different is I was not around in the 1930s-60s, I WAS around in the 1990s so I can remember. And it doesnt take looking at the data/stats to prove it. Memory is solid, and winters of today compared to the mid-late 1990s are absolutely in different universes. Detroit officially went from Dec 8, 1994 to Jan 1, 1999 without a 6" storm, so 3 full winters but over 4 full years. Much of the area did sneak out a 6" storm on Mar 20, 1996 (DTW missed by 0.2"), but the winter as a whole was an epic disaster. 1996-97 had a clipper parade so overall snowfall was ok despite no big storms. I actually looked into this phenomena a few years back. I used 40.0" as the base because that was Detroits period-of-record average through 2000 ). Only 10 times in 135 years of record did Detroit exceed 40" without a 6" storm, and only 3 times (1883-84, 1984-85, 1985-86) did they exceed 50" without a 6" storm. The snowiest winter without a 6" storm was 1984-85, when 55.1" fell but the biggest storm was 5.5". In contrast, 22 times in 135 years of record Detroit had snowfall of under 40" but gotten a 6"+ storm. The least snowy winter to produce a 6" storm was 1982-83, when only 20.0" fell but it featured a 7.3" storm. The ONLY winter of the 1940s to feature a 6" storm (1943-44, storm was 6.3") still only saw snowfall of 22.8". However one of the most impressive has to be 1932-33, when only 25.8" fell, but featured TWO non-winter 6"+ storms (9.0" on Nov 15/16 & 6.0" on Mar 25). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitelakeroy Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 Well first of all, to see an F, simply see 3 lines above the Mar grade next to the word "Dec" Its really very simple. I can break it down with statistics: Snowfall was below normal (75% of Marches have seen more snowfall than this March), but snowcover days were well above normal, with only 8% of Marches seeing more snowcover days, and only two Marches (1900 & 2014) have seen deeper snow. Temps were also below normal, continuing the pattern weve been in for 2+ years. Or I can break it down more simply. We had deep snow the first third of March, and the ice-sheened snowpack (following the snow/ice storm of the 3rd) was something I had never seen before. It lasted a good 4-5 days, and not only provided for stunning pictures, but the real-life sight of it was something that cant be described unless you witnessed it (you guys didnt have that up there). A picture may be worth a thousand words, but its a limited, non panoramic shot of what was a glass-covered deep wonderland. At night when you would look outside it was the most surreal gleam everywhere. Im a winter guy more than an active weather guy. But as you said, all subjective. You gave winter a B-/C+, powerball gave an A-, yet you spent way more time enjoying this winter than he did lol. I think that is where I think you an I differ with our subjective grades. Activity (IMBY) has as much weight as snow cover (IMBY) for me. As we all know Dec was dreadful but the sins of Dec could have been mostly forgiven for me with an active March. Like you my final grade for winter is as a whole. Snow cover is a key factor in my overall grade more then the monthly grades. December and March were as boring as once could get activity wise (1/2 of winter in utter boredom) and honestly it is not like January was all that exciting. Feb did rock! The snow cover ended up being a major reason my grade is a B- and now lower. Another note that GHDII storm was awesome but it was not nearly as historic storm for us further north as we get those bigger storms a bit more in our neck of the woods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerball Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I will adjust my grade upward if we somehow manage to do well with tonight's frontogenesis event. The fact that the NAM blinked makes me feel a little better about the potential. APX's discussion has me a bit excited about the potential. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckeye Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 Well my grade for CMH. Positives: - Brutal cold and decent snow for mid/late NOV. - 125% (roughly) seasonal snowfall achieved - (2) 6" + snowfalls - Fantastic February Negatives: - Terrible December and most of January - For the second year in a row we missed the first region wide big dog for the sub forum, Insult to injury with almost unanimous model agreement of a direct hit 3 days out. - After missing the big dog to the north by 100 miles, we missed the other big dog to the south by 100 miles later in the season. overall = B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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