Holy Hail Storm, Batman!

I just made it into the garage when this humdinger blew up.

It’s funny how the weather in one part of the city can be so totally different from another part.  That’s Calgary.  Today I was at Columbia in the NE finishing off my end-of-term reports. The weather there was hot and summery (sunny and 25 degrees).  There was a wind blowing and it had been since morning (strong at times too). As I was driving home I could see the storm clouds looming on the horizon. It was a dark and stormy afternoon…  It wasn’t until I had reached the Nose Hill exit ramp on Crowchild that I entered the abyss.  The sky was black and the temperature had dipped to 17.  As I was waiting at the lights at the Scenic Acres Link intersection the thunder and lightning started.  Huge raindrops fell and I knew hail was coming. I beetled home (not speeding) to try and avoid it and I literally had just pulled into the garage when down it came.  It’s a good thing too because these buggers were bigger than our normal ones and would’ve left a few dents. Trees were being torn apart from the hail and wind and the street was running like a flash flood. All the while the thunder rumbled. Our deck got the worst of it. There was so much hail piled up at the back that our screen was frozen in place like winter.

It has blown by for now, but the skies are still iffy. The radar says we’re supposed to be rained out between now and 6, but sometimes it’s so way off I wonder where it gets its readings.  I hope it warms up again to melt before our club ride.  It’s too wet/cold/icy out there for my liking. (I’ll get Simon to upload the video for a truly immersive experience.)

Updated by Simon

Here you go!