We are back to some active weather across the area.  The system that is going to affect us will NOT hit us directly, but rather a glancing blow will cause a few problems.  We have a weak area of low pressure that was recently near the Raleigh/Durham area.  Even though it was weak, it still had enough moisture to produce showers in our region.  This was how Super Doppler 10 looked this morning at 6:30am:

Super Doppler 10 Radar (6:30am)

Rain will taper off this afternoon and focus more over North Carolina.  We could see a half an inch over southeast Virginia.  1-2 inches are possible over northeast North Carolina.  I don’t expect thunderstorms except for a few isolated ones over North Carolina.  So rain shouldn’t be too much of an issue with this system as the low moves East/southeast. 

Today's Forecast

The low itself will not cause the wind to pick up tonight.  Rather the high pressure that builds in from the west will create a tight pressure gradient (difference in pressure over a certain distance) as the low moves offshore.  The low will get a little stronger, but not too much.  And it won’t strengthen until it moves well offshore.  This will pick up the winds.  This transition will take place from late tonight into tomorrow:

Tomorrow's Weather

Wind advisories are posted for tonight and tomorrow for Virginia Beach, Currituck county, and the Outer Banks.  The wind will pick up tonight out of the northeast.  We’ll have some gusts to 35mph near the Virginia Shores.  Gusts will be up to 40 over the Outer Banks:

Wind Forecast

Notice that the winds are not expected to be that strong over the Eastern Shore.  Tomorrow the winds will still be gusting to 35mph near the Virginia Shore (except for the Eastern Shore), but gusts will rise up to 45mph over the Outer Banks.  This will set us up for some tidal flooding. 

Tonight we could see some minor tidal flooding (1-1.5ft above normal) over the southern Chesapeake Bay and over the Outer Banks.  Tomorrow will be the highest tides during the morning.  Tides will run 1-2ft above normal.  It could possibly run a little higher than 2 ft. over the Outer Banks.  So we could even see some moderate tidal flooding there.  Sewell’s Point is forecast to rise up to about 5 ft.  Duck, North Carolina is forecast to rise up to just under 6ft.  Here’s a link to tide forecasts in the region: Regional Tides

Overwash is possible over coastal North Carolina.  Some beach erosion is possible too.  This is especially bad news for areas still recovering from Irene.  Hopefully, the new bridge will be ok going to Hatteras.  We’ll be watching.

After that Sunday looks fine.  There will be less wind.  High pressure will build in right on top of us.  We’ll have a lot of sunshine.  Highs will be in the 60.  We’ll see quiet weather continue into early next week with some warmer temperatures. 

Tip of the day: Don’t forget to turn the clocks back one hour between Saturday night and Sunday morning.  It is also a good time to change the batteries in your smoke alarms. 

Meteorologist: Jeremy Wheeler

The Latest News and info in Hampton Roads from Sportswrap running Reporter, Jon “Flex” Leiding

On the Run Again!

Nearly 7000 finishers raced along the Oceanfront for the Wicked 10K this past Saturday. Among the thousands of costumes, speed was not disguised. Friend of The Blog, Ryan Carroll continued his Southside stronghold, posting another impressive time, 33:39. Not far behind, Masters standout, Pete Gibson, who we’ve featured her, was second in a blazing 36:21. Renee High was putting in another speedy effort, finishing Top Ten overall with a 37:40. Always happy to see her back to doing what she does well!

Epic Runs at the Monuments

The Marine Corps Marathon in Washington featured a little snow the day before, then decided to chill the runners on race day with temps at the start in the 30s. Some great efforts came shining through. Congrats to Michael Wardian, who we’ve featured and seen here locally, finished second overall in 2:23:46. Drew Carey, comedian and TV host of “The Price is Right”, completed the run in 4:37:10. The race featured a 90 year old and a 14 year old celebrating their birthday that day. Locally, Justin Turner was the fastest from Hampton Roads, 29th overall with a super 2:39:41. Two Familiar Steves- Steve Speirs and Steve Patterson both broke the coveted “Sub Three” mark, with 2:53:53 and 2:57:20, along with Hampton’s Adam Pegues racing an amazing 2:48:49. Congrats to all of you that took the 26.2 mile trip!

On Your Mark…

For those of you taking on the New York City Marathon, my very best wishes to you! For the rest of us, maybe a little local action will get your blood pumping. The Race for Breath 5k takes off from the Oceanfront, while the Taste of Town Center 5K beckons with the very popular “after party”, including several of the restaurants in the area. If you wanna go further, the Yorktown Battlefield Ten Miler is always a jam packed race. Sunday, the Peninsula Town Center hosts the Anything is Possible 5K, while walking is on tap as well at the Oceanfront with the Walk In Their Shoes event. To find out more, visit peninsulatrackclub.com, tidewaterstriders.com, or colonialroadrunners.org.

And Now, Something Different!

The Soggy Bottom Boys have pieced together an event on Saturday where you’ll use a compass, follow directions, and maybe even some adventure along the way as you hit checkpoints around Virginia Beach. They’ve called it the Urban-O-Meet, complete with two courses.

Reflection Time

I had a great time meeting SO many Runners at the Marine Corps Marathon. Reconnecting with some and creating new friendships is always a refreshing experience. It’s a great “destination run” I will do again. Here in the “757″, the local races still get it right, with their “after party” attractions. We are fortunate for what we have here.

Gotta go, so I’ll make it quick! If you have a story idea, or just want to share some news, hit me up at astrovp@yahoo.com. Be on the lookout for our weekly Running Blog here on WAVY.com. Thanks for all your input and efforts. We can’t do it without you! Maybe, I’ll see you soon…”On The Run!”

See You On The Run!

It was another cold morning across the region today.  Lows were in the upper 30s to low 40s.  Even near the water’s edge it was colder today.  Strong high pressure is still around, so we’ll have mostly sunny skies through the day. Highs will be in the mid 60s with a light southwest wind. 

Today's Weather

There is an area of low pressure to the west.  This brought heavy snow to Denver yesterday.  As the low moved east it encountered warmer temperatures.  So there was only rain (pretty much) from Texas to Illinois this morning.  The low will slide southeast tomorrow, but will weaken. 

Tomorrow's Forecast

 The low won’t have a deep southerly flow ahead of it.  So there won’t be a lot of warm/moist air for fuel.  So the rain chances will be higher over North Carolina and will taper off from south to north.  There may not be any showers from the Peninsula Northward.  That is up to the track of the low.  If this were a snow situation I’d be trying to pinpoint the exact cutoff, but since it is rain I’ll just give a broader forecast.  Rain could reach up to a half inch with less amounts northward. 

Behind this low, once again, we will see a big cool down and a windy day.  Saturday will have highs in the mid-upper 50s and winds could gust up to 30mph out of the north/northeast.  The winds will let-up on Sunday though, and we’ll warm back to the mid 60s for highs.  Then we’ll finally get a warm-up next week with highs in the upper 60s to mid 70s for 3-4 days.  

Tip Of The Day:  With the big range in daily temperatures it is a good idea to dress in layers.  A big bulky jacket will be too warm in the afternoon.  So light layers are best. 

Meteorologist: Jeremy Wheeler

Last night I was out trick-or-treating with the family.  Conditions were fine. (50s and cloudy with light winds).  We packed it up by about 7:50pm, then by about 8:00pm the rain moved in.  Most locations missed the showers early on, but the rain steadily moved in from the west.  Last night we picked up about a half inch up to an inch through the region.

Estimated Rain Totals

We had some lingering showers this morning, but not many.  They should push out by later this morning.  An area of low pressure is developing offshore.  This system will continue to strengthen, but will also be heading east/northeast. That is very good news for the northeast states that are recovering from last weekend’s storm.

Today's Forecast

High pressure will build in from the west.  This will help to clear skies through the day.  It will also give us some strong northerly winds with gusts up to 25mph.  The high will build in stronger tonight.  This will completely clear us out.  It will also let the winds lighten up.  So lows in the metro tonight will drop to the low/mid 40s.  Some inland locations with the lighter winds will drop to the upper 30s.  After the chilly start it will be nice tomorrow with ample sunshine and highs in the mid 60s. 

In the longer term…the models are disagreeing on Friday’s rain potential.  One model has a good chance for rain.  The other has just a few sprinkles.  Hopefully, they come into agreement later today, but at this time there is at least a few showers in the forecast.

Tip Of The Day: Don’t eat too much of that candy from trick-or-treating all at one time.  Try to spread it out to save your teeth and your tummy.  Yep, I said tummy.  : )

Meteorologist: Jeremy Wheeler