Also we stopped off at RAC to visit JP & Hans while on the way to Cobb, while we were walking out of the sales office a electrical transformer exploded a few blocks away. Scared the crap out us & set off a bunch of car alarms, sales staff said it's a common occurrence.
I was watching a newscast on one of the local channels day before yesterday. They were at /TMS on the track. Their laser thermometer showed 152 degrees on the track surface. They laid down a slice of bacon on the track surface and a frozen pizza. It took just over an hour to fry the bacon and crisp the crust on the pizza on the track surface. They had a race sedan (black) on the track with a tray of cookie dough on the dash. The inside of the car was 168 degrees. Cookies were finished in a couple of hours........... I love Texas. Was out running around in the Miata with top down tonight. Looked up at one of the electronic signs as I passed under. It was exactly 12 midnight and was still 95. And surprisingly it seemed comfortable. I guess because the sun was down and I was not being baked that way....... 1980 June to August average daily high was 102. Our average daily high this year is 100.8 for the same period. A few more days with highs like we have been having and 1980 and 2011 will be really close in averages. Average nightly low matches exactly at 86.4.
The answer is a bit more involved than you likely want but here goes. We have only had 3 measurable rainfalls in the vineyard in the past 16 months. (I can't believe I just typed that.) We have drip irrigation as does almost every vineyard so we are able to water the vines as much or as little as we want. Obviously our irrigation gallon flow this year has been huge. So the plants are living fine inspite of the lack of rain. The problems have been the heat and the wind. With average humidity in the 20 to 30% range and temps over 100 degrees the air sucks the moisture out of every living thing. The vines act like they are in a dehydration machine. We can keep the trunks and larger cordons alive with irrigation but the poor leaves and new shoots are getting the water sucked right out of them. The wind hasn't stopped since the spring. No rain means there is dust everywhere. The wind picks up small particles and drives them across the trunks. Our vines have been sandblasted on the southern and southeastern sides. So the overall answer is; the grape vines are going to be fine. They are stressed but will be ok. Harvest this year has shown the pressures of the weather. We normally expect 4 to 4.5 tons per acre yet see rates closer to .5 to .75 tons per acre when the clusters are harvested. Fruit quality however is excellent.
Yeah it is pretty scary. Thankfully I'm smart enough that each year I have backup contracts with growers across the state. I pay a fee for the right of first refusal on their crops. Some years I win and some years I lose but on average I'm way ahead.
Charter Internet has been knocked out due to heat for various parts of the Panther City, unreal & annoying. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I'm on Charter in the New Orleans area and the 'net connection has dropped off at times the last several days. I wonder if it's the heat.
Yikes. I think I'm still the leader though; I saw 121 a couple weeks ago in Dallas. Pic here: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showpost.php?p=140712475&postcount=9796
Funny you say - driving back from Houston a couple weeks back and right as I was passing an 18-wheeler, one of his right/rear tires blew out. Scared the living hell outa me! I caught some debris but since I was on his left side, I was lucky...the guys behind him caught the brunt of it. Of course he kept on truckin'. This is the second time I've been near a truck when it had a blowout and exactly why I stay clear of trucks whenever possible. Lucky I was in my Tahoe and not the F-car!
I think its going to rain. Although they still predict 103 after storm goes through, I see a good chance we don't even make 100. Just 94 right now.
Sometimes I'm very glad to be avoiding the Texas summer, but I don't know what's worse - scorching heat, or torched homes from the riots... (writing from London these days) I'd hate to see what the electric bills are over there right now!
Hopefully. I know. I have family living in Duncan (east of Lawton), and they say alot about how hot it is.
Our ranch, vineyard, cattle, deer, grass, everything is screaming for rain and cooler temps. No such luck. . Image Unavailable, Please Login
Streak over at 40 days. But, the 100 degree temps will return soon. No rain here, but some significantly cooler temps.
