Photo: Matt Riley / UVA Communications
Local software engineer and UVA grad Isaiah Parr would love to chase storms all day, every day. But professional storm-chasing is the big leagues—only a select few do it for a living.
Parr, who parlayed his ‘24 computer science degree into a career with local tech firm Biocore, heads out at least once a week during storm season to spot tornadoes just for the fun of it. From spring to early fall, Parr and his partner, Peter Forister, monitor weather apps to predict when and where they’re most likely to glimpse a twister in Virginia or North Carolina. The pair hit the road for a longer trip down South or into the Midwest about once a month.
Parr and Forister spend their spare time watching the major forecasting models so they know where to start. Once on the road in Parr’s vanity plate-adorned RAV4 (“TOR CHSR”) or Forister’s wheels, the team uses RadarScope to watch wind speeds and storm movement. Parr says he’s personally seen at least 10 ’nados in the last four years, a roughly 10 percent success rate.
“I will chase plenty of storms and not see a tornado,” Parr says. “But it’s still a lot of fun going out there.”
Parr says Forister, who has a master’s in meteorology, taught him everything he knows about storm-chasing. Forister manages a part-time job taking photos while chasing the weather, but Parr isn’t ready to give up his software career to chase the dream.
“If someone came along and offered me a job, I would not turn it down,” Parr says. “But I have my family and other hobbies.”
