KMIR-TV – Geoff Fox: My Permanent Record

Rain’s A Big Deal Here

We do a seven day forecast at KMIR. Yesterday I mentioned Day Eight. It got a shout out (as Day Seven) again tonight. That’s because there’s rain forecast next Thursday.

The actual value to rain in the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs area) is debatable. We average less than six inches per year. The majority of our water comes from an underground aquifer. It would be long gone if not supplemented by water piped in from Parker Dam on the Colorado River. Rainfall seeping down is a small piece of our specific puzzle.

Nature doesn’t provide nearly enough to support our population and the hundreds of thousands of tourists who arrive every week during the season.

Whether rainwater helps or not, people in the valley value it. Mentioning rain here is like mentioning snow in New England. It grabs your attention.

If you break down next Thursday’s rain forecast over Palm Springs, it comes to .06″. Tiny. Hardly noticeable.

A forecast for that small amount of liquid a week away is chancy at best, especially when you throw in:

EARLY NEXT WEEK A GULF OF ALASKA LOW WILL DEEPEN OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST AND SEND A SERIES OF SHORTWAVES DOWN THE WEST COAST AND ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. THIS UNUSUAL APRIL PATTERN WOULD BRING A DECENT CHANCE AT PRECIPITATION IF WERE TO UNFOLD. BUT THIS PATTERN HAS BEEN FORECAST SEVERAL TIMES THIS WINTER AND HAS EITHER 1) SUBSTANTIALLY WEAKENED OVER TIME OR 2) FAILED TO MATERIALIZE AT ALL. FOR NOW WILL HOLD ON TO A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR PRECIPITATION FOR THE MIDDLE AND LATER STAGES OF NEXT WEEK. – Area Forecast Discussion NWS San Diego

Wish us luck. It will get my attention on every newscast.

Who Said I’d Be Bored?

Some computer models show around an inch of rain in Palm Springs by Monday morning. That’s a lot in a place that floods easily. I spent time tonight explaining ‘washes’ to the tourists and snowbirds watching.

I’m forecasting the weather for the Coachella Valley at KMIR. The physics of weather are the same, but there are different tools to use.

Satellite imagery is a lot more important here. Anything coming from the Pacific is out of radar range nearly all the way to the coast.

I’ve been looking at a plume of moisture from north of Hawaii curving up the Pacific then back down the West Coast. It’s the big weekend weather maker for SoCal. The only way to see it is from the bird.

Saturday, while it’s raining in LA and San Diego, there will be partly cloudy skies over Palm Springs with a few sprinkles. We are protected by steep mountains, some over 11,000 feet tall.

On Sunday the moisture heads in from the south. No protection there! That’s when we get the bulk of our rain.

On top of the rain we’ve got wind for Saturday and as much as a foot and a half of snow in some mountain locations.

Who said I’d be bored forecasting here?

Rain Shade Is Major

Locales have individual climatic quirks like baseball parks have ground rules. The Coachella Valley, where the vast majority of our viewers live, is a protected valley. We are flanked by mountains. We get “rain shade.” Real term. I didn’t make it up.

My job is forecasting the weather at KMIR. Our market, Palm Springs, covers a small geographic area. It’s not even a whole county!

People think it’s boring to forecast in the desert. Nah. Sometimes it’s repetitive. I can deal with that. There’s always something interesting going on.

The San Bernardino Mountains are north, San Jacinto and Santa Ana Mountains west and the Little San Bernardino Mountains are off to the east. We’re wedged in tight.

A small storm hitting SoCal this weekend will drop nearly all its rain before it gets to Palm Springs! The largest rainfall will be on the eastern slopes of the Santa Ana’s. The east face of the San Jacinto range should drain most of what’s left. The tallest mountaintops will get snow.

The notoriously awful QPF (Quantitative Precipitation Forecast) from the GFS model say .06″ Sunday and another .04″ Monday at Palm Springs Airport (PSP). John Wayne Airport (SNA), west of Palm Springs and on the coastal side of the mountains, is forecast for .33″, over three times as much.

There’s are reasons Palm Springs gets less than six inches of rain in an average year. Rain shade is major.

It’s Starting To Look Like A Studio

I was just in the garage. It’s more studio now. Boxes still litter the floor. The rugs we ordered haven’t yet released their folds. The lights aren’t properly pointed. But there are signs it’s not for cars anymore.

The sideview monitors are mounted. That’s how I’ll see the maps while on-air. There’s another monitor in the TelePrompter.

I’ve also erected a sound baffle/equipment room from an old cubicle KMIR let me have. Inside are utility shelves I brought home from Lowes. Equipment sits on them, waiting.

My Blackmagic Studio Camera has arrived, as has its zoom lens. The focal length was a guess. The camera itself is as cool as can be with a large flat monitor on the back.

The size and cost of cameras and everything electronic has dramatically plunged. This seems a good time to get in.

There are just two pieces missing. I am praying they arrive this week. Hey, NewTek, I’m talking to you. Pretty please. Seriously.

NewTek makes the Tricaster Mini. It’s the brains of the operation, acting as a full broadcast control room. Without it there is nothing.

I’ll be directing my own segment while on-the-air with its assistance. Yes, that is totally crazy!

The other missing item is the tripod. It will hold the very light camera and the much heavier Teleprompter.

I went to Fry’s and bought some cable last night–75 ohm coax with bnc connectors on each end in varying lengths. Even the nerd at Fry’s didn’t know where it was. These will be used to tie equipment together. I overbought. It’s inexpensive enough to consider an insurance buy.

I ordered a few 50 foot lengths of HDMI cable today. These will be used on the sideview monitors. 25 foot lengths were originally ordered. Oops.

Once the studio’s complete I’ll need to test with the station and make sure everything’s perfect. A week from today would be nice. It’s my goal.

I think I’ll call it Studio 5E, after the apartment I grew up in. I’m living the dream.

Back At Work

IMAG2066

I’m back in Palm Springs. Gino and Janet at 5 and 6. Gino solo at 9 and 11. Excellent. Good company.

I’m here while Helaine wrangles the electrician tomorrow. Sockets are being added and removed. Studio lights and a large digital clock are being hung.

My phone is by the bed.

The boss wanted my hair shorter. Fine. Joseph does a lot of TV people in LA and spends weekends in Palm Springs. Looks good… and short.

I’m in a nice hotel near the Indian Wells “Tennis Garden.” My room for the week is really a small one bedroom apartment. They call it a suite. Not home. It makes my stay much easier.

Quiet right now. Peacefully so. TV off. We’ll see how long I can take the lack of stimulation.

My place has a giant balcony with a mediocre view of an interior courtyard. It’s better than that sentence makes it sound. 77 tomorrow! I’ll open the door and let the fresh air in.

I assume a few of you are Coachella Valley residents who Googled my name, found my site and started reading.

Hi!

You live in a wonderful area. It’s beautiful here. Even the summer.

I’m Geoff. This is my blog, a fairly detailed retelling of my life since July 4, 2003. There’s a new entry nearly every day.

I’m on Facebook and Twitter and respond to comments. I like forecasting the weather and talking about it on TV.

All weather forecasters are reasonably accurate nowadays. I make no claim to have the highest accuracy. My strength is explaining the weather in a way that leaves you understanding what’s to come while enjoying yourself.

I am loose on-the-air and often ‘break the fourth wall.’ Call me enthusiastic.

Find me weeknights at 5,6,9 and 11 on KMIR and KPSE. My wife and daughter will appreciate it.

Just In Case You Want To Watch

kmir news logo My first day on KMIR was Thursday. I purposely kept the streaming link to myself. Who knew how the first shows would go? Now that I’ve eased in, feel free to peep.

My newscasts are Monday-Friday 5,6, 9 and 11p pst. That corresponds to 8,9, midnight and 2a est. All our newscasts can be found here.

If you have friends or relatives near Palm Springs, tell them to watch. I’m paid by the viewer!

First Day Back On TV

“Don’t go to sleep yet, there’s more KMIR News to come.”

It’s after midnight. I am lying on my bed in a hotel not far from the station. I’m bushed. Long day.

Maybe, more importantly, an emotional day. That too is tiring.

TV came back to me very quickly. If anything I was a little too intense. There was a lot of pressure to release. I will calm down.

The station itself is like a comfortable shoe. The newsroom is small and friendly. So many people here remind me of people I’ve worked with before.

If co-workers are any indication, it went well.

Janet Zappala anchored at 5, 6, 9 and 11. After tossing to weathercasts recorded in Vegas with no interplay, she was ready for a live body.

We didn’t need to set up what we were going to talk about. It usually takes time to establish that trust. We both knew right away the other would be up for nearly anything.

There is a tease with weather included at 9 and 11. I got to say it!

“Don’t go to sleep yet, there’s more KMIR News to come.”

It felt good.

I was also touched by the response of my Connecticut viewers via Facebook. It’s so strange to be gone and not forgotten. That doesn’t happen often.

(Thanks to Dee Wescott who lives here, but is from Connecticut. She shot the TV pics I’ve used.)

To Build A Studio

The wall separating the kitchen and garage will turn Behr Sparkling Apple, latex flat.

I start at KMIR on the first from the studio. After a while the plan is to sometimes use a studio at my house.

It might be the first case of a TV anchor anchoring from home. In radio it’s fairly common.

Every bit of weather data I need is available online. Distant computers can be controlled remotely. I might not have a window, but I’ll have everything else.

The trick is to make my home studio functionally the same as the station’s. There aren’t that many pieces. Nearly all are recent inventions leveraging the increasing speed of digital electronics.

My biggest concern is lag. How long does the video take to go from my garage to the station?

We ran a test from my next door neighbor’s house. At .8 seconds it’s fast enough for live conversation.

The weather graphics still get created on the computer at the station with the files FTPed here. A TriCaster Mini, a little TV control room in a box, will put all the components together. Clicker controlled!

My studio needs a camera, lights, some ancillary equipment and more power from the box outside. The wall separating the kitchen and garage will turn Behr Sparkling Apple, latex flat.

The video will travel point-to-point over the Internet with a special encoder on each end. It’s the same technology that’s made TV live trucks mostly superfluous.

I am concerned about the garage’s acoustics. It is VERY echoey. A lot of it has to be the door. I will experiment with blankets hung in front of it. My friend Peter says “Carpet on the walls.” Maybe. I’m very unsure. It will be corrected.

Lots to be done, starting now.

Don’t Go To Sleep Yet

Earlier this afternoon I met with the news director and general manager of KMIR in Palm Springs. I am thrilled to announce I start on January 1st.

There’s more.

I’ll be doing some of my broadcasts from a studio I’m building in my garage. I’ll still be live with realtime interaction with the anchors. We just won’t be in the same room.

Some of my friends from Channel 8 will remember me talking about this idea years ago. The technology and time is right. With this setup I’ll be able to offer my services to other stations as well, no matter where they’re located.

I’m super excited about KMIR and will be devoting lots of time to make sure everything works perfectly.

Quite honestly, it’s pretty cool.

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