By Doug Schneider
The forecast is coming into better focus, and there's one thing I'm sure about:
The uncertainty is how much it will rain. Here's a graphic of forecast rainfall from the NWS for Saturday:
Road Atlanta is near the top of the first 7, where the colors change from blue to purple to red. This gives you an idea of how tight the gradient of rainfall is in the area near the track. Just a slight shift of the heavy rain to the east, and Road Atlanta could get only an inch. A slight shift to the west, and it will get 7 inches. As depicted in this graphic, Road Atlanta is looking at 1-3 inches of rain on Saturday. But there is a lot of uncertainty in that forecast amount.
Let me emphasize that this rain is NOT directly associated with Hurricane Joaquin. There is a low pressure system that is sitting over the southeast states, pulling abundant tropical moisture into the region. As the forecast stands now, Joaquin is expected to stay out in the ocean and not make landfall.
Today, showers will be on and off throughout the day. The track will stay wet all day, but the rain will be sporadic. By Saturday morning, the rain should be more constant, and it will likely be heavy at times. This will continue through the end of the race Saturday evening.
If you're camping at the track, I highly recommend that you set up your tent on higher ground. Avoid low lying areas, as they are likely to become flooded. You will especially want to avoid being near Cooper Creek, which runs parallel to the east side of the track, from behind the secondary paddock area past the esses to turn 6. It is possible that the creek will flood.
Despite the rain, I'm sure everyone at the track will have a good time. Remember, a wet day at the race track is better than a dry day anywhere else.
Let me emphasize that this rain is NOT directly associated with Hurricane Joaquin. There is a low pressure system that is sitting over the southeast states, pulling abundant tropical moisture into the region. As the forecast stands now, Joaquin is expected to stay out in the ocean and not make landfall.
Today, showers will be on and off throughout the day. The track will stay wet all day, but the rain will be sporadic. By Saturday morning, the rain should be more constant, and it will likely be heavy at times. This will continue through the end of the race Saturday evening.
If you're camping at the track, I highly recommend that you set up your tent on higher ground. Avoid low lying areas, as they are likely to become flooded. You will especially want to avoid being near Cooper Creek, which runs parallel to the east side of the track, from behind the secondary paddock area past the esses to turn 6. It is possible that the creek will flood.
Despite the rain, I'm sure everyone at the track will have a good time. Remember, a wet day at the race track is better than a dry day anywhere else.
