Pica Pole : Right place, right time
Posted on Wednesday, May 14, 2008
When March rolled in, little did I know that March 5 would be the last time I'd write a column for an extended period. But now it's mid-May. My, how time flies. It's good to be writing again. I can't recall what kept me from writing the second Wednesday of March. I was unable to write since then because I was editing the twice-weekly newspaper in Siloam Springs, the Herald-Leader. The managing editor's job came open, and with no replacement hired, the duty fell to me. It was good to get back into designing pages, editing a lot of copy, working with photographs, guiding reporters. Despite the job description of editor of The Daily Record, the bulk of the editing falls to others.
• • • Since coming to this newspaper in February 1986 - my gosh, that's 22 years ago - every chance I got when a big storm rolled through, I went out looking for a tornado. In 22 years, that's a lot of miles driving across Benton County, each time coming up empty-handed. Back in March, I thought I'd finally accomplished the goal when a swirling cloud swept in from the west. There was definitely rotation in the cloud, but it disappeared without a funnel. Saturday evening, after sending everyone home from Phillips Park when the tornado sirens sounded, son Jeff and I loaded into the truck and headed toward a dark cloud over Centerton. Wanting to get on the side of the storm, we headed south on Southwest I Street, then west onto Regional Airport Boulevard. We turned south onto Morning Star Road with the idea of turning around and looking north. Garrett Lewis, the KFSM weather guy who broadcasts on KKIX, was talking about a storm over the Pinnacle area, so we parked facing east. After a few minutes, a large object - slowing, circling, rising and falling - caught my eye. Jeff said it looked like a big goose (he loves duck hunting and everything looks like a duck or a goose to him ). About the time I realized it was probably a couple of pieces of plywood hooked together, I spotted a swirling, angrygray funnel snaking from the rather bland looking cloud above. I called 911 to report the funnel. Jeff called Natalie. We watched as the twister twisted around, went up and down, then up for a final time. The show lasted for a couple of minutes. After a few more minutes, we headed to the newspaper: One of the photos I took appeared on Sunday's Page 1 A. Go figure. That's when we heard dispatchers on the police scanner reporting damage to Pinecrest Private School and the nearby Central Park Elementary School at Morning Star. So we loaded up and went there. One thing Jeff and I couldn't determine was where the tornado tracked: With no perspective on size, we have no way to establish distance. Now we know we were 1. 4 miles from the twister. Having finally photographed a tornado in Benton County, I'm thankful that I didn't have to photograph the misery a tornado can spread, like what happened to Picher, Okla., the same day.
• • • Back in college, tornado warnings sent the Arkansas State University student body into basements for shelter. Another photographer and I got the room key for the southwest room on the ninth floor of the dorm. We figured that was a great vantage point. Turned out, it was. Problem was, the other photographer didn't have any film, and I had a 24-exposure roll. When the twister came past, I had to shoot wisely: Shoot up the film too fast and I might miss something; too slow and I wouldn't get a good shot. Exposure - I had to think about that, too. And focus. And composition. That day, I got a couple of good shots. One (which I thought was one of the lesser images ) ran the next day on Page 1 A of the Arkansas Gazette. That was in 1984, I think.
• • • Fast forward 24 years to Saturday: My, how cameras have changed. No problem with not enough film: If my memory card had been full I'd just have deleted old photos. Exposure ? With film you didn't know until you developed the film; with digital, play mode allows instant feedback. Focus ? Camera does the work. Composition ? The camera still can't do that. And the camera still can't get itself to the proper spot, whether it's on the ninth floor of a building or the side of the road somewhere in Benton County.
• • • Kent Marts is editor / general manager of The Benton County Daily Record. His column appears on Wednesdays. He can be reached at kentm @ nwanews. com.
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