Weather is life
My father, an avid outdoorsman, paid close attention to it. He learned from his parents and the logs of his grandfather, who was a lighthouse keeper on Seguin Island, just how crazy the weather could get. The barometer in the house was checked every morning and night. He listened to local radio all day and watched the 6 o’clock news for updates. If by chance he missed the television broadcast, the NOAA weather radio was turned on to get the latest forecast and bulletin information. He respected the weather and how dangerous it could get while on a boat or out in the woods. All of this was instilled in me as a child growing up in the 1970s. It was important to stay updated because the forecast could change quickly.
I caught the weather bug as a kid. I kept observations at times, tracked hurricanes on paper, and was fascinated with thunderstorms and winter. I had a dream to be a weather forecaster on TV. I grew up watching the likes of Barry Burbank and Bob O’Wrill. It wasn’t in the cards for me though. My father had the math gene, but I didn’t get it.
I loved to study maps and geography. I’d grab the Maine Atlas and Gazetteer and study it. When my father told me we were going to a lake or pond to ice fish, I knew the route. I studied nautical charts, also. We spent a lot of time on the boat in summer, over eastern Casco Bay, the Kennebec and Sheepscot Rivers.
I caught the weather bug as a kid. I kept observations at times, tracked hurricanes on paper, and was fascinated with thunderstorms and winter. I had a dream to be a weather forecaster on TV. I grew up watching the likes of Barry Burbank and Bob O’Wrill. It wasn’t in the cards for me though. My father had the math gene, but I didn’t get it.
I loved to study maps and geography. I’d grab the Maine Atlas and Gazetteer and study it. When my father told me we were going to a lake or pond to ice fish, I knew the route. I studied nautical charts, also. We spent a lot of time on the boat in summer, over eastern Casco Bay, the Kennebec and Sheepscot Rivers.
I grew up in Yarmouth and graduated from high school there in 1988. I became a professionally trained chef. I worked in classy places, along with some dives, too. While doing that, I started to pursue a radio career on the side. I did voiceover work, production, and as a fill in DJ for All Sports 1440 AM and Ocean 98. Then as side gig, I went into professional hockey doing intern work for the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League for a couple of seasons. I got married, left the hospitality industry late 1998, and used my inventory management skillset in the commercial vehicle parts world. My growing family left Portland for Poland Spring in 2001. Soon after, the Lewiston MAINEiacs came to town. I managed the chat board, wrote columns for the team magazine, color commentary on the radio, then moved into media and community relations. After the team sold and disbanded, I wondered what my next side job was to entertain my curious mind.
Hello busted forecast.
I stayed home from work on a day in December 2011 as my daughters were called off from school for what was supposed to be a 6-12” snow event, which didn’t happen. I was livid. I burned my Boxing Day off from work, my last day of paid vacation of the year, for what ended up being flurries.
Are these forecasters idiots? It must be nice to get paid for a job where you are wrong all the time.
I wanted to know what these people look at and why forecasts bust.
Using my sports media connections, I emailed Dave Eid at WGME, who put me in touch with Charlie Lopresti. In a few evenings over pizza or Pad Thai noodles, he showed me the ropes with the data he used. That began my journey.
I stayed home from work on a day in December 2011 as my daughters were called off from school for what was supposed to be a 6-12” snow event, which didn’t happen. I was livid. I burned my Boxing Day off from work, my last day of paid vacation of the year, for what ended up being flurries.
Are these forecasters idiots? It must be nice to get paid for a job where you are wrong all the time.
I wanted to know what these people look at and why forecasts bust.
Using my sports media connections, I emailed Dave Eid at WGME, who put me in touch with Charlie Lopresti. In a few evenings over pizza or Pad Thai noodles, he showed me the ropes with the data he used. That began my journey.
Ryan Breton, Cindy Fitzgibbon at WCVB Boston
Hello Western Maine Weather.
After playing around on Twitter and making myself look incredibly naïve, arrogant, and foolish, I decided to set up a Facebook page. Some friends followed. I soon learned what it felt like to look like an idiot after a busted forecast. The one difference between me and the TV folks was that I was not getting paid!
You learn from your mistakes, right? I made many of them. I learned to respect the TV and National Weather Service meteorologists for just how difficult it is in certain situations. I am surprised that I didn’t lose all my followers with Western Maine Weather with some epic implosions. I kept at it. I developed relationships with TV, private and public sector forecasters. Twitter was my meteorology school. After the big blizzards in 2015, my followers grew. I began to be noticed by the media. The Bangor Daily News came calling about a blog. It took me time, but I came to embrace the idea. I had to cover statewide, and for a state this size, a lot more work.
After playing around on Twitter and making myself look incredibly naïve, arrogant, and foolish, I decided to set up a Facebook page. Some friends followed. I soon learned what it felt like to look like an idiot after a busted forecast. The one difference between me and the TV folks was that I was not getting paid!
You learn from your mistakes, right? I made many of them. I learned to respect the TV and National Weather Service meteorologists for just how difficult it is in certain situations. I am surprised that I didn’t lose all my followers with Western Maine Weather with some epic implosions. I kept at it. I developed relationships with TV, private and public sector forecasters. Twitter was my meteorology school. After the big blizzards in 2015, my followers grew. I began to be noticed by the media. The Bangor Daily News came calling about a blog. It took me time, but I came to embrace the idea. I had to cover statewide, and for a state this size, a lot more work.
Hello Pine Tree Weather in December 2016.
It was a nice run with the BDN. The editor who brought me on left the paper, and the blogs were going away. In the aftermath of the Halloween Horror windstorm in 2017, I began operations here.
My family and I moved from Poland Spring to Kennebunk in March of 2018. I was improving as a forecaster, still a bit busty at times, and it annoyed me. I wanted a more formal education. I enrolled in the Penn State World Campus Weather Forecast Certification program.
I started school in January 2020 as COVID hit. Somehow, I managed juggle the insanity of the day job, updating my Facebook and website with help from interns, and managed to get through the education in 16 months. It was worth it. You will see the results of it in my work here. Not only did I learn how to forecast, but I also learned how it can bust.
I don’t profess to be a great forecaster, or even a good one, but I’ve made it my passion to figure out how and why storms can over or under perform. The atmosphere is like an engine. You cannot understand it unless you know how to take it apart. My critical eye is good for something, and my understanding of Maine and how the weather happens here makes it all come together. I try to share my knowledge and teach readers the why.
I knew years ago that there was a gap between the National Weather Service and the broadcast meteorologists for information. That is what I try to fill here. Mainers deserve to know more about how weather patterns and phenomena affect it. I work hard to deliver on that and share that with my readers. I hope you find my information useful.
The mission of Pine Tree Weather is simple: an honest, straightforward, easy-to-understand, and relatable approach of forecasting and information. Sometimes cynical, sometimes colorful, just like the people of Maine.
Thank you for being part of my journey. We’re all in this together.
- Mike Haggett
It was a nice run with the BDN. The editor who brought me on left the paper, and the blogs were going away. In the aftermath of the Halloween Horror windstorm in 2017, I began operations here.
My family and I moved from Poland Spring to Kennebunk in March of 2018. I was improving as a forecaster, still a bit busty at times, and it annoyed me. I wanted a more formal education. I enrolled in the Penn State World Campus Weather Forecast Certification program.
I started school in January 2020 as COVID hit. Somehow, I managed juggle the insanity of the day job, updating my Facebook and website with help from interns, and managed to get through the education in 16 months. It was worth it. You will see the results of it in my work here. Not only did I learn how to forecast, but I also learned how it can bust.
I don’t profess to be a great forecaster, or even a good one, but I’ve made it my passion to figure out how and why storms can over or under perform. The atmosphere is like an engine. You cannot understand it unless you know how to take it apart. My critical eye is good for something, and my understanding of Maine and how the weather happens here makes it all come together. I try to share my knowledge and teach readers the why.
I knew years ago that there was a gap between the National Weather Service and the broadcast meteorologists for information. That is what I try to fill here. Mainers deserve to know more about how weather patterns and phenomena affect it. I work hard to deliver on that and share that with my readers. I hope you find my information useful.
The mission of Pine Tree Weather is simple: an honest, straightforward, easy-to-understand, and relatable approach of forecasting and information. Sometimes cynical, sometimes colorful, just like the people of Maine.
Thank you for being part of my journey. We’re all in this together.
- Mike Haggett