Captain Cane! I have debated which I missed more, regular rainfall or college football, and there is no question: College football. Sorry, garden. Tulsa World File
The term "Golden Hurricane" is not a meteorological term, confirms Tulsa National Weather Service meteorologist Karen Hatfield.
How dangerous a "Tulsa Golden Hurricane" is on a football field is likely of great concern to OU and OSU fans, as their teams will square off against the University of Tulsa this month.
But what about just a Tulsa ... hurricane? Or a hurricane in northeastern Oklahoma? Hatfield explains:
"The last 'hurricane remnants' to affect northeast Oklahoma: Hurricane Ike in September 2008," said Hatfield. "Eastern Oklahoma was affected by rain and high winds, as the system remained intense even this far inland."
As for tropical storms, the last 'tropical remnants' to affect northeast Oklahoma was Tropical Storm Hermine last September, said Hatfield.
"Tulsa was spared the worst rain/flooding, but parts of east central Oklahoma received over 10 inches of rain," Hatfield said.
You can read more about Tropical Storm Hermine in Oklahoma
here.
Unlike college football season (if I haven't mentioned it, the season officially kicks off tonight for many college teams!), tropical storm and hurricane remnants are not annual occurrences for Oklahoma, Hatfield said.
"Besides Hermine last year and Ike in 2008, one tropical system that comes to mind is Tropical Storm Erin in 2007," Hatfield said. "Erin affected parts of central Oklahoma more than areas of northeast Oklahoma, but she caused catastrophic flooding in areas just northwest of the Oklahoma City metro area.
"Although technically it's impossible for a tropical storm to 'regain' Tropical Storm status once it's over land, Erin reformed an eye and resulted in consistent Tropical Storm force winds while over Oklahoma."
To see a really strong hurricane's effects in Oklahoma, you have to look back to 1900, Hatfield said.
"The Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900 actually retained its Tropical Storm status entirely through its trek across Oklahoma," Hatfield said. "That is highly unusual, as we are affected by a tropical system once it's degenerated into a depression or become extra tropical."
Not to make light of the devastation that previous tropical storms and hurricanes have caused, or that are currently causing on the East Coast, but they apparently have a purpose. Hatfield said just as thunderstorms exist to "bring the atmosphere back into balance" and stabilize the atmosphere by releasing energy, hurricanes -- as a highly organized thunderstorm complex -- do this very efficiently.
So, really, not many hurricanes in Tulsa, unless they're at TU. So, I just had to ask Tulsa World Sports Writer and TU beat writer Eric Bailey where such a mascot name came from (you can read his TU sports blog
here by the way):
Bailey said "Golden Hurricane" started in 1922, but TU was previously known as the Kendallites, Presbyterians, Tigers, Orange and Black, and Tulsans.
In the fall of 1922, the team nickname was "Yellow Jackets," apparently for the team's new black and yellow uniforms instead of the traditional orange and black.
Then-TU coach Howard Acher anticipated a great year and wanted a new nickname to seize some publicity. After a remark was made in practice one day about "roaring through opponents," and because of their new jersey colors, he thought of Golden Tornadoes, but that was already taken by Georgia Tech (who, yes, are now the Yellow Jackets, how ironic).
From the tornado, he evolved meteorologically to the hurricane. A few days before the team left for a game against Texas A&M, Acher asked the squad to vote on the name, and thus "Golden Hurricane" was born.
You can read more on TU's traditions and mascots
here.
--Althea Peterson
