Severe Winter Storm Impacting Preparations for D2s in Greensboro

When you host the NCAA Championships in March in Minneapolis (Men’s D1) or Columbus (Women’s D1), you accept the chance of a late-season storm creating cold or icey conditions. When you host that same meet in late March in Greensboro, however, with historical-average highs in the mid 60s, one expects a more temperate outlook on the weather.

However, the latest in a line of freak winter storms have brought inclement weather to North Carolina, where up to 3 inches of snow fell around the state on Monday, closing schools and creating hazardous road conditions.

The winter conditions also led to the closure of the Greensboro Aquatic Center, on Monday as teams arrived for the Division II Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships that begin on Wednesday. Teams were forced to find alternate training locations for their Monday swims.

That includes Tampa, who was able to use the pool at nearby Greensboro College (in spite of Greensboro College closing at 1PM on Monday). Tampa’s women’s team is seeded to finish 7th at the meet, while the men are seeded to place 20th.

Conditions are expected to improve throughout the week. While temperatures will remain well-below average, they should get above freezing for most of Tuesday to melt the remnants of any ice from Monday, and there is no more precipitation expected until Friday, when the high will be 57 degrees according to Weather.com.

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Mardo4
6 years ago

Seriously, just don’t know how to drive in it or have salt trucks on hand for the occassional flurry. From Midwest and live in Charlotte now…Charlotte had a snow day earlier in season maybe 2 inches and the police responded to 18 car accidents. Greensboro is a great small town and facility, they probably needed their ducks in a row due to insurance for the parking lot and keeping interior dry-slip free (just guessing)

Mardo4
Reply to  Mardo4
6 years ago

118 accidents rather

sven
6 years ago

Not surprised that this is messing things up in the Carolinas. Grew up in the midwest where three inches would never cause closures, but spent some time in South Carolina when I was in the Navy. Once a year, that place gets like a one-inch snowfall and all hell breaks loose: people driving 10 mph on the highway, wrecks, cats and dogs living together, etc.

SWIMFUN1
6 years ago

This is a bit innaccurate. The pool WAS open but closed early (4:00). We swam there in the morning.

BaldingEagle
6 years ago

In 1993, on the night before women’s DIII nationals at Emory, a snowstorm hit. 6-7 inches fell, as I recall. Since all the teams were already in town, and since most of those teams were from the north with coaches who knew how to drive in the winter, and because most Atlanta residents stayed off the roads, NCAAs started on time on the first day. By the next week, for the start of the men’s meet, temps were back in the mid 60s and all the flowers were in bloom.

Jmanswimfan
6 years ago

SMH now global warming is ruining my swimming too

The Screaming Viking!
Reply to  Jmanswimfan
6 years ago

Thanks, Obama…

Coach
6 years ago

Severe winter storm…? More like a little bit of snow. Probably a bit of an overreaction.

Swimmer
Reply to  Coach
6 years ago

Most definitely an overreaction…overreaction to any form of ‘bad weather’ is expected from NC across the state (especially the Piedmont area).

Mr G
Reply to  Coach
6 years ago

Grew up in Minneapolis and lived in Dallas. Snow and ice are so rare in Dallas that there are no snow plows, ice and sand trucks etc. Also, most residents have no useful driving experience in those conditions. So when a little ice or snow hits (ice more likely), the city inevitably shuts down until the melt. Likely similar in NC.

Britt P
Reply to  Mr G
6 years ago

As a North Carolinian, I can attest to this. We get brine on the roads in advance (sometimes), but there are few snow plows, if any. It also usually ices over badly when we get any snow, so that leads to black ice and terrible wrecks (I read a headline this morning that troopers responded to 1,600 weather-related crashes as of this morning). Back in 2005, the Triangle area came to a standstill for hours because of icy roads (my own dad ended up having a commute back home that lasted for hours, rather than the usual of 45 minutes), and some students were stranded at school overnight. We’re not the best prepared in the world for inclement weather, but… Read more »

Troy
Reply to  Coach
6 years ago

agree 3inches is not alot, its just they are not used to it in Greensboro.

PVSFree
Reply to  Coach
6 years ago

They don’t have the infrastructure (plows, salt, saline solutions) ready to go for snow. People in NC are also pretty inexperienced when it comes to driving on it, so that has to contribute to the bad conditions

Wahooswimfan
Reply to  Coach
6 years ago

Not in the Carolina’s – their taxpayers simply don’t pay to maintain the equipment, salt, staff etc. required to treat roads covered with snow that does not melt immediately. Not for what is usually a once every 25 years or so event.

Snarky
6 years ago

Three inches of snow!? Omg. Stop the presses and call out the national guard. Out west that’s not even considered snow.

40 Flat
Reply to  Snarky
6 years ago

As a wisconsinite I find this offensive that anything was canceled for 3 inches of snow.

Jim
Reply to  40 Flat
6 years ago

Trust me, it is probably less safe there with 3 inches than Wisc with a couple of feet. Cities in the south do not have the supplies to address road conditions and people are not use to driving in it.

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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