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Susan
Genett, owner of Newport-based Real Weather, talks to sailors
last week at the Newport Yacht Club about weather patterns
that will determine their best window for sailing to Bermuda.
Genett's company creates customized marine forecasts. (David
Hansen/Daily News staff)
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Local firm offers customized weather forecasts
Few
things seem as unpredictable as the weather, but weather router
Susan Genett turns numbers into preparedness for many sailors
heading out to sea.
Through her 5-year-old company,
Newport-based Real Weather, Genett creates customized weather
forecasts for her clients based on their individual needs. She
tracks storm fronts, eddies and gulf streams and helps travelers
plan for storms that may come their way.
Genett's clients include pilots, yachtsmen, film crews and
adventurers from around the world. While she said she serves many
travelers locally, Genett can track for anyone in the world
through weather databases.
"I take numbers and
analyze a forecast scenario," Genett said. "I turn all
that information into a usable product to make decisions about
routes offshore."
This week, Genett served as
personal meteorologist to a 16-yacht fleet departing Newport with
the North American Rally to the Caribbean. Genett gave almost
daily briefings on the paths of storm fronts and likely ocean
conditions for Offshore Passage Capabilities, embarking on a
101/2-day sail.
Hank Schmitt, the organizer of the rally,
has utilized Real Weather's services for five years of the rally,
which is held after the hurricane season and before the winter
storms.
"Sue really ties everything together,"
Schmitt said. "They'll say on TV, 'There's a big storm
blowing out to sea where it's not affecting anyone,' but what
about us?"
"The weather over the ocean isn't
broadcast on TV," Genett said. "Wind speeds and
capabilities are part of a much more focused forecast."
Genett
began training in weather during service in the Air Force in
1990, when she forecasted for fighter pilots. She later studied
meteorology at Vermont's Lyndon State College and spent her
summers forecasting for the National Weather Service's forestry
division, helping plan logistics for fighting forest
fires.
After graduation, Genett went to work for Bob
Rice's Weather Window, the company she called the pioneer in the
custom-weather field. When Rice retired in 1999, Genett brought
some of his clients with her to Real Weather.
For Schmitt,
one of the biggest advantages to Genett's service is that she's
in Newport, a home base for many yachts and rallies.
"If
you use a router who's somewhere else, they're faxing numbers and
making phone calls," Schmitt said. "Sue comes in person
and allows people to ask questions. Weather is such an inexact
science, and everyone has their own opinions, so she really helps
us with confidence."
Genett distributed charts
showing weather patterns and general information for the sailors
to take with them as a tangible representation of the information
she has given to them in briefings.
"My service is
helpful to sailors, since they don't usually meet their
forecasters," Genett said. "I think there's a trust
factor there."
Timothy Tulloch of Minnesota has done
the Newport-to-Bermuda sail 12 times, with Genett as a weather
router for the past five. He said he appreciates having advanced
weather information, allowing him to predict which sails to put
up and at what angles.
"It's not an easier sail, but
it's a prepared sail," Tulloch said. "Knowledge is
power, and knowledge is increased with a weather router."
For
more information about Real Weather, call Genett at
841-0287
or visit the Web site www.realwx.com.
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