Stormy Night: Checking In by Cell-Phone Glow

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – Old timers attending the Management Briefing Seminars can’t remember a more violent storm than the one that swept through here Sunday, knocking down trees and power lines and leaving thousands in darkness.

Normally a beacon of light, the sprawling Grand Traverse Resort where MBS is staged managed to keep open with a smattering of emergency lighting, but check-in clerks were reduced to using light from their cell phones and glow sticks to register guests.

This is the 50^th year MBS and its predecessors have held the global automotive industry event in the Traverse City area but the first time a session was canceled because of a power outage. Generators were rushed into action to salvage the afternoon sessions as the blackout continued.

Usually the biggest complaint at the early August conference is heat and humidity. Temperatures in the low 90s are not unusual here this time of year, making life a bit sticky for golfers who turn up for a go at the resort’s signature course called “The Bear,” which was designed by Jack Nicklaus.

Center for Automotive Research staff meets Sunday to discuss storm impact on MBS.

Just motoring here during the storm’s most intense battering proved challenging. High-volume winds buffeted cars and forced many drivers to seek safety on the shoulder. Moreover, rain, sleet and marble-size hail reduced visibility to zero, overtaxing windshield wipers. Tall trees fell and lay across roadways, forcing motorists to take turns driving around them.

Traffic lights also were out for miles along US-31 west into Traverse City, requiring drivers to take turns at intersections. Good road manners prevailed.

No.1 lesson from the mighty storm: We expect electricity for practically everything to be available on demand. Luckily, the computer on which this is being written provides enough light to shave by – as long as the battery holds out.