New Mexico is home to both cold environments welcoming skiers in the winter months and a hot desert climate housing the largest desert in North America, the Chihuahuan Desert. For Artesia High School, located in the southern part of New Mexico just south of Roswell, the weather can vary significantly from high-heat environments to snowy winter conditions. Kobe Cayton, the head Athletic Trainer at Artesia, is responsible for keeping student athletes safe from the New Mexico weather, in addition to preventing injuries, treating athletes, and helping with strength and conditioning.

“I got into athletic training to help kids. And I’m not able to do that when I’m trying to be a meteorologist. And Perry weather solves that issue for me.”

Perry Weather saves Athletic Trainers time, notifying them when there are critical changes in weather conditions that require their attention. The automation eliminates the need to manually monitor weather apps or take manual measurements with handheld devices. With Perry Weather, the team at Artesia High School can focus on what matters most: keeping their athletes safe and healthy.

The NMAA’s New Heat Stress Policy

The New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) updated its policy to use Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) as the primary metric for assessing heat stress in the 2024-2025 school year. Awareness of WBGT and its effectiveness as a method of measuring heat stress has grown over the last several years with some schools even adopting WBGT prior to the creation of any state mandates. Artesia was among the many schools that made the shift before the NMAA requirement.

Despite being early adopters, monitoring WBGT didn’t come without its challenges. Artesia’s prior process consisted of setting up a Kestrel handheld WBGT device, waiting nearly 30 minutes for the device to calibrate, taking the reading, and logging the values manually throughout practices or games. After switching to Perry Weather, the workload of monitoring and logging WBGT was completely eliminated.

Automating WBGT Monitoring

“It monitors wet bulb for us and will automatically send out notifications across our entire district to our coaches so they know. It really just solves a lot of problems for us and frees up a lot of time.”

WBGT is now monitored automatically by Perry Weather, and alerts are sent out to coaches across the district, ensuring everyone is informed and on the same page. This has not only made athletes safer but has also freed up valuable time for trainers like Kobe Cayton to focus on their primary responsibilities.

Keeping Coaches On The Same Page

Another one of the features that makes Perry Weather such a valuable system to the Artesia team is its ability to keep the entire athletics staff aligned and informed on weather changes. In the past, Athletic trainers were often the bearers of bad news, and it was tough to keep up with notifying to so many people in an timely manner.

Now, with Perry Weather, everyone receives the same notification at the same time. In a lightning situation, where the team may need to modify practice by continuing practice indoors, Koby is no longer the person breaking the bad news to the coaches across multiple fields and training facilities.

Decluttering Communications on Game Day

During games, communication could be even more complicated with officials, parents, and others entering the mix. In the past, weather events could cause confusion and delays in decision-making. Now, all coaches receive synchronized notifications about weather conditions, whether it’s for a football game on Friday night or a playoff game.

The additional PA system at the football field can even help communicate to the fans when to seek shelter. Perry Weather simplifies the process of communicating what actions need to be taken for all involved, reducing confusion and increasing safety.

How Perry Weather Helps with Lightning Detection

Lightning is a serious concern in Artesia, especially during the fall when football is in full swing. Prior to using Perry Weather, Artesia used free mobile apps such as WeatherBug for lightning detection. There were inconsistencies with the timing of the notifications, such as late warnings or, in some cases, no warning at all.

There also wasn’t a clear way of knowing when it was safe to proceed after going into the lightning delay – everything felt a bit like guesswork. Artesia instead had to manually calculate when it was safe to resume activities, often leaving coaches isolated.

Improving Lightning Detection and Alerts

Perry Weather simplified this experience by providing timely, accurate notifications and a lightning countdown timer available through the mobile app. The system monitors lightning activity in real-time using the same network used by NASA and the US Coast Guard called The National Lightning Detection Network.

When the system detects lightning in the area, it sends out texts and mobile push notifications letting people know they need to take shelter. It also triggers audible sirens and visible strobe lights via the Perry Weather outdoor warning system.

Reducing Uncertainty with a Lighting Countdown Timer

During the lightning delay, Koby and the coaching staff can monitor how much time is left right from the Perry Weather mobile app. If another lightning strike is detected during the countdown, the timer automatically resets to 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, if no lightning is detected, the system sends signals with an all-clear message letting everyone know that it is safe to proceed.

Peace of Mind with Weather Forecasting

For Brian Taylor, Athletic Director at Artesia Public Schools, one of the greatest benefits of Perry Weather is the 24/7 meteorology support. A team of meteorologists is available at all times to help with weather questions amid a storm. They also can be useful for providing forecasts in advance to plan for games. This can be crucial for planning transportation and other logistics. 

Whether it’s preparing for a trip or organizing a home game, having detailed weather forecasts helps in making informed decisions, and ensuring the safety of both students and staff. 

Perry Weather has helped Artesia reduce the stress and guesswork associated with responding to severe weather. It has also improved Artesia’s ability to communicate with everyone at practices and games when severe weather occurs.