Dear Tom,
I remember going to two consecutive Cubs games that were rained out on Sept. 28 and 29, 1973. How much rain fell on those days and what time did it rain?
Thanks, Rich
Dear Rich,
We turned this question over to our Chicago weather historian Frank Wachowski, who quickly discovered why those two games were rained out. The first game on Sept. 28 was preceded by a soaking rain that started at
9 a.m. and continued until just before game time, dropping nearly half an inch of rain (0.43 inches). Though the rest of the afternoon was dry, the field was too wet to play on, and with no lights at the ball park, waiting into the evening to play the game was not an option. On the next day, Sept. 29, rain started just after midnight and continued through noon, dropping nearly an inch of rain (0.90 in.) on already soggy Wrigley Field, forcing the Cubs to postpone yet another game.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His weather forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN News at noon and 9 p.m.
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