Sleet will happen, not much you can do but you'll get the wall of snow no matter what.
At least we're not pulling our hair out over whether we'll get a near miss from a coastal.
It doesn't get more brutal than missing a 1-2' storm by 50 miles.
I hope we don't get 6-8" of snow with 2" of sleet on top. With temps as cold as they are that'll create a giant skating rink with horrendous plowing & travel conditions.
That's far worse impact wise than a pure 12-15" snowstorm
Agree 100%
Rare possibility of more upside than downside I think. Also if precip falls hard enough near the transition zone that we could hold onto snow longer boosting amounts by 2-4"
Yeah but every event is different.
I'm going with wall of heavy snow to sleet and 6-10" region wide with locals 12+
Leaning on the colder side too. The scope and intensity of this airmass is much larger than what we're used to. It wouldn't surprise me to see models trend colder
The problem is the phasing. Without it you risk suppression, with it you risk a lot of mixing.
You don't have an ideal setup out west given the trough placement.
I'm going with the wall of snow to sleet idea. We could easily accumulate 6-8+" over a few hours if it comes in fast and heavy.
Heavy snowfall rates could also help keep mid levels colder so we hold onto snow longer until things lighten up enough where we fully go to sleet