People traffic at Daytona International Speedway nil with rain expected to continue with Saturday's start of Rolex 24

Hazardous Weather Outlook: Band of showers pushing through with heavy winds

About the only excitement as a boring Friday afternoon dragged on into dusk was a flashly Mazda R8. The Rolex 24 is less than 24 hours from the gdropping of the green flag, that is, unless the weathr worsens. While the prototypes may be the nominal headliners, it’s the GTD field—the real cars—that capture attention, except there were few and far between to  actually see as Audi ran hot laps around the race circuit in two very real cars: the bone-stock, street legal 2015 Audi R8 V10 Plus and the 2015 Audi S3.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla -- The public relations spin continus unabated at Daytona International Speedway, despite the fact that people traffic is all but invisible. Nil.

Daytona Rising is but an empty cavern with darkness setting in just after 8 p.m. on this overcast Friday night.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
625 AM EST FRI JAN 23 2015

AMZ550-552-555-570-572-575-FLZ041-044>047-053-054-058-059-064-141-
144-147-241000-
COASTAL WATERS FROM FLAGLER BEACH TO VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE
OUT 20 NM-
COASTAL WATERS FROM VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE TO SEBASTIAN
INLET OUT 20 NM-
COASTAL WATERS FROM SEBASTIAN INLET TO JUPITER INLET OUT 20 NM-
WATERS FROM FLAGLER BEACH TO VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE 20 TO
60 NM OFFSHORE-
WATERS FROM VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE TO SEBASTIAN INLET 20 TO
60 NM OFFSHORE-
WATERS FROM SEBASTIAN INLET TO JUPITER INLET 20 TO 60 NM OFFSHORE-
INLAND VOLUSIA-NORTHERN LAKE-ORANGE-SEMINOLE-SOUTHERN BREVARD-
OSCEOLA-INDIAN RIVER-OKEECHOBEE-ST. LUCIE-MARTIN-COASTAL VOLUSIA-
SOUTHERN LAKE-NORTHERN BREVARD-
625 AM EST FRI JAN 23 2015

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

.THUNDERSTORM IMPACT...
LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AND INTENSIFY TONIGHT AS IT LIFTS
ACROSS GEORGIA TO THE COASTAL CAROLINAS. INCREASING MOISTURE WILL
BRING A CHANCE FOR STORMS FROM LAKE COUNTY ACROSS METRO ORLANDO TO
CAPE CANAVERAL AND VOLUSIA COUNTY LATE THIS EVENING. INCREASING LOW
LEVEL WINDS WILL RESULT IN A SMALL CHANCE FOR STRONG TO SEVERE
STORMS.

A BAND OF SHOWERS AND STORMS ALONG AN ADVANCING COLD FRONT PUSHING
INTO NORTHERN LAKE AND VOLUSIA COUNTIES EARLY THIS EVENING WILL SAG
SOUTHWARD DOWN THE PENINSULA OVERNIGHT. INCREASING LOW LEVEL WINDS
WILL PRODUCE A RISK OF WIND GUSTS TO 50 MPH OR HIGHER...PRIMARILY
FROM LAKE COUNTY ACROSS METRO ORLANDO TO CAPE CANAVERAL AND VOLUSIA
COUNTY.

.MARINE THUNDERSTORM GUST IMPACT...
SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED STORMS WILL PUSH OFFSHORE NORTH OF
CAPE CANAVERAL THIS EVENING...THEN NORTH OF SEBASTIAN INLET DURING
THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. STORM MOTION WILL BE FAST...TOWARD THE
NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 40 MPH. GUSTY WINDS UP TO 35 KNOTS WILL BE
POSSIBLE IN A FEW STORMS.

.WIND AND SEA IMPACT...
BOATING CONDITIONS WILL DETERIORATE THROUGH TONIGHT. OVER THE
OFFSHORE WATERS...SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH WINDS AROUND 20 KNOTS WILL
BECOME SOUTHWEST TONIGHT AND INCREASE 25 TO 30 KNOTS WITH FREQUENT
GUSTS TO GALE FORCE. CLOSER TO THE COAST...SMALL CRAFT SHOULD
EXERCISE CAUTION THIS AFTERNOON FOR INCREASING SOUTH WINDS AND VERY
CHOPPY WIND WAVES. THEN A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY WILL GO INTO EFFECT
THIS EVENING AS SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WINDS INCREASE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY.
ISOLATED STORMS WITH GUSTY WINDS MAY ACCOMPANY THE FRONTAL PASSAGE
EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. WINDY CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR BEHIND THE COLD
FRONT SATURDAY WITH WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS 20 TO 25 MPH AND
FREQUENT GUSTS TO GALE FORCE OFFSHORE. THESE HAZARDOUS BOATING
CONDITIONS WILL ALSO OCCUR OVER INLAND LAKES AND THE INTRACOASTAL
WATERS.

A BRIEF INTERVAL OF DIMINISHED WINDS WILL OCCUR SUNDAY BUT AN
INCREASED WESTERLY WIND FLOW IS EXPECTED MONDAY...WITH HAZARDOUS
BOATING CONDITIONS CONTINUING THROUGH MID TO LATE WEEK AS WINDS
GRADUALLY TURN NORTHERLY.

BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED DURING THIS PERIOD BUT
FREEZING TEMPERATURES ARE NOT FORECAST AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTERS ARE REQUESTED TO MONITOR THE WEATHER AND SELF ACTIVATE IF
NEEDED LATE THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT.