I'm not a runner myself (well, I DO run here and there. But it's more like fair weather running. If it's sunny and warm enough to justify prancing around the Old Port shirtless, I'll run a few miles.) but I'm told this weather is less than ideal for today's Beach to Beacon race which is just underway as I type this. Too warm. Too muggy. Too...August. That may be the case for runners, but for the rest of us, we are in for a nice Saturday.
Today: Mostly sunny and sticky. Dew points are hovering in the upper 60s in most spots so that will push the heat index into the low 90s in spots by this afternoon. Actual air temperatures will be more like 82-88 with the coolest readings coming along the coastline due to a southeast wind off the water. There is a VERY slight chance of a pop up shower over extreme western Maine and into the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, but 95% of the state will remain dry.
Tonight: You know the drill...partly cloudy, sticky, fog. Lows don't drop below 60 in most spots.
Sunday: As the winds kick up a notch out of the south-southeast I expect a pretty thick deck of clouds to dominate Sunday. This is particularly true along the coastline where the low level marine moisture will condense into low hanging clouds. FAR from the coast there may be a few breaks of sunshine, but don't expect much on the whole. Highs will be in the upper 70s to low 80s in response to limited sunshine but it will still be VERY sticky. I can't 100% rule out a rouge shower over western Maine by 4 PM and on due to an approaching cold front, but I feel pretty confident we will stay dry through the daylight hours.
Showers and thunderstorms will move through on a widespread basis Sunday night. There is the chance a few of these are strong to severe but I'm not overly concerned due to the lack of sunshine ahead of the front. (Although not NEEDED in every case of severe weather, sunshine ahead of a boundary tends to produce more instability, and therefore, stronger thunderstorms once the front arrives)
The showers should exit the coastline by late morning on Monday and finally some drier air will pour in from the northwest.
By Tuesday we will have low dew points and lots of sun. That should last through at least Thursday morning before our next storm approaches.
Good luck to all the runners in today's Beach to Beacon and don't forget that the WLBZ Sidewalk Art Festival is going on in Bangor today. Show up if you can. Maybe not shirtless...but show up.