Earl to Hit North Carolina First

Hurricane Earl has weakened some as it approaches North Carolina, but still packs a Category 2 wallop and was expected to sideswipe the coast, hitting hardest as it passed off Cape Hatteras in early morning hours with winds of 100 mph or more.

But even a small wobble in its path could mean huge differences in the power of the wind and waves churning offshore. So state officials had prepared for days, including placing 22 pieces of earth-moving equipment along the coastal highway to scrape off sand and repair pavement after the storm. The Department of Transportation also positioned ferries to move people off Hatteras Island if the road to the lone bridge was, as expected, cut.

There could be flooding from the sound side of the Outer Banks Friday morning, but the wind, rain and surf should begin dying down.

Day 5: U.S. Open Match to Watch

If Hurricane Earl permits, this should be a fun one to keep an eye on.

Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Sergiy Stakhovsky(UKR)	vs.	Ryan Harrison(USA)

Two good young players.

Stakhovsky has a little more experience.  But don't be surprised if Harrison pushes hi to 4 or 5 sets.

SS in 4.

Earl Could Produce Power Outages and Wind Damage at U.S. Open

The danger from most hurricanes is from water – either the massive amount of rain that falls or the surge that the high winds push onshore.  But in the case of the hurricane Earl path, the bigger problem once it leaves the New York and New England area is likely to be wind damage.

Since trees still have full foliage this time of year, the damage is expected to be worse than the fall, when nor’easters often hit the New England region.

Rain is only one thing U.S. Open Tennis officials have to worry about with Earl.  The U.S. Open is in the middle of a 2-week run in New York. 

We could see limbs down and the uprooting of trees,” says Bill Read, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami. “If the roads are covered with trees, this could be a problem for responders if someone has an emergency.”

From the easternmost part of New York to Rhode Island and Cape Cod, Earl is expected to unleash wind gusts of 75 to 100 miles per hour, says meteorologist Mike Pigott of AccuWeather.com. In the eastern part of Cape Cod around Chatham, MA, for example, the winds could reach a sustained 75 miles per hour.

On Thursday morning, the National Hurricane Center officially put southeastern Massachusetts – including Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Martha’s Vineyard – on hurricane warning status. That means the region can expect winds of at least 74 miles per hour, probably starting Friday evening.

Utility crews on the East Coast are gearing up for the prospect of clearing trees off power lines and restringing lines, says Jim Owen, a spokesman for the Edison Electric Institute in Washington.

With widespread wind damage, power outages can stretch for days or maybe even longer. “That is why we encourage people to prepare and have adequate supplies of food and water, so they can withstand maybe several days without electricity,” says Owen.

One indication of how long power outages can go: After Wilma, a powerful hurricane, roared through Florida in 2005, many residents went for more than two weeks without electricity.

Let's hope Earl is a tennis fan and stays mostly out at sea.

Friday U.S. Open Play "Iffy" Due to Earl

Tennis fans in New York are watching the weather as Hurricane Earl speeds to the East Coast.

Rain from Earl is is the forecast for all day Friday, and matches at The National Tennis Center could be in question.

After Friday, the rest of the weekend looks perfect for tennis.

Handicapping 'Dancing With the Stars' Season 11

What a group we have this season. I'd have to say the competition is really "open" as we get an early idea of the teams and try to find out what kind of dance background, if any the contestants may have.

Here are the pairings and the early odds at winning.

Jennifer Grey and Derek Hough, 4-1 - Grey has dancing experience in "Dirty Dancing"

Michael Bolton and Chelsie Hightower, 6-1 - A good pairing, I think Bolton will have some moves.

Brandy and Maksim Chmerkovskiy, 7-1 - Max gets the most out of his partners.

Mike "The Situation" and Karina Smifnoff, 15-2 - This pairing should be fun.

Rick Fox and Cheryl Burke, 10-1 - Don't count Rick and Cheryl out.

David Hasselhoff and Kym Johnson, 10-1 - A great pairing, welcome back Kym.

Bristol Palin and Mark Ballas, 15-1 - Don't know what to think of this duo.

Florence Henderson and Corky Ballas, 15-1 - Everybody loves Mrs. Brady.

Kyle Massey and Lacey Schwimmer, 20-1 - Can Kyle dance? We'll find out.

Margaret Cho and Louis Van Amstel, 25-1 - Margaret is crazy!

Audrina Patridge and Tony Dovolani, 35-1 - Poor Tony.