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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Hoopfest forecast: just right

Street closures and bus routes during Hoopfest 2011.
The Spokesman-Review

Good news for players taking to downtown streets today for Hoopfest: The weather isn’t expected to break any records.

Mostly sunny skies and below-average temperatures in the upper 60s and low 70s are likely this weekend, said Jeffrey Cote, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Spokane.

According to Hoopfest organizers, the forecast calms concerns about a wet, cold weekend on the courts.

With rain and unusually cool temperatures well into this month, Rick Steltenpohl, Hoopfest executive director, said weather concerns have kept him “up at night.”

According to Steltenpohl, perfect Hoopfest conditions would be “temperatures in the mid-70s with a light summer breeze and sunny, clear skies” – close to what’s forecast.

Today’s high will be 70 degrees, with a low of 46. Sunday will be warmer, with a high of 73. Some showers are likely in north Spokane County, the weather service said.

On Monday, temperatures are expected to reach into the 80s, with a high of 86 degrees by Tuesday.

The hottest Hoopfest on record occurred in 2008, with a 97-degree day. In 1999, nearly an inch of rain fell the Friday before games began, and high temperatures hovered in the high 60s. In 2007, a thunderstorm rolled in right before courts went up, bringing damaging winds and lightning.