Boating in a lightning storm
#31
Yes, and try not to touch anything metallic. A thunderstorm is the only good time to be on a sailboat. I had a big sailboat come into the marina I was at that had been hit the day before. Lost all the electronics and some lights, but the guys wife was even leaning on the wall in front of the mast and everyone on the boat was fine. That mast works as a real good lightning rod if it's grounded well to the water.
#33
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We were a couple of miles offshore on Lake Huron a few years ago. It was clear when we left but started to cloud up while we were out. We were just floating around enjoying the nice weather when I heard static on the VHF. I turned the volume down and nothing changed. I even turned it completely off and the noise was still there. I then noticed that the buzzing sound was coming from the top of the antenna. I lowered it to see what was causing the noise and as I lowered it the noise lessened. When I raised it it got louder. I called my son and nephew out of the cuddy to show them this strange occurrance. My son pointed out that my nephew's hair long hair was standing straight up on the top of his head. We also noticed that you could feel tingling in your fingers when you raised your hands above your head. It was then that I realized what was happening. We were under a thunder cloud that was looking for a place to discharge. I decided this was not a good place to be. I told the boys to get in the cabin and I then ran as fast as I could for the clearest point in the sky. We got wet from a cloudburst but lived to tell the story. The funny part is that when I told this story to my uncle who had been in the Navy for 30 years he said that he had never experienced anything like that when out to sea. He seemed kind of jealous because he had heard these kinds of stories many times.
Last edited by MACDAD260; 02-11-2004 at 07:38 PM.
#34
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Originally posted by KaamaScarab30
Why a fast idle? Why not full out or dead stop?
Why a fast idle? Why not full out or dead stop?
Roby