Lightning Myth

[djh3]

So You think your safe on your bike in a thunderstorm because your on rubber tires? NOT A Charlotte Nc guy was killed in north Fla on the road by a lightning strike. See story here Crazy as it sounds. I know from experience, just because your in a car/truck on rubber tires you can be zapped. I was on the flightline pre thunderstorm and picking up equipment and the truck I was driving got zapped. Killed it dead, engine radio and our ears were rining for a day or 2. I know I dont think about lighting when we get caught in a rainstorm and have rode in my share of thunder and lightning storm. Be safe folks.

[saddlebum]

This is true we have had several transport trucks come in on the hook due to lightning strikes. Fried every ECU and electronic device on the unit. Now no one got hurt but you have to keep in mind just because the lightning only damaged the trucks components, there is still the risk secondary injury or worse. What if this were to happen at just the wrong moment and the driver loses control of the truck? The secondary result could include other vehicles. Most drivers respond well to situations but that is no guarantee.

[leo3wheel]

Few years back, one of our fellow Venture riders died as a result of a lightning strike. Fellow was returning from ride-in in pouring rain,

and he was nearly home. Lightening struck road next to him and blew hole in the surface. Driver lost control and went off the road.

After surgeries and rehab, this person never returned home and died a year later. Very sad!

 

Was caught in lightening storm at Beartoot Pass, Montana. It was very dark and lightening strikes were everywhere around

me. Could only think of above-mentioned rider. Turned around and went back down mountain to Yellowstone NP. A number of

bikers continued to charge up the mountain in spite of the terrible conditions.

[Flyinfool]

After a flight lesson and some ground school time a thunder storm had blown up as it was time to leave. It was not raining yet but it was real close to hitting. My P/U truck was the only thing in the middle of the airport parking lot. About half way between the building and my truck all the hair on my body started to stand up. I knew that this meant that a lightening strike would be close and SOON. I beat feet as fast as I could run and dove into my truck only a second before it hit, the door was still open. The truck had to go home on a flat bead but I was fine after I changed shorts. The front wheel bearings were all welded solid (rears were fine) and every piece of electronics had to be replaced, including my digital watch and the aircraft radio in my flight bag, and a half inch hole burned in the roof had to be repaired. I hate to think if I had been 1 second slower to realize what was happening or had one second less of top foot speed.

 

My younger brother was hit by lightening in a local park, a storm brewed up and he took cover under the biggest tree in the park. Guess which tree got hit. At least the tree took most of the hit, the 100 year old tree did not survive the hit. Fortunately for my brother, a RN saw him go down and did CPR till the paramedics got there to get his heart restarted.

 

Lightening is nothing to mess with, forget all of the rules you know, if it your time there is not much that will stop lightening. That bolt just traveled a mile thru the air, do you think it really cares about another 4 inches from your rim to the ground, or the 1/8 inch of plastic or fiberglass on your head, carbon fiber is an electrical conductor so that is less than no help.

[cowpuc]

After a flight lesson and some ground school time a thunder storm had blown up as it was time to leave. It was not raining yet but it was real close to hitting. My P/U truck was the only thing in the middle of the airport parking lot. About half way between the building and my truck all the hair on my body started to stand up. I knew that this meant that a lightening strike would be close and SOON. I beat feet as fast as I could run and dove into my truck only a second before it hit, the door was still open. The truck had to go home on a flat bead but I was fine after I changed shorts. The front wheel bearings were all welded solid (rears were fine) and every piece of electronics had to be replaced, including my digital watch and the aircraft radio in my flight bag, and a half inch hole burned in the roof had to be repaired. I hate to think if I had been 1 second slower to realize what was happening or had one second less of top foot speed.

 

My younger brother was hit by lightening in a local park, a storm brewed up and he took cover under the biggest tree in the park. Guess which tree got hit. At least the tree took most of the hit, the 100 year old tree did not survive the hit. Fortunately for my brother, a RN saw him go down and did CPR till the paramedics got there to get his heart restarted.

 

Lightening is nothing to mess with, forget all of the rules you know, if it your time there is not much that will stop lightening. That bolt just traveled a mile thru the air, do you think it really cares about another 4 inches from your rim to the ground, or the 1/8 inch of plastic or fiberglass on your head, carbon fiber is an electrical conductor so that is less than no help.

 

WELL PUT brother = YOU are NO fool!!

[baylensman]

[Patch]

"That bolt just traveled a mile thru the air" Well when you put it that way! Tell spooky camp fire stories too?

 

Had a couple of close calls during my days climbing the nato com towers. One of our regular duties was the old built in the 40's LF's 320' high, the top we refer to as an (umbrella top) would need replacing due to lighting strikes every couple of years locations influenced schedule frequency. At the bottom of these LF whips would be a "ground screen" matching the umbrella. Depending on location the screen 1/4"copper wire would either be at ground level or if in rocky terrain above ground say and in this case 11' above form a disk; but conciser age and temperature the sag might only be a couple inches above our heads... So, we had the top umbrella down which means the last 100' of the tower is unstayed, hell of ride boys in the gusts. We had an amazing crew chief, old wise not to be questioned, pushed but trusted! He wanted the top stayed with 3/4" rope at 3 points cause of the high winds of a storm bearing down on us this would reduce some shear across the splice plates... Well it was getting late, light was low by the time we managed to tie the top off then he barked up the center of the tower to come down! Well we still had to wiggle our way thru the ground screen then shimmy down the concrete base, we didn't in those days have safety harnesses and all that modern light weight stuff of these days, we had thick padded tool belts with heavy spuds and a made by Good Year long strap that we slung around a leg to free our hands... You can speak the words "jump>" but you aint goin to cause your knees or a spud slipping up the belt loop would yell "stupid";)

The point is it took time and just as we turned to walk now dark away from the base she was struck, what a deafening bang! There were 3 of us all better than 6' tall some how now pinned to the rocky terrain like mushroom on the north side of tree roots! Knee jerk reaction I guess really not sure what knocked us down other then the overwhelming surprise of the strike we were unharmed by the event other than being very sore from landing on the rocks! I guess the pain in the ass ground screen saved our sorry butts. I can liken the noise to supersonic burst which we were often exposed to of the fighters of the day ripping over or taking off... just very loud

 

Think it a year back my F350 was struck on the highway heading into a cell I could see a fair bit away. It T'd off and the smaller branch struck the top of the driver door a load snap but not like the first one.

[MiCarl]

The protection from lightning in a motor vehicle isn't the tires, it's the metal cage around you. The lightning would prefer to travel through that than your body. The protection is pretty good, but I don't think it's a sure thing. Of course the heat and sonic boom (that's what thunder is) can still rattle your marbles.

 

Think about that if you're in a convertible too. Lightning will quite happily pass through that thin vinyl top and your poor body on its way to the ground.

[djh3]

Now reading reports that after he was struck he drove off the road. Unknown if the lighting did him in rite off the bat or the subsequent run off the road after.