giddings_ag_06 said:

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AgDad121619 said:

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ttha_aggie_09 said:

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Not trying to derail but maybe there is a lesson or two to learn here to mitigate you risks of getting struck by lightning.

Do not:

Sit under tree in thunderstorm
Carry your gunn or anything metal above you head
Sit in a deer blind in lightning storms
What else?

No idea what to do besides pray when:

On a boat in thunderstorm (other than lay rods flat and get the hell out of dodge and back to slip or launch
Duck hunting - sitting in a metal frame blind in the middle of a pond…. Gtfo, I guess?

Obviously the best way to prevent disaster is to avoid it but sometimes storm pop up out of no where.

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in lightening storm, you are supposed to find a low spot. Stand on some insulation if you have it ( sleeping pad) and put your elbows on your knees with your clasping your hands together while squatting - if you get struck, this position may prevent the lightening from going through your heart.

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Do you end up ****ting lightning bolts from that position? Not to sound too sarcastic, but if you're in a storm, either try to get into cover as fast as possible or ditch any metal you have and hunker down and ride it out. You have no control over what will happen.

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this is the recommended way to ride a storm out if you can't get to shelter - ie elk hunting in the wilderness. While your imagery is funny, this can keep the lightning bolt from passing through your core. Had a safety meeting in this topic years ago with a small demo - had a cow model that didn't pass electricity when the feet were horizontal to the direction of the electrical source but lit up when it was turned such that feet were in line.(had a small light that lit up to show it was getting a charge). The electricity will take the path of least resistance so this stance is more likely for the electricity to flow through your feet / arms and back out without going through your core. Also as added later your feet together also makes it less likely for the electricity to enter your body. This is how you should "hunker " down to reduce your risk.

3X in one week I have been caught in storms that produced hundreds of strikes all around me while dirtbiking. 1st was Rico, then South Fork during an enduro race. Went from heavy rain, thunder n strikes to, hail, sleet then, 6" snow all 3x.

The first time was the worst and we were pushing bikes up a steep trail with mud coming down like lava. The first couple strikes scare the **** out of ya, but then its so insanely intense with strikes all around you, you just accept its in God's hands and you bust out laughing hysterically. We were 20 miles from camp, nearly froze, had to get nekid in the trucks with heater on full blast. Not one that will be forgotten easy. I love the mtns and above treeline here just got first snow last night.

giddings_ag_06 said:

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AgDad121619 said:

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ttha_aggie_09 said:

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Not trying to derail but maybe there is a lesson or two to learn here to mitigate you risks of getting struck by lightning.

Do not:

Sit under tree in thunderstorm
Carry your gunn or anything metal above you head
Sit in a deer blind in lightning storms
What else?

No idea what to do besides pray when:

On a boat in thunderstorm (other than lay rods flat and get the hell out of dodge and back to slip or launch
Duck hunting - sitting in a metal frame blind in the middle of a pond…. Gtfo, I guess?

Obviously the best way to prevent disaster is to avoid it but sometimes storm pop up out of no where.

---

in lightening storm, you are supposed to find a low spot. Stand on some insulation if you have it ( sleeping pad) and put your elbows on your knees with your clasping your hands together while squatting - if you get struck, this position may prevent the lightening from going through your heart.

---

Do you end up ****ting lightning bolts from that position? Not to sound too sarcastic, but if you're in a storm, either try to get into cover as fast as possible or ditch any metal you have and hunker down and ride it out. You have no control over what will happen.

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Yeah, but there's a right way and a wrong way to hunker down. Why discount good advice?

Gunny456 said:

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Moral of the story… don't stand under a tree during a thunderstorm with a golf club stuck up in the air like a lightning rod.

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Or if you do, make sure it's a 1-iron. As Lee Trevino said with regard to lightning while playing golf, "hold up a 1-iron. Not even God can hit a 1-iron."

I could maybe squat down into a hunker like that but most likely search team would find me in same position starved to death because i couldn't get back up.

Everything Hikers Know About Lightning Safety is Wrong
https://www.backpacker.com/survival/natural-hazards/lightning/lightning-safety-facts-for-hikers/?scope=anon

Quote:

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Metal doesn't actually attract lightning.
"Lightning is not attracted to metal," Holle says. "It travels through metal, but it's not attracted to it." Lightning is only attracted to three things, he says: tall structures, isolated structures, and pointed structures. "It doesn't matter if those structures are made of metal or wood."
That said, if lightning hits a structure because it's tall, the metal material may conduct the lightning to the ground more quickly and therefore more powerfully than if it were wood or plastic. So, if you're at a campsite with a bear-hang pole, try not to pitch your tent near it.
"The metal can conduct electricity, which can jump to a tent 10 to 20 feet away," Calhoun says.

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Don't worry about carrying the gun, or anything else, just keep moving towards a safe place and don't stand or be near anything tall.

The lightning rod on the house is to protect the rest of the house and kind of control the lightning strike down to the ground. That being said, we are talking about 30,000 votls and upwards of 300amp so it's going to spread beyond just the grounding cable coming down from the rod.

As was pointed out there are very few lightning deaths in the US in a year, <25 nation wide. So we are also talking about reducing risk for a very small chance on an incident. That doesn't make you feel any better in the middle of a thunder storm, but the numbers don't lie.

Lightning is an exchange of energy from the earth to the clouds. So it's seeking the path of least resistance to connect the charge in the clouds to the one in the ground. That's usually through the tallest thing, ie a tree out in a field. In an area of mixed size objects that path of least resistance might not be the tallest thing around but often will be.
It's also possible that what you saw was not the actual path of the electricity but a side streamer. The flash is so bright that what we see is often not exactly where the electricity is going.

Here's a mesquite about 200 yards from my house. Was hit back in July. Loud boom and the lights never flickered. Neighbor called me the next day after cutting my hay and asked if I knew my tree was hit. Not close to being the tallest thing around. Windmill / hackberries within 50 yards of this one. Glad the mare wasn't nearby!

my dumbass thought that was an elk scrape