Originally Posted by
Bertnl
However, today I got caught up in a thunderstorm and I really scared the **** out of me. The ligtning hit very close several times. It was really terrifying.
My route is for 90% in the wide open. No possibilities for shelter at all. I really didn't know what to do and just kept going. Like I said it was a terrifying experience, and I'm seriously thinking about stopping commuting about it.
Having ridden (stupidly) directly under a cell, and seeing over 20 strikes within 100 yards of us, I can tell you it's pretty scary. In my case we were in a somewhat forested area and assumed it would get the trees instead of us. As it turned out, that's what happened, the trees and a telephone line directly overhead.
Anyway, lightning isn't a reason to stop commuting. It's only a reason to pull off the road when in a storm cell. Since sound travels about 1,000 feet per second, you can rely on the old time the dwell between lightning and thunder to calculate range.
If you can count off 5 seconds, it's a mile away and you can keep riding, if you can only count off one second (one Mississippi) you're down to 1,000 feet and shou,ld consider getting off soon. If the time between lightning and thunder is less than it takes you to say Oh Sh*T! it's too close and you need to find shelter NOW, or at least lower your profile.
BTW- I use the timing method mainly not to know how far the cell is, but whether it's getting closer or moving off.
But as I said, lightning events aren't daily, so they're not a reason to give up commuting. They're just something to manage, and it's far more manageable than many other hazards we face. Getting struck by lightning correctly remains something we compare long odds events to. ie, more likely than winning the lottery, but still not likely at all.