Re: [Paddlewise] Thunderstorm

That was you Niels?

"Blaauw, Niels" wrote:
 When lightning strikes at a few
> meters distance a GPS is as dead as a dodo.
> I found out about halfway across the Waal, one of the biggest and most
> crowded rivers in the Netherlands. I had seen some big ships coming my way
> when I left the shore and  a ferry just starting to cross. I thought I could
> reach the other side before the ships came too close to me.
> Under normal conditions I could have made it easily, but first a hailstorm
> limited my sight, then when I tried to stay on course using my GPS,
> lightning struck a buoy right next to me and blew the insides of my beloved
> GPS all over the place. Totally disoriented I floated around, desperately
> trying to avoid some monstrous cargo ships without having a clue where the
> hell they were. I could hear them honk: I guess they saw me clear enough on
> their radar. I could hear they were close, but not at what side of me: The
> different howling horns blended into one earshattering deathbell. There was
> no way out for a mortal.
> Not for a mortal. Luckily at that moment the higher forces decided to
> interfere. In a sudden flash I saw the Light, at exactly the same moment
> that lightning struck again, in the middle of my paddle this time. Usually I
> take an insulated wooden paddle when I go out in a thunderstorm, but this
> time, luckily, I was using an aluminum one. With all my strength I threw it
> away from me. Whether it was instinct, help from above or pure skill we will
> never know. The paddle smashed the windshield of the nearest cargo ship and
> hit the skipper right between the eyes. His ship left its course and hit the
> ferry. The cargo ship exploded, with such an amount of heat that it
> vaporized the rain around me. Finally I could see what was going on, and the
> first thing I saw was an enormous wave, induced by the explosion, speeding
> my way. I had lost my paddle but didn't need one. I turned the boat using a
> hipflick and surfed the wave, passed under the bow of the next cargo ship
> that sunk seconds later when the heat of the explosion hit it, and stayed on
> the wave until it dumped me on the little beach where I had parked the car.
> All I had to do was get the spare paddle from the trunk and head out into
> the next adventure.
> 


-- 
Gabriel L Romeu
http://studiofurniture.com  furniture, mixed media
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objects
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