Thunderstorms

TheSmithers

Who out there hates them?

Who is petrified of thunder?

I admit to hating thunder with a passion. So much so that I will do whatever it takes to shield myself from it, no matter where I happen to be, who happens to be around or how stupid I may look trying. It's an irrational fear of bangs that stems from childhood.

A lot of people laugh and find this fear totally bizarre. I completely understand this reaction and have no problem with it whatsoever. For most, a good thunderstorm is exciting and fascinating. But it may surprise you to know that it is a recognised phobia with a name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astraphobia

The forecast overnight tonight and tomorrow, whilst exciting for most, is terrifying for me! This thread is for anyone like me who may find some comfort in knowing they're not alone this evening. So come on, don't be shy!

ballysmate

My grandfather was killed by a lightning strike while he was digging his allotment. My late father was 13 and with him at the time, along with another friend.
At my father's funeral, the friend recounted how he remembered smoke coming from my grandfather's mouth. Must have been horrendous for the 2 boys.
However I am not in the least afraid. Quite enjoy them really.

Anonymous

I had a rather bizarre dream which co-incided with a thunder storm.

My brother was sat at a drum kit and played an amazing drum solo. I took the sticks off him, saying "That's nothing, listen to this!"
The instant the stick touched the skin of the drum I woke up to a massive clap of thunder. Crazy, eh?

Love lightening, thunder keeps me awake though.

Why is it that they usually (in my experience) seem to occur at night? (or is that just me?)

TheSmithers

Ballysmate wrote:

My grandfather was killed by a lightning strike while he was digging his allotment. My late father was 13 and with him at the time, along with another friend.
At my father's funeral, the friend recounted how he remembered smoke coming from my grandfather's mouth. Must have been horrendous for the 2 boys.
However I am not in the least afraid. Quite enjoy them really.

Sorry to hear that mate. That's a horrible thing to happen. If your dad has any residual fear from this childhood tragedy, it would be quite different to what I have.

My fear is an irrational one. It's not based on any life experience or tragedy. I don't fear for my safety, or that I will be hurt. It's a fear of the noise itself. The thunder! This stems from a childhood fear of bangs, thanks to my dad, who in his early years was a mechanic. I was a toddler at the time and nearby when the car my dad was working on backfired! I hated it, and from that moment the seeds of my phobia were sown.

TheSmithers

coriordan wrote:

I had a rather bizarre dream which co-incided with a thunder storm.

My brother was sat at a drum kit and played an amazing drum solo. I took the sticks off him, saying "That's nothing, listen to this!"
The instant the stick touched the skin of the drum I woke up to a massive clap of thunder. Crazy, eh?

Love lightening, thunder keeps me awake though.

Why is it that they usually (in my experience) seem to occur at night? (or is that just me?)

I often wonder that. It's bloody typical! I've resigned myself to the fact I won't get a good night's sleep tonight. I'll be lying on the sofa, tv on, iPod in. I just hope there's a lull during the 15 minutes I have to cycle to my local train station at 6:30 in the morning! After that, the weather can do what the f*ck it wants!

finchy

I'm OK as long as I know that there is no way in which I can come to any harm. So if I'm in a car during a thunderstorm, that's fine.

Flying back from the USA a couple of years ago, we were in a thunderstorm for about 2 hours. When you're actually in a storm, the lightning flashing around you is incessant. I nearly shat myself and was extremely relieved when the "seatbelts on" light finally went out.

peat

I used to be terrified of fireworks as a child and would hide, whimpering under the table with the dog.

Then i just MTFU.

thegreatdivide

Rode right under one on Saturday. 1500m up a mountain surrounded by even higher rocky peaks that amplified the sound - it was absolutely mental.

Pituophis

My brother in law is scared of thunderstorms, and not bothered about who knows!
Most of our phobias seem irrational to others whilst being deadly serious to us. :shock:

junglist_matty

I don't care about them either way, when you can see the forks, it can be pretty cool.... but I'd rather not have the disturbing crashes through the night!

One thing I do know is that riding a bike in a thunderstorm is a bloody stupid idea, hence I drove in this morning!

team47b

coriordan wrote:

Why is it that they usually (in my experience) seem to occur at night? (or is that just me?)

evaporation of water droplets in air as it cools collide and this 'rubbing' give off electrical charge for the lightning and the air moving rapidly away from the charge causes the thunder, change in day to night temperature changes the amount of water droplets, or space for them.

Kieran_Burns

I've been out cycling in a couple or three fairly major ones and had saw the amazing spectacle of a seeing a barn roof getting blown off by a direct hit. (and the tree at the top of the hill we were hiding under get hit)

Then there was the time I was cycling home from work and saw bolts hitting the field next to where I was going past - that was a real squeaky bum moment.

I love Thunderstorms and turn into a real kid when the flashes and massive bangs are going off

Phil Fouracre

Yup, absolutely love them, the wilder the better. Feel the static and smell the ozone!! Sad or what?

capt_slog

Love them too, I was out in the garden watching it coming until rain stopped play.

I have a mate who is 'windy' to the point of obsessive about anything like that, lightning, overhangs, tides coming in etc., I go fishing with him. We were out one summers evening and sat at the bank of a river under clear skies and watching the sunset in the distant clouds, when I noticed a slight flash. I watched for a couple of seconds more and then turned to Windy to say "did that look like lightening to you.?" to find that he'd already taken the his rod to bits and was packing away.

Cleat Eastwood

I love them - I still cant resist when I hear one counting to see if its getting nearer

Lightning hit Picadilly station in manc this morning which caused loads of upset to communters - way to go lightning

ballysmate

Phil Fouracre wrote:

Yup, absolutely love them, the wilder the better. Feel the static and smell the ozone!! Sad or what?

Not sad at all.
Me? I love the smell of napalm in the morning!

TheSmithers

You lot are so lucky!

Phobia aside, I think thunderstorms are fascinating, mother nature at her best! I'd love to be able to watch one from a safe distance and not hear it. I've always wanted to see a tornado from a safe distance too.

It's just the bloody bang I hate!

Anonymous

When you hear the Sound of Thunder don't you get too scared;
Just grab your Thunder Buddy and say these magic Words:
Fu*k you Thunder, you can suck my d1ck, you can't get me
Thunder cause you're just god's farts.

Pross

Love them when I'm safely tucked inside and can watch and listen. Don't like them setting off car alarms and the way the dog behaves when there's one though.

TheCoo'sTail

Just been caught in one in Fife. It seemed directly above me at one point, had to chicken out and take refuge in a bus shelter. Probably broke countless rules into the bargain.

Mikey23

Ex missus was terrified and would go and hide in the cupboard under the stairs, not sure how that would have helped...

I'm not a great fan but can tolerate them unless they're close and I'm stuck in the middle, like a few years ago being on about the highest point in the Peak District and seeing the toilet block get hit a few yards away

I don't mind the thunder so much because it means that the lightning missed... Mum taught me to count between thunder and lightning which gives you an idea how far away it is and whether its getting nearer or moving away. When they are more or less simultaneous is when I get worried!

Richard_D

The don't worry too much. Fascinating to watch but preferably from a safe location. Cycling home late on Sunday the Thunder started when we were still about 10 miles from home so it was just a caseof keep going and trying not to be the tallest thing around not easy out on an open country road.
The 2 Thunder storms that come to mind for me is when I was still a student the first was listening to a test match in the same city seeing the flash out side then hearing the thunder on the radio and finally the thunder through the air.
The second was the one that made me realise how spread out the forks can get. I was out walking to some friends when I experienced a simultanuos flash and bang seeing the fork in front of me only to find out later that the branch of fork that had grounded was behind me

Sirius631

Today's storm was loud and close. I didn't mind so much, except when it knocked out my internet, cable TV and landline for several hours.

jawooga

My brother's wifi hub and router went bang on Monday night after a lightning strike, and Virgin refused to replace it unless he signed up for an extended contract. Bastards.

schweiz

Well a barn burnt to the ground in my village tonight following a lightning strike and a light aircraft crashed on take-off from the small airstrip in the next village killing two and seriously injuring one so I'm just glad I decided not to ride to work this morning or I would have been riding home in that storm!

AchillesLeftKnee

Not a sniff of thunder or even rain here. It's just all rather hot, humid, and stale. Consequently, I'm a bit jealous of you lot.

Daz555

jawooga wrote:

My brother's wifi hub and router went bang on Monday night after a lightning strike, and Virgin refused to replace it unless he signed up for an extended contract. Bastards.

Power supply on my NAS went bang as well. New one arriving this morning hopefully.

Surge protector ordered as well!

Kieran_Burns

Went out in the middle of the patches of storms last night to get home from work and got drenched. It. Was. Great.

I doubt I could've got any wetter by jumping the river. Riding along (with lights!) like a drowned rat on wheels, the air filled with rumblings and the odd flash, the road awash with rainwater run off and me grinning like a loon.

I love commuting on the bike.

Sirius631

Kieran_Burns wrote:

Went out in the middle of the patches of storms last night to get home from work and got drenched. It. Was. Great.

I doubt I could've got any wetter by jumping the river. Riding along (with lights!) like a drowned rat on wheels, the air filled with rumblings and the odd flash, the road awash with rainwater run off and me grinning like a loon.

I love commuting on the bike.

You know it's a great ride when it can't get much worse and yet you're still enjoying yourself.

itboffin

I've ridden through quite a few since moving away from London 7 years ago but this week riding home over the highest point in the SE alone through some fairly spectacular lightning I could help but think I was the biggest target around and should get up and over as quickly as possible, needless to say I did then I found out the next day that a friend had actually been directly struck, he's ok but spent the night in hospital being checked over :shock:

Perhaps this happens more often than I thought - yikes!

marylogic

Mrlogic persuaded me to go for a hill walk up Cairngorm on friday , but having reached the top and heard the thunder, I vetoed the planned ridge walk. By the time we got down they had stopped running the funicular due to the lightning.
The moral of the story is that walking is simply not natural and I will be sticking to cycling from now on.

Does anyone know if the rubber tyres offer any protection from lightning?