Why don't they listen??

[sundial]

Yesterday hubby and friend headed out the door to cycle early in the morning. We have had thunderstorms every day since last Friday and Monday was no exception. I was checking weather.com when I heard a rumble in the distance and saw that a thunderstorm was about to hit the area they were cycling in. They were out in the middle of nowhere and were basically lightning rods on wheels. I grabbed the keys, jumped in the car and headed to where they were. I spotted them just as the storm was moving in the area and I rolled the window down and asked if they wanted a ride. No thanks, we'll just keep riding. So I drove past them 3 miles or so and saw a bolt of lightning not far from them. I turned around, headed back to them, stopped the car and jumped out. I explained there was a strong storm but they wanted to ride the remaining 3 miles back to their cars. I followed them and then saw it--a wall of rain not even a quarter of a mile from them. It started pouring buckets and hubby finally relented and jumped in the car. The other one sped up and was absolutely drenched by the time he got to the car.

This morning I checked weather.com and there is an 80% chance of rain/thunderstorms and hubby wanted to ride his motorcycle to work. Why don't men listen??

[kat_h]

Back when my husband was 18ish and still living with his folks he was riding his motorbike on the highway, trying to get home, when a storm rolled in. He was completely out in the open with nowhere safe to stop so tried to get through it. Lightning hit the ground right by him. Bike tires don't insulate from ground strikes. He was instantly knocked unconscious at highway speed. He has no idea how long he was out of. He woke up on the road and found his bike a fair ways down the road, in the ditch on the other side. No one was around and there was no where to go for help. This was before the days of cell phones. Fortunately his bike had a kick start instead of an electronic ignition so it started back up and he made it home. He says the bike always blew a lot of fuses after that, even after he replaced all of the wiring.

Honestly if it weren't for his story I wouldn't think about lightning much. It always seems farther away. Your guys were probably thinking about the rain but not the lightning.

[Fujichants]

Men are just stubborn and think they're so tough!

At least my BF seems to think that sometimes.

[sundial]

I don't like to take thunderstorms lightly since I've experienced a lightning strike first hand. We've had several kids in our community killed by lightning because of being out in the open and not being aware of how far lightning can travel. One kid was on the track at the high school. He and his grandfather were enjoying quality time together when the boy was hit by lightning. Another boy was with his youth group from the church and was out floating on the river. A thunderstorm brewed and the kids got out of the water, but the boy was struck while huddled under a tree. The father, who was the minister, was with him when it happened.

I watched the Discovery Channel when they aired a program about people who were hit by lightning. One was a cyclist from CO that was hit by lightning and initially survived, but later died from complications. The scary thing was there were no storms predicted or clouds in his area when he was hit.

[mimitabby]

Some things you just don't mess around with.

Lucky for me, i live in a place where thunderstorms are rare.

[NoNo]

Having been hit by lightning through the phone (yes, it can travel through phone lines and water, hence no showers during a storm!), I don't mess around. Sort of. Try to get inside if possible, but I'm not against trying to snap a few pictures. And really, what are the odds I'll get struck again?

As for guys being stubborn, is that really all that surprising?

[Zen]

Why don't men listen??

Ahh, the eternal question.
Tell him they don't call her Mother Nature for nuthin'...

YOU DON'T MESS WITH MOTHER NATURE!

[PscyclePath]

there is an 80% chance of rain/thunderstorms and hubby wanted to ride his motorcycle to work. Why don't men listen??

Because we're all firmly convinced that we're going to live to be 120 and finally shuffle off this mortal coil by being shot by someone's jealous husband.

Considering, this is from somebody who rode to work this morning in the same 80% prediction so he could try out the fenders on the new commuter bike...

Tom

[roadie gal]

There's something about having "outdoor plumbing" that messes with your mind...

[Kano]

YEsterday, while waiting out the storm under a church driveway canopy, we saw not one, but two kites flying during the thunderstorm. Nice long tails on them.

DH was the one who suggested shelter, though I had been watching the sides of the road for likely spots for a couple of miles already by the time he did.

Today, more rain is predicted, but he rode his bike to work anyway. I think this is a worse situation than yesterday -- he'll be riding through drive-time traffic, and does not have his screaming yellow jacket with him. His shirt today is a kind of muted green...

I have been watching the progression of the rain areas on weather.com and called him a bit ago to let him know that if he wants me to meet him, I'll be more than happy to. I don't think he enjoyed the rainy ride home (after the lightning stopped) as much as I did!

Karen in Boise

[Mr. Bloom]

It started pouring buckets and hubby finally relented and jumped in the car. The other one sped up and was absolutely drenched by the time he got to the car.

Hmmm...sounds like they listened...just took them a while to comprehend

[silver]

Having been hit by lightning through the phone (yes, it can travel through phone lines and water, hence no showers during a storm!), I don't mess around. Sort of. Try to get inside if possible, but I'm not against trying to snap a few pictures. And really, what are the odds I'll get struck again?

As for guys being stubborn, is that really all that surprising?

I've heard somewhere (or maybe I made it up) that the chances of being hit by lightning go up when you have been hit before.

I've had two very near hits. I call them that since neither was a direct, knock out hit. both of my hits were to the house that I was in and the charge traveling through the house to me. people usually move away from me in storms.

[Susan126]

Men can be stubborn, period.

I LOVE thunder/lightning storms. I grew up back east where the storms were awesome! I miss them out here in Western Washington, very rare. I remember sitting out on my parent's back porch with my sisters and brother and watching the sky light up and then counting until we heard the thunder to see how far away the strom was! The smell of the air during a big lightning storm is something I miss too!

Yes, I do love them but I do respect them too!

Sundial, your hubby should be thankful for having you! Driving all the way out there to pick him up and save him from beng drenched and hit by lightning. He is a stubborn hubby! Waiting to the very last minute to finally jump into the car!

[OakLeaf]

I LOVE thunder/lightning storms.

Oh, me too! They're so soothing to me. I think it goes back to when I was really small and my mom and I would sit on the porch and watch the storms.

Funny, I'm normally careful about not talking on a wired phone or taking a shower during a thunderstorm, but it doesn't bother me to be outside in one

[Mr. Bloom]

Sundial, your hubby should be thankful for having you! Driving all the way out there to pick him up and save him from beng drenched and hit by lightning. He is a stubborn hubby! Waiting to the very last minute to finally jump into the car!

Sundial, I would have done exactly what you did. But frankly, I think that Silver might have been upset if I did this for her- depending on how bad the conditions were.

First, she wouldn't have done something like this...but if she had, absent her calling me and asking for help, she might have felt "parented" and "over protected" by my initiative. Silver, would you agree?

I don't think hubby was necessarily stubborn, but maybe he and buddy wanted to press the limit to learn the limit...if they survived, they would have made a "big fish" story that would have become a hurricane survival guide at the next club ride.

Is this stubborn or persistence? Persistence is an attribute...excess persistence is something bad we call stubbornness...it can be a fine line between the attribute and the excess.