Re: catalina27-talk: Lightning

[Rspeers]

Regarding lightning.   I recommend following Catalina's original scheme, as they need to follow national insurance and boating standards.   My Catalina has all shrouds bonded to the keel, and the mast bonded to the keel through a big wire next to the compression post, to the keel.   Hence, your strategy should be to be in the cabin, away from the compression post  the wire that goes down nearby, and the penetrations of the shroud bolts into the cabin. (Sitting on the seats, leaning forward and praying probably is best.)    ;-)   A lot of research at the U of Colorado suggests that many of the lightning deaths for climbers happens when they get under trees, the lightning current goes down the tree trunk, the radially expanding and contracting magnetic field induces current in the vascular system (heart), and upsets the electrical system of the heart. (A defibrillator would have recovered many of these lightning victims.)    From conversations with sailors who have been in sailboats in storms: Being on deck, and avoiding the obvious things (shrouds, the mast, and lifelines) doesn't seem to be bad. Perhaps being soaked provides a good path for stray current.   Bob