Not to mention rubber tires.
Unless the cycle was dragging a chain or some other grounding device on the pavement there is no way he could have been charged. JMHO
Posted on 06/22/2006 11:32:56 AM PDT by Mr. Brightside
Today: June 22, 2006 at 9:56:7 PDT
Lightning Strike Kills Colo. Motorcyclist
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WESTMINSTER, Colo. (AP) - A motorcyclist died after he was struck by lightning while riding in rush hour traffic between Denver and Boulder, police said.
Witnesses reported seeing a flash of light shortly before the motorcyclist struck the center divider on U.S. 36 Wednesday, police spokesman Tim Read said.
Gary Missi, 46, of Longmont was pronounced dead at the scene.
A coroner's investigation was under way to determine whether the lightning bolt, the collision or something else caused his death, Read said.
The lightning blasted a 4-inch-deep hole in the highway and sent chunks of asphalt hurtling across the highway.
--
Rubber that thin provides NO protection at all. Remember, this lightning bolt may have traveled 2, 3, or even 10 miles through the air on its way to the ground. An inch of rubber will not stop it. It will either penetrate the rubber or go around it. That's how it gets from the bike to the road. It just jumps from the metal rim to the pavement. Also, at the voltages involved with lightning, anywhere from 100 million to 1 billion volts, just about everything becomes a conductor.
>A motorcyclist died after he was struck by lightning while riding in rush hour traffic between Denver and Boulder, police said.<
Poor guy! I wonder if he was struck while he was still, with his feet on the ground?
Could he have been struck when he was in motion, with his feet on the motorcycle? Wouldn't the rubber tires have protected him?
Thanks for the explanation.
No matter where you are, the Rovian Weather Machine (RWM) will get you.
And when friends are coming to visit me, I tell them to make sure they book flights that land before 3:00 p.m. Of course, with the soul-scouring drought we've been in for several years, the storms are much less frequent, but it's not something about which you want to be careless.
That's what you get for being a DUmmie troll.
Negative ions from trolling + tin foil helmet = ZOT!
I could think of worse ways to go though.
Sympathy and prayers to his family.
LOL!
The first article I read on this today ended with statement he was wearing a helmet-as though that mattered in this instance.
No, no, no. Get the 1-iron. Even God can't hit a 1-iron.
Guess he wasn't a Rockies fan, hmmm?
Golly, that's right. The vic was probably a democrat.
Yes.
" it would be UNUSUAL."
It's not unusual at all. Several thousands of feet of air and a couple feet of rock is a far better insulator than a fraction of an inch of rubber. Once the voltage reaches the breakdown threshold for the bulk of the insulation, the minor details of what's in the way don't matter.
I was watching a Discovery Channel, and there was a show about lightning. There was a man who documented to have been struck by lightning 5 or more times. One time, he was sitting in his pickup truck with the window down. As I recall he was a park ranger or game warden.
Not to mention rubber tires.
Unless the cycle was dragging a chain or some other grounding device on the pavement there is no way he could have been charged. JMHO
"At least the story did not end with whether or not he was wearing a helmet."
If he was, I'm sure that what killed him!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.