Don't push it !!!

[Chesapeake]

While picking my youngest up from cheer practice yest. afternoon I noticed some light gray rain clouds blowing in and got excited. Finally I thought, I can hang outside and not sweat to death. I beat the clouds home and ran inside to gather my rig for the night : XLC & OMW. As I started to set up, I realized that I might have miss judged the severity of those Innocent rain clouds..... Out of nowhere the wind picked up and before I knew it my XLC was a sail. I had just connected the OMW to the prussiks on my dutch zing it RL when all hell broke loose. The sky got pitch black and my tarp was in my face, whipping around with its lash it guy outs stinging me like 100 jellyfish. The rain began. Thunder boomed overhead as lightning streaked across the dark summer sky. I decided to get inside and abandon my precious. As I tried to free myself from the flapping silnylon, I noticed that every single 5' length of lash it had become tangled and knotted around its panel pull lines and me, becoming a maze of yellow cord inside like an octopus killing it's pray. I finally broke free from its yellow tenticals and started inside. As I moved from under the large locus tree a bolt of lightning cracked right above my head and I could smell the burnt air thick like summer soup in my mouth. I made it inside and turned to see my precious. The XLC pullouts flung loose and it was violently blowing in the wind like a half pitched sail, and the tarp was thrashing about becoming ever more tangled and tied up in its own lines.I watched and waited for over an hour as my precious danced like a rag doll at a pre school in the heavy driving rain and wind with bolts of lightning filling the summer sky. When it finally started to calm down I donned my Snugpak patrol poncho and headed out to survey the damage. To my surprise everything was whole still. But all the lash it was knotted and twisted into a nightmarish yellow rats nest. After 20 mins I was able to take it down but each line still had knots running up its 5' length. I got everything inside and hung up in my basement to begin picking the 500 tight micro knots out which will take days Im sure! So be careful if you plan to hang in ify weather, it can change in a blink. No hammock or tarp is worth getting killed over, even though we might push those limits sometimes.

[jms53]

How will you know your limits if you dont push the ?


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[TrailSlug]

Bummer. It's a good thing the lightning didn't get you. The good thing is maybe some of those spiders blew away or got whipped to death by the flying lash it. I'm way way way too weather aware. Did I say way? I studied Meteorology and Climatology in my younger years so I'm a weather nut which always checks the radar (several dozen times a day) if it's available and try my best to avoid these situations. Some times it can catch you off guard though.

[jms53]

How will you know your limits if you dont push the ?


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My first stormy set up taught me not to keep the tarps in the provided carry bags, but to have them pre-strung in a large dry bag. Why large? Because in the field you can never fold things as neatly as you can at home, especially in the rain.

Good luck with the knots!

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[oldgringo]

BTDT, minus most of the drama.
It weren't no fun, at all.

[jellyfish]

I saw there was a tornado on kent is. Glad you are okay.

[OneClick]

Push it real good!

[Chesapeake]

Bummer. It's a good thing the lightning didn't get you. The good thing is maybe some of those spiders blew away or got whipped to death by the flying lash it. I'm way way way too weather aware. Did I say way? I studied Meteorology and Climatology in my younger years so I'm a weather nut which always checks the radar (several dozen times a day) if it's available and try my best to avoid these situations. Some times it can catch you off guard though.

I wouldn't be that lucky, Every week it seems I've got yet another wild hammock story to tell lol. And this is supposed to be relaxing! Normally I do check the radar, local/regional forecast and temps before I head out. But last night I was so focused on getting home and set up before what looked like just rain that I totally skipped that important step. And looking at the sky when I went out didn't raise any flags either , all I could see was the fluffy gray leading edge off to the west, and trees blocked the ominous black monster that was rolling in from the SW. The wind went from gentle breeze to gale force in a matter of seconds. By the time I realized it I was already eating tarp and being whipped by lash it. Watching the XLC and OMW violently thrashing about becoming ever more tangled and knotted together made me fear that they would be lost. This just goes to show how well made and strongly put together these hand crafted pieces of cottage gear really are. I doubt my made in China Equip hammocks, Snugpak tarp, Chill Gorilla bug net or any other mass produced piece of gear would have faired as well. Cottage made is more than worth the extra price you pay BC you get bombproof gear that you can depend on, even in worse case scenarios like last night. If I had got it hung and was inside it, I would have been confident that it would keep me dry.

[CeeVee]

Don't know where you are but weather moving thru Sunday (23rd) set off my car's alarm twice. First time I've ever had that happen! Tree in front yard was lashing like an enraged octopus. Glad I wasn't out in it, but like jms53 I wouldn't know coping unless I was on it.
On the other hand I've been on the AT in GSNP in rough weather, exhilarating .

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[Chesapeake]

I saw there was a tornado on kent is. Glad you are okay.

And there was one right over the 50 bridge on the eastern shore Sunday night as well. We never get tornadoes like that around here.