A lesson in Safety!

[jasonfish320]

I recently returned from a tourney this weekend and made a very risky move (deciding whether or not to keep fishing when a storm moves in) the tourney started with 70 boats..7 fish limit..I was lucky enough to find some good 3-4pounders and was culling by 10am..I had 4 solid fish and 3 dinks..at 1pm the rain started coming hard and fast, but no thunder and no lightning so I stayed...I moved out to a rock bluff about 100 yards off an island and quickly upgraded one of my fish to another 3pounder...THEN IT HAPPENED!! I went to cast my line and could hear and feel the static..it sounded like a radio station losing signal as I lifted my rod and my line seemed to almost lift towards the sky...CRRRAAACKKKKK!! so loud and powerful I could feel it through my chest...A lightning bolt touched down maybe 100 yards behind me on shore...that was it..I shut off all my electronics as quickly as I could and tossed my poles on the deck not even strapping them down...I flew to the far end of the lake to find refuge...I was able to find a small sandy beach to land the boat and spend the next 40 mins laying under my console...at the end of the day I had 21.4 pounds and finished 9th...at the weigh in they announced 2 boats had gotten struck..one guy was rushed to the hospital and another had both his hands badly burned...I felt stupid for deciding to stay, I felt like the old-timer in caddyshack who is playing his best game of golf ever and a storm rolls in...it was even more difficult considering the pay-out for first was 2,500..of course the payout for dead=0... I learned my lesson, no matter how in the zone I think I am I need to put safety ahead of everything else..let this be a reminder for all of you when you are out on the water, above all else....BE SAFE!