[bhcva]

Our Caliber 40 was hit a few years ago in an Anchorage near Annapolis. The boat is not grounded. Damage showed that the lightening came down the two back stays, the front stay and the mast. All mast head stuff was gone. Most of the electronics took a hit.

Evidence it came down the mast was limited to a pin hole in the depth gauge near the base of the mast.

The front stay was 'charred' at the roller furling joints so it was replaced.

The charges that came down the two rear stays jumped from the stay to a nearby screw in a piece of trim adjacent to the stay straps and blew away the trim from the screws to the tip of the trim...a couple of inches. The damage on both sides was identical.

While standing in the cockpit just after it happened not fully realizing what had happened, I watched a boat behind us moving thru the anchorage get hit....the mast bulb (and probably other gear) just exploded.

There was no time to do anything like hook up battery cables or the like...a very fast moving storm that continued to produce a dazzling show as it moved across the bay. Just don't touch anything!!

Bruce