Tips and storm safety
Ron's Tips
From Ron's home water. Ron's local knowledge from SW Florida — it doesn't show up on any chart.
Storm Safety
The rules with zero flex. Read these before the season, not during the storm.
Any strike inside 15 miles = OFF the water. No exceptions. Wait 30 minutes after the LAST strike before you relaunch. Zero flex on this one. Lightning on open water kills.
Head for the nearest protected shoreline — do not try to outrun a cell across open water. Get low, spread riders out (one strike shouldn’t take the whole group), and wait it out on the lee shore.
If rain gets so heavy you can’t see, STOP. Don’t run blind — idle to the nearest shoreline and hold. Running blind in the islands means oyster bars, crab pots, and other boats.
A sudden cool gust ahead of a dark cloud line is a downburst — the storm’s advance warning. That’s not a nice breeze, it’s the front edge. You have minutes, not an hour.
Plan to be OFF the water at least an hour before the earliest storm window on your WXRR. Cells build faster than the forecast timeline in summer.