Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

We lived is in the southern edge of a zone called Tornado Ally. For that reason, we had a storm cellar, as did all our neighbors. Even the Bulcher School had an extra-large concrete cellar to provide shelter for the students.

Many evenings, and sometimes in the middle of the night, storms would wreak havoc and serious damage to homes and other structures. Lightning strikes had burned down barns with destruction of livestock and equipment. Over several years, various family homes and once the Kewanee Oil Company truck garage was completely blown away. This garage housed 5 or 6 company trucks and vehicles and they were mostly untouched, but the garage was destroyed and scattered over several acres of pasture.

We would watch the clouds and thunderhead formation and would run to the cellar which was about 50 yards from the house. Inside the cellar space, we kept surplus army cots so we could stay all night if necessary. When we ran to the cellar door, I always looked and calculated the size of hail stones. If some were as big as golf balls, or larger, I knew we were in for a major storm.

One night, we were already asleep when Mom woke us up (my sister and me) and a storm was already raging outside. My parents believed it was already too late to try and make the trip to the cellar. Mom put Belva and me in a closet and covered us with quilts. She believed there was a good chance the house was in danger of being destroyed. The noise was deafening, and things were hitting the walls of the house, thunder and wind sounded terrifying. After perhaps 10 to 15 minutes it subsided, and we went back to bed.

The next morning Dad found about half the roof shingles were gone from the west side of the house. The ceiling was bulging down with rainwater trapped over the sheetrock. The wall was partially caved in along the side of my bedroom. We were very lucky not to have had our home destroyed that night. This was not unlike Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz. Just Sayin…RJS

Iowa Farmer Loc: Iowa City Iowa

Had a small tornado roll up our steel house roof like a sardine can when I was 14, and were in a Walmart when a tornado hit it in 1998. The '98 one did $4900 damage to our SUV. Both were scary events.

FourchonLa. Loc: Fourchon Louisiana, South Louisiana

Been close to one on a couple of occasions. One in the marsh when the water spout came down in front of us while we were trying to reach safety at Timbalier island. The other I was trying to outrun in my truck on the way home from work. It passed me up and I pulled over to let it go by. It’s in the photo passing over the Mississippi River bridge near Donaldsonville La.

Iafierman

Live in a small town in northwest Iowa 53 year of my life. Went through 3 tornadoes. Two of them one city block from our home. The one in 1983 did 12,000 dollars worth of damage. The 3rd just barely missed the town. We also said our town was in tornado alley.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

Fourchon: I have been trying to get a still photo of a water spout over an open water scene. I wanted to put under it the caption, "Leave? No, Not when the fish are still biting!" Cannot seem to capture one. Just Sayin...RJS

FourchonLa. Loc: Fourchon Louisiana, South Louisiana

They are just as scary on water. Of course I didn’t have a phone or camera at the time. To be honest I was trying to get the hell away from it. We made it to an abandoned concrete structure on the back of Timbalier island and rode out the storm.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

I have only been fishing and saw one in Puerto Rico at some mile or two away. We kept a sharp eye on it and would have run for shelter had it moved in our direction. Caught my personal best tarpon on that trip. About 65 pounds. Just Sayin...RJS

FourchonLa. Loc: Fourchon Louisiana, South Louisiana

I bet that was a fun fight. Never fished for one. Have to put it on my bucket list.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

YEP! when you are standing up in a small boat with a wet deck and the tarpon is jumping higher than your head in repeated jumps, it is exciting. Jsut Sayin...RJS

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

While I have never had an official bucket list, Tarpon was one fish I really planned to tangle with, so I've fished both Puerto Rico and Costa Rico for tarpon and have caught several but none over about 70 lbs. They get much bigger, but I've never landed one larger. Last year, my son and I fished 3 days straight in trhe Florida Keys and didn't get single strike. We could see them all around in clear water but I guess they had sex on their minds and were not eating.

The largest fish I have ever caught and landed was a striped Marlin off the coast of Matzalan Mexico that weighed about 170 lbs. Just Sayin...RJS

FourchonLa. Loc: Fourchon Louisiana, South Louisiana

The Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo would have been last weekend but was postponed due to the virus. Supposed to be scheduled at a later date. Usually draws a huge crowd. My personal best was a 150# yellowfin tuna a few years back. My arms still hurt.

Sitn Loc: Osyka, MS.

A small town named Aspermont in Texas has their school underground. No problem with tornadoes or storms there. I worked on a ranch there back in the 60’s an 70’s. Most folks had their storm shelters near their homes.