I'm in Oklahoma City, my third stop.
Man, they like their thunderstorms down here. In St Louis I witnessed one of the most spectacular storms I've ever seen - a veritable fireworks display. It was actually two cells, and they went at it hammer and tongs.
So I'm heading towards OK, and my Garmin Grumpinpuss decides to take me the most bizarre way to I44. I know where Paul McCartney got the inspiration for Long and Winding Road now.
Rolling out of MO, I'm struck by how hilly it is. I mean, I literally rolled out. Up and down, up and down. Having come from Ohio through Indiana - big sky country - I expected MO to be, well, flatter. Nope - my little buggy's engine had to work mighty hard to maintain cruise. All the while I had my eyes on the (big) sky. There it was, a big black ominous thing. Not your average storm cloud - this was an entire front. And I was driving straight towards it.
I think I was actually in OK when I started to pass under it. Things just got darker and darker until it was basically twilight. All the while, not a drop of rain. Just darkness. Twister flashbacks are going through my head as I continue down I44. Wait for it..... Wait for it..... Still nuthin.
Then bam bam bam bam - forks of lightning streak across the sky and to the ground. "There it goes". Then almost a heartbeat later DOOSH I'm damn near swimming. It's coming down it hard sheets, bouncing off the car and road. Visibility is down to less then a fifth of a mile instantly - not helped by the big trucks spraying everything around.
This goes on for about 15 minutes, and then it all tapers off, and the darkness slowly lifts, and before you can think WTF? it's all over.
I'll say one thing for OK. They have a civilised speed limit. I'm tootling down I44 at 75mph (plenty fast enough for my heavily laden car) and I'm literally tootling, as that's the speed limit, and cars are whizzing by me like I'm not there. Not like Vermont where anything over 50 is regarded as suicidal.
It's a balmy 88 in OKC, and it only gets warmer from here West. Destination Albuquerque NM tomorrow.
PS. I will drag Ohio through the shitter when I get to Mesa.