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Top Course Unit 183
Presentations: The Top Course Unit 183
Listen to the recordings to practice this study group. Repeat each line after the speaker. Practice one group at a time. Start with Part A Slow reading then Part A Normal speed. Then go on to Part B.
Unit 183 Part A
1 The subject this week is Cindy Talbot, a final year college student, ... 2 who was on the third day of her five-day solo-hiking trip through a forested wilderness … 3 when she was struck by lightning. 4 Lightning kills nearly a hundred Americans each year, more than hurricanes or tornadoes, ... 5 and to survive a direct hit is almost a miracle. 6 Well, I'd noticed the thunderclouds gathering and … 7 I was resting on a rocky peak people call Eagle Peak, ... 8 when I heard the thunder rumbling in the distance, and I was rather unnerved. 9 Fortunately for me, Rod and Mark, the two guys who came to my rescue … 10 just happened to be driving back home in their pickup ... 11 they'd been cruising around in the forest checking their trap, I think. 12 I must admit I thought the thunder sounded kinda ominous.
Unit 183 Part B
13 I remember when the downpour started and it must have lasted for about an hour, at least an hour. 14 I knew it wasn't going to stop just like that, so I sheltered under some trees. 15 Everything happened so quickly and there didn't seem to be anywhere else around … 16 where I might find shelter. 17 I realised that by some miracle I was still alive and had to get help. 18 But I couldn't move my legs, so I had to crawl. 19 I don't think they thought there was a grain of truth in my story at first! 20 Rod told me later that he thought what I'd told him was a bit far-fetched, to say the least! 21 They managed to get me to the nearest hospital in record time, and, … 22 in a few days, I was on my feet again. 23 But you've just got to know what you're doing, haven't you! 24 I think it's made me realise that I'm a lot more resilient than I thought.