Thanks to Joe and everyone else who replied. After reading a few articles like this one - http://www.practical-sailor.com/blog/-11222-1.html, it sounds like there is little consensus on lightning protection for sailboats. I'd be curious to know what sort of lightning protection, if any, comes standard on new boats from the well-regarded manufacturers of heavy displacement cruisers like Hallberg Rassy etc. I just searched the manual for a new HR boat and there's no mention of lightning or lightning protection at all.
Someone raised the point on one forum that inviting this massive amount of energy into your boat is a bad idea (IE a cable going from the mast to a keel bolt). Not sure whether this is a well-founded concern or not, but I'm leaning towards Joe's idea of clipping some jumpstart cables to the shrouds and hanging them overboard next time I'm caught out in a storm.
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