coopdad Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 (edited) ... Is this attitude common elsewhere? Is it a reaction to increasing health and safety regulations making people generally more cautious and less willing to 'risk' going out in bad weather? ... Simon Simon, what kind of regulations are causing all this panic? As you might have read, our government is on the same track of more and more regs/laws also and I am curious what we might need to look out for. Here in the South snow is pretty rare also, a few dustings per year is about all we receive. John Edited December 19, 2009 by coopdad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modelmartin Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 My wife won't let me have fun in the snow anymore; she seems to think that Eminent Death will follow immediately after a slight "out of straight" incident. I know what you mean. A lot of people don't understand vehicle dynamics at all. many years ago I was paid a high compliment by a woman friend who was riding in my car. She said I drive like a crazy man but she felt safe in the car. My wife has learned to live with it even though she doesn't like it. She knows that I can keep the shiny side up and no contact with other vehicles or unmoving objects. I do tone it down with passengers on board. Most accidents are actually people relinquishing control by panicking. Two winters ago I was driving a 40' city bus during a sudden, slippery and nasty snowfall. I hung the tail out a few times! The scariest was coming into a bus stop that was slightly downhill, passengers lined up at the curb and when I touched the brakes the tail started swinging to the curbside! I pumped the brakes lightly and got it stopped a few feet past the stop. The boarding passengers looked like deer caught in headlights! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Cole Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 My wife won't let me have fun in the snow anymore; she seems to think that Eminent Death will follow immediately after a slight "out of straight" incident. Man, does that sound familiar! The wife has gone through three imaginary passenger side brake pedals already! Not to mention the "death grip" marks she has left on the dashboard. In the last snow we got, I told her I wanted to go to an empty parking lot to "see what the car will do". See said to drop her off first. I briefly thought of dropping her off in the middle of the lot, and do donuts around here. I bet sleeping in the dog house gets very cold this time of year! Just blip the throttle as I'm leaving the driveway, and she acts as though an impending fiery deadly, gas tank exploding, shards of steel, blood spattering crash will surely be the death of us all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesW Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 My wife refuses to drive in this weather, so I have to play chauffer and run her everywhere. Then she complains about how I'm driving. I grew up around snow, I know EXACTLY how to drive in it, no matter how much there is. Although we've had a surprisingly mild winter so far compared to past years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyjim Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 No snow in Citrus County, FLA yet. Supposed to be 29 degrees on Monday morning though. I'm planning to stay inside the warm house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick F40 Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 It's snowing?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Handley Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 I've always said that it's not the road that's slippery, it's all those driver's licenses that get tossed out the window when the weather gets bad that impedes traction. Here here Mike! on that note, have you ever seen soo much salt dropped on the road to combat Ice, that the Salt then becomes the hazard? Actually, yes! I was going somewhere in my old '85 Lebaron Turbo Sedan several Feb's back and took a corner a wee bit faster than most and had the car start to push a little as I tried to drive out of the corner ( I was out of the boost BTW), so I let out of it and the car grabbed and straightened out again so I continued on out of the acceleration lane. I then looked back and saw what looked to be a Mercury Mystake try that same manuver with much less success, the car had it's rather small front tires (looked to be 195/70/r14 to my 205/60/HR15's) cranked full lock to the right and the car was sliding left out of the acceleration lane and finally collected up it in the passing lane just before hitting the center median Don't know what made them think it was a good idea to follow me into that corner at what ever speed they were running (I'm guessing Monkey See-Monkey Do ), but they did and nearly wrecked doing so :ph34r: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon05l Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 it started today in mid tennessee now its about 1/2 inch wow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobss396 Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 We just got done digging out of 24" on Long Island. It can snow here anywhere from mid November to April. Snowfall can be anywhere from 2" to 200" per season. Some years we get lucky, some years, not so lucky. 2009 is going out with a bang. The drifts were as high as 5' tall. I had lots of things planned for yeaterday, but snow removal prevailed. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie8575 Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 The final count for New Bedford was 24". The City plow didn't show up on the side street where I usually park until 3:30 yesterday afternoon, and only plowed half the street, leaving 3-4 foot drifts to wade through. The city just sent a front-end loader and a plow down about an hour ago to finish cleaning up. Happy, happy, happy....despite the horrible plowing, I was able to my car mostly dug out. I might go out for a few minutes later, so I'll see if I can actually move. My biggest problem is my tires are coming up on replacement. I'm hoping that they'll last me for the winter, as money right now doesn't really permit a new set; even good used ones for my car are very hard to find as nobody uses the size anymore and very few are made. Charlie Larkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harold Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 There's a saying in racing- "Hands and feet follow the eyes". In other words, if you're looking at that snowbank or tree, that's where your car is going to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyjim Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 I remember those days from living in Chicago, Nick. I'm glad I moved to FLA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 Please allow me to show you: Greetings from Montana, USA. I was wondering where our snow had gone, now I know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldfinger Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 Snow! they spend two days predicting the worst of the worse,everybody cancels everything,and the snow comes 8 hours late and 12 inches light. God forbid you need a loaf of bread on sunday,because apparently NO ONE had any in their house and raided the supermarkets en masse on saturday. I love driving in snow. I cant wait to take my new driver 16 yr old out and give him some practice. All the other idiots with the low profile tires and mitsubishi eclipses can stay home! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modelmartin Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 It's snowing?? C'mon NIck! I can still see your car! That's nothing! A light dusting is all. Brush it off and pedal to the metal! Perhaps a dash of opposite lock here and there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Hall Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 60s and overcast here in Phoenix today. When I lived in Denver, we occasionally got huge snowfalls..those were work from home days... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChevyFan Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 Just thought I'd let you guys know that it'll be 40C here tomorrow (104 F) and it's currently 35C (95F) today. I have to agree with the "snow, what's that?" comment as we are heading in to Summer here and I've never seen snow other than the news. Hope you all enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobss396 Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 The final tally here was 26.3" of snow. A single storm record, so the papers say. I still had some clean up to do on Monday when I got home from work, but it was close to 39 degrees. I celebrated by cooking chicken on the gas grill last night. Someone clocked a car on my block that was parked on the street, glass and plastic all over the road. Be nice to wake up to that this morning. There's still a few cars in the ditch off the main roads, be a pretty penny to winch one of them out, it's down there. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyjim Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 Yo Chevyfan, How about getting with the program and putting your real name in the posts? Where do you live? Australia in the desert? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChevyFan Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 It's been upgraded to 42C now today (107.6F). I live in Adelaide, South Australia (a capital city and nowhere near any desert). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick F40 Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 C'mon NIck! I can still see your car! That's nothing! A light dusting is all. Brush it off and pedal to the metal! Perhaps a dash of opposite lock here and there! Oh we got more, that was in the middle of it. My car had that much snow on the hatch that is made it into a wagon. I frankly think it looked sweet! And oh I did plenty of that, probably more than some with 4 wheel drive vehicles, shoot, no power steering, brakes or an handbrake..... lot's of fun and some opposite lock..yes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Agent G Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 There is a reason I moved to Vegas and it's name is winter. We had 6"-8"' of snow last year,(worst in 35 years). It shut the town down. All in all I prefer the desert though. 61 today, but the wind kicked way up and the temps dropped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terror Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Cracks me up every time I see a Suv in the ditch.These owners think they are unstoppable till they get in that 4 wheel slide that is almost impossible to steer out of.Last week I came around a curve and a truck was coming at me side ways so I slowed down and watched him slam into a 4 ft. ditch as I coasted past him in my 2 wheel drive Saab.Probly on there cell phone.Tonight driveing home in the snow I bowled over a coyote and didn't spin a tire.Guess I've been driveing in this stuff to long.Doesn't bother me to drive in the snow.A little tip for most of ya,if ya want to be safe and drive in the snow,leave the phone at home.! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Quantz Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Here in the desert, in Vegas, when we get .20in. of rain all hell breaks loose and there are accidents EVERYWHERE. Now, an inch of rain is news for a week and everyone goes nutz because of "all the rain". If it snows anything enough to stick, it makes national news for a few days. Seems that as soon as the water falls people's sense follows the water into the gutter. Agent G is right, the city shuts down. It's funny. When I lived in Colorado, driving to work in 6 inches of snow was just part of winter. I was a plumber and worked out in freezing weather and snow- breaking through 6 inches of frozen ground to lay underground sewer pipes. That was normal. It depends on where you are I guess. People get seasoned with certain weather trends and when it goes different we are taken by surprise. But driving habits are SO BAD these days that no one thinks to slow down or be more careful in incliment weather. I've seen people on their cellphones doing 40mph through the Rockies in a snow storm... The danger in driving here is that hardly anyone is careful, and they drive wayyyy too fast to begin with. Now combine that with water on streets that haven't been rain-cleansed in months... Bad News. Weather is funny. People in weather are funny too, but mostly scary. We've all seen news reports as 20 or so cars kept trying to go down a flooded street with cars already stalled and stuck in the water. Happens ALL THE TIME.... Anyways, We get snow here in Vegas every year, but rarely does it accumulate across the whole valley, especially in amounts like last year. But it's not completely unusual. When it does happen, look out. Total collapse of society. LOL We've even had Tornadoes and funnel clouds over Vegas before. It happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Winter Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 There is a reason I moved to Vegas and it's name is winter. We had 6"-8"' of snow last year,(worst in 35 years). It shut the town down. All in all I prefer the desert though. 61 today, but the wind kicked way up and the temps dropped. Ahh man, It's Always my fault huh. (for those of you that don't Know my last name, check my signature) We usually up here get around 10-15 inches of snow a year, snow is a part of our society. People with anything bigger than a station wagon think they have 4WD, it cracks me up, here comes joe blow in his 2WD drive pickup he goes by fine, now here comes Susie in here Explorer 2 WD, in the ditch, or in that guys field, or through that fella's fence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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