Saturday, March 17, 2007

Driving in thre Snow

I arrived in NJ exausted but safely and had no mishaps along the way

1 Do not drive in a storm unless you must.
2 Have four good tires.
3 Take your time
4 Try to change lanes as little as possible
5 Understand space and use the five second rule. If you pass an object in less than three seconds than the car in front you are way too close
6 Two hands on the wheel at all times.
7 Pretend you are driving without breaks.
8 If you must accelerate do so gently.
9 If you can try to follow a truck. They make nice wide paths
10 Pay close attention to the driving styles of those around you. If someone wants to pass let them. Many of the cars that passed ended up off the road.

10 comments:

Justin said...

Good advice Beak and Im sorry Im laughing but I just thought how well all those apply to life as well.

(((Thought Criminal))) said...

Here in Missouri we have simplified the traffic laws to just one:

Drive, or else.

The Merry Widow said...

It would also work on the interstate through Georgia, during a thunderstorm! There were 2 kinds of drivers, the intelligent ones who slowed down and pulled over when the visibility fell to 3', and the idjits who kept going 70mph...saw some interesting accidents once the rain passed! The jackknifed rv was the most spectacular...

tmw

sonia said...

I would add number 11:

Don't live in a place where the temperature can drop below 15 degrees CELSIUS, and where water can turn into snow.

beakerkin said...

Sonia

It is an odd site seeing Robins in the snow. Snow isn't bad and my trip on Valentines day served as a reminder.

Justin you have a point.

Thuderstorms are easy. Pull off the road and wait. They sedom last more than an hour.

Mr B

That is a good motto.

American Crusader said...

#9 was my "golden rule" when traveling in the snow or ice. If it's bad, I don't care how slow the truck is going...I'll just follow it.

Anonymous said...

Do you suppose those who just keep going 70 mph without being able to see ahead live their lives like that, too?

This California born and bred girl can add a few to Beak's excellent list (as if I know enough to add anything..? BUT!) because I did travel with a business partner to the high desert....we got to our location, Victor Valley Hospital, and the guys in the construction shack said "Man, it's dropped twenty degrees here in an hour"...I thought "so what?" And then we found out..it means GET OUT OF DODGE ASAP!

Sure enough..snowing like crazy by the time we left the meetings....My addition to the rules based on this experience:

1. Never leave your home if your car heater's not working. (oh, MAN, was it cold....I had my left hand under my BRITISH partner's armpits, which tells you something..smile!)

2. Have someone cleverer than ZinLA help you put chains on the next morning because driving with what sounds like a toaster in your exhaust isn't fun..THUNK THUNK THUNK for 2 hours..(yes, we had to spend the night in Victorville where all I wanted was a steak and a Courvoisier, and we got Carl's burgers and slept in our clothes.

Oh, I forgot...

3. If you're traveling with a married business partner, make sure his wife understands that, if we have to spend the night in a hotel, it's BUSINESS not MONKEY BUSINES.

oh brother.

z!!

beakerkin said...

Z

The folks in my office were shocked I made it. I crossed the Adirondack Park before the storm hit. I joke about my driving but I am betterthan most assume. Driving in NYC takes alot of skill and I have had plenty of experience in VT.

AC

Getting behind a truck is great advice in a fog. I cleared much of the Park in a heavy fog that way once or twice. It was a weird storm and I rarely used my wipers.
The defrost was set on high and it
melts as soon as it hits.

Z

The heat was so high I had to cut it. However the second visability was reduced I put it back. Visability and spacing are crucial in bad weather.

Always On Watch said...

Drivers here in the DC area don't know those rules.

Here, the root causes of ending up in the ditch or slamming into another driver are (1) going too fast and (2) pulling out in front of someone else who has the right of way and who cannot possibly stop on short notice.

Always On Watch said...

I saw a robin hopping around on the frozen ground yesterday afternoon. Spring isn't far off!