Tips for Driving in the Snow
Since apparently an inch or two of snow sends drivers in this town into a complete frenzy of panic and idiocy, allow me to pass on some tips for driving in the snow:
1. Four wheel drive doesn’t mean four-wheel STOP. You can’t, as Amy says, drive 75 in the snow just because you have an SUV.
2. Expect to slide a bit, and understand that the way to come out of a skid is by turning your wheel gently away from the skid.
3. Don’t go any faster than the skid you can recover from- if you’re going 15, you won’t skid any faster than 15 mph, unless you happen to be sliding downhill. So as you’re deciding how fast you can go, ask yourself how much time you’d need to recover from a skid before hitting something, and accelerate accordingly.
4. If you’re having trouble with sliding in the snow, put your car into a lower gear. For those of you driving an automatic, this is what those numbers under the “D” on your gearshift is for. You will get better results, I promise.
5. Accept that it’s going to be slow going, and adopt an attitude of “better late than smeared all over the road.”
January 19th, 2005 at 11:53 pm
6. Go out into an _empty_ parking lot and learn the sliding characteristics of your car/UAV/bus. Slide around. Feel how much control your antilocks give you when you stomp, stay, and steer. Put yourself in a spin (Hint: drive in reverse in a front wheel drive, then turn sharply and pulse the gas to the floor once. Hint two: Make sure there are no light poles to hit. Hint three: Don’t worry about recovering, just know what it feels like to be in one)
7. Don’t be afraid to safely accelerate out of an accident situation. Know where people are around you. Recognize that the lane next to you is clear, in the event that the guy in front of you is less intellegent. Of course, this requires confidence in the abilities of your car and yourself.
8. Don’t be a hazard. If someone is driving faster than you, move out of the way in a safe and controlled fashion.
9. Know the potential road conditions of your area. Know the roads that drift over. Know the roads that are plowed first.
10. Try not to drive in packs. Remember, a spin by yourself on the road is much safer than if you have cars around you.
January 20th, 2005 at 7:48 am
And if the pavement looks wet, it may be…but it also may be black ice so don’t go plowing
over it at 90 miles an hour. Sheesh!
January 20th, 2005 at 3:07 pm
Tiffany, it’s ICW time. Seriously. If you’re interested, contact me on AIM: DaveDudley632
The gang is all here, and you’re more than welcome, yourself.
January 20th, 2005 at 3:16 pm
Dudley! Now there’s a name I haven’t heard in a long while…
January 20th, 2005 at 4:51 pm
I believe everthing in life can be explained and/or punctuated by webcomics.
Yes I do.
January 25th, 2005 at 9:35 pm
T, contact me on AIM. DaveDudley632
July 23rd, 2006 at 6:13 am
chair electric music wheel…
As always a good post
….