3 months OTR update—Winters coming

Also don't feel that you HAVE to chain up. You're the captain of the ship. I always parked it if I knew chain laws were coming into effect because of snow storms. Also remember parking fills up FAST during snow storms so you have to make that decision of whether a safe parking place where the inside has electricity and running water is important to you during bad weather events.

I know I wouldn't want to be on an on-ramp during a bad snow storm. Screw that.

 

Kitty litter works great to getting out a slick spot. Make sure you got a metal hammer to free up frozen brake drums. Carry thick blankets to avoid freezing to death in case the truck breaks down. Try to gently brake as much as possible when you’re on slick spots preferably just using stage 2 or 1 engine brakes to slow down. If it looks wet and the temperature is around or below freezing drive assuming it’s black ice.

 

Drive a speed you are comfortable at for road / weather conditions. If you are running faster that everyone else ... stop being brave and use your head. If you are not comfortable while driving in a storm or directly there after. Park it until you feel safe

If you are out west and the forecast is bad. Do your best to travel during daylight hours. Every state out here ... especially oregon ... does a horrible job at keeping up with snowfall or de icing at night.

Best advice I have is increase your following distance. It is crazy how many drivers are up the ### of the truck in front of them during inclimate weather ... dont be that guy.

 

if i recall, when i worked at NEMF, there was a driver from the Vermont terminal.

and he said that VT DOES NOT plow at night, so do not even think they will be out salting/sanding either.

maybe that has changed, since the early 2000's

but i don't know

 

If you get west of I-25 and North of I-70...

At 4:00 a.m.


At 6:00 a.m.


At 7:00 a.m.


At 8:00 a.m. and 100 miles since 4:00 a.m.

 

i fully understand, that some cannot stop and park.

but i was "lucky" i guess that all companies i worked for, said to park it, once i called them and told them the situation.

it is cheaper to maybe have the customer yell at the dispatcher, or load planer or even the company owner, over having to file a claim for an accident.

 

I was running through WY twice a week, if I stopped every time it snowed a little id be parked 75% of the winter.

Truth be told those pics are from 2 seperate trips... In 2 different states. The ones of my drives in chains are from Vale in CO. The two looking out the windshield are from Togwotee in WY, I was actually running barefoot and pushing snow with the front bumper in one of them.

But strung together like I first presented them gives a better representation of running in crap weather in the Rockies with chain restrictions up.

 

Maybe this was mentioned

But never ride with cruise on when on ice or snow

When parking I never set my trailer brakes and when I get in a spot I park a few feet short and set the brakes, wait a minute or so for tires and brakes to cool and then I back the rest of the way in
Hot tires on a snow or ice packed lot will melt a little and can be slick when you go to leave and sometimes hard to get rolling

 

again, this is where i "lucked out".

i had been thru Vale, and the Rte 6 by pass, and then the Eisenhower tunnel, where after you exit, there can be a severe storm!

but those were in my earlier years, as of all things a rookie driver.

been decades since i been out that way, and i found that when i did have to "go west young man"?

i did the southern route. what's that, I-40..????

i recall the truckstop, "Giant" back in the days.

 

That was me also the past couple of winters. Chained 3 times two winters ago and four times last winter. Many other times in marginal weather in the west and a lot of trips across Wyoming and Nebraska.

If I didn’t drive in bad weather, I’d be sitting making no money half the winter. The gig I’m at now has more south, Midwest and east. I suspect it will be an easier winter. But then again maybe not. I’m running, not sitting looking at a full parking lot.