Driving in the mountains advice for new drivers.

Best atlas ever !!! Get one of those and you'll be miles ahead of a lot of people.
Lots of good stuff on here for braking , use it . Mountain driving is more than interesting . Good luck

 

Probably a horse a piece, it's a LOOOOOONG way down. Not sure about Loveland, but Monarch gets closed regularly. Keep posted on the weather. Some say over a foot in the hills this weekend.

 

NEVER use the engine brake on a low traction surface. Lower gear and gentle intermittent application of service brake. Take it easy.

 

What i do also for traction is higher gear / low rpm . The tricky part is finding the sweet spot . ( big hills vs rolling hills , traffic , etc etc )

 

Excellent advice !!! I did that as a newbie back in 95 in Sacramento and it's something i've never forgotten . By the time the guy showing me how to do it was done , and i had repeated what he had done , must of had 30 other drivers watching , assisting , and talking about it.

 

When you don't know what to do, don't pass any truck. Being too cautious is fine. Not being cautious enough can kill you.

 

Let's expand that thought a bit: NEVER use the engine brake OR CRUISE CONTROL on a low traction surface.

Hey, Loveland and Vail passes ain't child's play! I still remember one day in 1966 (?) crossing Loveland in my Dad's 61 Rambler when he had to get out and hang iron; I heard words come out of his mouth that day that I'd never heard him use before, nor did he use them again until he died at age 92! Keep it slow and easy, and keep in the back of your mind that you still need a lot of experience!

 

Independence Pass is by far the worst. You can't take a truck over it, and they close it in winter, but that is without question, the poorest excuse for a road. One lane and a 600ft. drop and no guardrail. Way to go, Colorado.