Blew my airhorn at a State Snowplow

I spent a couple of season for Caltrans clearing Donner, Stupidity of drivers around plows , knows no limits. I have had drivers pass me then (without chain when required) then get mad cause I would not stop to pull them out, Covering idiots with a shower of snow kind of is its own rewards.

 

If you think you are always in the Right of way, compared to emergency vehicle's you are wrong.
I always blow airhorn at kids who give the armpump.

 

Yeah, me too. all for the kids.

Your right the right of way goes to the Emergency equipment. Sometimes a plow will need to maneuver into a place to clear something, Do they alway do it right, probably not, but they are also trying not to shut down the road, when maybe they should of.

 

I personally have a lot of respect for plow drivers. I’ve talked to a few and I can promise you it is not an easy job. Up here they used to do a 16 hour shift then quit for 4 hours and pull another one. Since they couldn’t keep up they dropped the 16 hour limit. That’s when the guy I talked to quit. I always try to remember they are probably very low on sleep and just trying to get through the next shift. Especially when you know they’ve been out for a long time.

 

I was heading NB on the 15 just south of Scipio UT heading to the SLC terminal. It was early Feb and around 0100 and it started to snow. I had a line of cars following behind me that were afraid to pass, I guess. I'm not sure if they figured I could lead them safely through it or not, but there was plenty of road for them. Made me laugh.

Separately, plow drivers in SLC don't mess about. More than once I've seen them balls out in cloud of white. Easily doing 50, no idea how they can see. Must want to throw that snow as far off the road as possible.

 

One of thos snow plowers saved me last winter in West Virginia. I had a heavy load going up a hill along the Appalachian Highway and my truck slowly came to a stop in the road as ny wheels started to spin and I slid into a snow bank along the shoulder at night. A few minutes later the guy comes along and tells me to hold tight while ge goes to get his wrecker and 20 minutes later he pulls me up and over the crest of that hill.

 

I give snowplows and shakers A LOT of room. After all, it's their job to clear the road I have to drive on, so I just stay way back out of the way and let them do their thing, especially since they're driving on a lousy surface to begin with.

And I would never, under any circumstance, pass a snowplow.

 

Used to have pusher tractor working I80 thru Doner in the old days.

 

Good call to not pass.

But remember, the plow tires are actually driving on the freshly plowed road.

And I can't help but to think that the tires on the plow might just be better in those conditions than the tires used by my company.
Same tires for my truck all year round, but the plows only come out when it is bad.
What might be safe for the plow at 40-50 mph might not be safe for me.

 

I don’t ever pass a plow on a two lane, but here it’s very common to pass them on interstate. Especially when they’re plowing the hammer lane they will even have a green light on the end of their plow on the blind side signaling it’s ok to pass on that side. They don’t go very fast up here tho. Rarely above 40.