Mountain Driving Tips

My god driver you are quoting physics formulas here, dont you know we truckers are suposed to be too stoopid to underdstand that sort of thing.

 

great post oldmacks

 

LOL. Anyone who thinks that hasn't met many truckers. They might be ornery, independent-minded, foul mouthed, and (sometimes) uneducated... but stupid?

Nope.

 

Well I have met some stupid ones, but they sure dont last long.

 

aint that the truth

 

Kind of hard to escape Mr. Darwin isnt it.

 

Not one straight answer to the drivers question! ...Whats up ladies/gentlemen? ...Just give the driver an answer.....How hard is that? We've all heard the accident and cop stories, some of them might even be true, but they don't answer the question...
SO, I'LL TRY THIS: YOU CAN ALWAYS TAKE A CURVE OR MOUNTAIN GRADE TOO SLOW HUNDREDS OF TIMES...YOU MAY ONLY GET TO DO IT ONCE TOO FAST....HOLD STEADY TO THAT RULE FOR ALL OTHER- THAN NORMAL- DRIVING AND YOU'LL HAVE A SAFE CAREER.

 

Definitely. I forgot the students & first year types. When I hear "truckers" I think of guys who've been at it a while.

 

Agreed, take it easy. While I'm all for pushing the envelope because it brings you closer with the machine, it's just not good in a semi in most places. I think everybody should get the chance to feel severe brake fade, but in a controlled enviroment. If you feel the need to get crazy, buy a cheap sportbike and take it on the track where you can scream down a straight away at 170mph and slam on the brakes right before a turn.

Get to know your equipment. If you have jake brakes you can go down just about any mountain pass on the interstate without ever hitting your brakes, it's just that you'll have to ride it in much lower gear. If you don't have jake brakes see if you can find out more about your brake shoes. Some have good intitial bite but will gas out quickly and then it's your trucks pheumatic systems against the gases coming off your shoes, in other words it's pheumatics against pheumatics and after awhile there will be no contact between shoes and drum. If your brake application guage is showing higher psi to hold the same speed, then this is happening. Other shoes will not have good intitial bite, but not gas out quickly and therefore are better suited for long downgrades. Try to know your equipment. Good luck.

 

The question you are referring to isn't the original poster's. All he asked for was hints, tips, and etc.