driving empty down vail pass

Probably throw some chains or park it.

Keep your power unit heading straight. Forget about the trailer, it will follow. Always worked for me.

 

Wear a Diaper!

 

Jesus, don't throttle up.. That just means you're going to need to slow down while going faster!

How about this..
First off, don't worry about the people passing you..Youre in charge of your truck!

Dont drive any faster than you feel comfortable..

Dont run your jakes on highest engine braking..MAYBE run them lowest level, but if your drives start to slide turn them off!

Go slow, low rpm's down hill (your engine won't lock your wheels up when you let off accelerator) high rpm's uphill (your wheels won't spin out from engine torque)

If you apply to much brake and your trailer starts to come around on you..LET OFF THE BRAKE..it will straighten out.

You can go to slow a million times, you can go to fast once.

Good luck and good question.

 

try putting chains on the truck and trailer, and watch your speed.

 

If the road conditions scare you that much, shut down until they get better.

But, throttle up - very gently - and steer in the direction you want to go. Gentle moves with the wheel, not too much.
If you have a trailer brake it might be good to use it, again, very gently.

 

Have to say :

1) Definitely park it if you can - guaranteed safe.
2) Jake brakes off
3) Gentle throttle to 'outrun' the trailer that's trying to pass you
4) Change underwear shortly thereafter.

Moosetek13 - are you sure you want to touch the Johnson bar? If the trailer has already lost traction, brake application isn't going to make the situation better - is it?

 

if the road is icy/ snow covered, chain law will be in effect.
Drive at the speed your comfortable with. Don't worry what others think or say .
By the way , for those who rarely travel over Vail, (11,000 feet above sea level, this isn't monteagle) there really isn't anywhere to park. Im sure by the time the chain law goes up, what little parking there is will be FULL
Continually keep checking with COL Road info. for the latest updates. And Yes Colorado does do a great job of updating often.

 

Empty downhill, and driving carefully and at a reasonable speed, I don't think the trailer will try and slide out from under you unless there is a significant side wind component. But if it does, my recommendation is to ever-so-gently apply a bit of fuel and hold your steering straight as it was. In some cases (snow/snow pack), there is a small area of roadway that is exceptionally slick and something bizarre may happen but in a few hundred feet you will regain the better traction and hopefully correct yourself. Freezing rain however is a different story.

If you need to brake, brake VERY gently and use the foot brake. The foot brake will do a pretty good job of putting a bit more air to the trailer then the tractor. If you use the trailer brake, it's real easy to apply just a bit too much and cause some/all wheels to lock up and you don't want that. (Don't put faith in anti-lock brakes to help you out in icy conditions as a means to insulate you from poor driving tactics)