was driving over vail pass lastnight empty.

You did good.. You survived.. Next time I would suggest trying it without the jakes.. I drive in it all or have in the past.. Jakes make the truck slow down faster than the trailer.. Over braking with the footvalve causes the exact opposite .. The trailer slows down to fast... and will jack knife... the best thing to do is just go slow and apply steady braking and steering ... Don't make big anything on ice..

You did well.. like Cetane said the world isn't going to stop..

 

Some don't get the idea that they need to find a place to stop and stop.

 

I'm not going to get into a peeing match about whether or not to use an engine brake on ice. However I for one will never use one because I don't want my drive tires trying to slow at a rate faster than the trailer pushing them. As long as you stay in a straight line and never break traction, no problem but the instant your drives break traction and get out of line with the trailer then the momentum of the trailer pushing is just going to keep pushing. My theory.

 

i've never had a jack knife from the brakes. over use or not. trolley valve or pedal.

i get an attempt though, every time the jakes are on.

5 axle braking on ice is the recommended procedure. not 2 axle braking.

how some of you think it's ok to use jakes on ice. is beyond me.

 

Yeah, but he didn't mean to, because he doesn't know what he did or didn't do correctly.

How many guys do do that, then continue to do it wrong, based on their own anecdotal evidence?

I can see how it might appear that way, but I see a guy willing to throw what little formal training he (might have) received and conventional wisdom out the window. That's "negligence", in its "willful" form. Good luck learning him anything.

Every truck driving school and state driving manual doesn't cover leaving the Jake off in 'slippery' conditions because it doesn't matter. Imagine the NTSB investigating a crash occurring in icy conditions in a mountain pass where they find the Jake in the "On" position. Imagine the driver explaining " I've done it 1000 times and that's the first time THAT ever happened! I didn't mean to crash, it was an accident"! There wouldn't be a shred of his balls left to bust...

 

18 years and you apparently don't know LCV brakes apply in-sequence, trailer brakes first.

 

Not getting into the jake battle.
But if its slick and you are light, run the zipper aka the rumble strip.

 

Really it's a decision that everyone has to make for themselves. I have never told someone I think they should stop/stay put/not go. However I have too many times been out on the road with people who were out-driving their experience/comfort zone and have no business being on the road in certain conditions. I cannot control others vehicles, when I was trained we didn't cover driving your own truck and remotely drivers others from the CB but it must exist, I hear it every time I turn the radio on. So the one thing I do have control is when and where my truck goes. There are times where I'm 110% comfortable with the road conditions but I'm on the road with people whom are not yet they are driving beyond their comfort zone so I choose to park, save my load, truck, job, driving record (24 years without ANY accident, claim etc.) and let the others have the road.

As for engine brakes, again, not going to get into that peeing match but there's got to be a reason why newer trucks will kill the engine brake the instant the computer detects slippage. In fact I remember a 1981 Pete that had a sticker on the sun visor telling me to not use the Jacobs Engine Brake when the road was slippery. I guess Jacobs knew a thing or two about engine brakes on slick roads.

 

I agree you can't control others but common sense and some sort if understanding that no load, no amount of money is worth the damage that you can do to someone else.

 

No one has ever gotten paid for a load that was rolled.....

There are only two occasions where late is absolutely bad....One is when the EMT's to a Cardiac arrest are late.......And the second....When your girlfriend calls you to tell you that she's "Late"....

All of the rest....People will get over it...