Automatic chains for snow

few hours? chain law went up on I-70 at 4pm Friday Feb. 8th, didn't come down until the 12th. That's more than a few hours, more like a few days. How long can you sit?

 

I was talking about just driving along and a heavy storm hits to wait it out. Driving through the "chains required" areas you are right. However I always avoided those routes all together. When I ran Chicago to LA I ran I-80 all the way across to SLC to I-15. Never drove on I-70 even though it's shorter miles wise. When I had a stop in Denver then onto LA I took I-25 down to I-40 in NM then west. Avoided 70.

 

Because often times in the northern plains, sitting a few hours waiting on one storm puts you in the heart of the next. There are times you just go, because it's still a better alternative. And I'll bust snow for days out by myself rather than wait for everyone else to come out on still crappy roads and the total cluster that often turns into.

 

ive found in my short brief existance (sp?) in trucking that when the weather is good or bad you just go no matter what. the company i work for now requires us to chain pretty much all the time and ive found that as long as i am smart about it and know my limitations that in any weather you can drive just fine. just my .02

 

I've seen them installed on a semi tractor but not trailer.....looked confusing to me, like another brake chamber but sitting quite low to the ground just waiting to get whacked by some kind of road haxard.....not sold on the idea, if you have to chain up I say best to pull over and wait till conditions improve.

 

Yeah. Wait until conditions improve. Park in September, and wait until conditions improve in June. Go for it.

 

I never ran them on my big truck, but have run them on a Rescue Pumper and they work alot better then I ever thought they would, especially going down mountain grades. I would look into putting them on my tractor if I wasn't a company driver.

 

You see 20+ year drivers on here saying the same thing about chains. If you have to chain up to go, then it's not safe.

Shouldn't be bashing the guy for saying the same things some of you "veteran" drivers like to say. And for some of you experienced guys saying you've been doing something since "christ was a corporal" and it hasn't burned you yet, you're just lucky. My uncle rode bikes for 30 years before his 1st accident left him in the hospital for 6 months and unable to ever work again.

 

Anyone who says "I won't chain because _______"; and that reason isn't "because I don't want to;" doesn't qualify as a "veteran" driver. They might have a lot of years, but all the excuses are just that; excuses used to hide the real reason. Be it fear of the unknown, or the snow and ice, or even just laziness. You don't want to chain, fine by me. Just lay off the BS excuses and own up to it. Chaining is part of trucking out west, and if you don't know how to chain, you simply not as valuable a driver as someone who will. Your skill set will be lacking, and it speaks volumes about you to a knowledgeable employer, who will hear the excuses on why, and wonder what the truth really is.

And if this paragraph leaves you butt hurt? Go look in the mirror and be honest before you come in here all pissy about what a great driver you are. Yep, you are. You are also a driver with limitations.

Luck doesn't have a single thing to do with it. It's called awareness, and knowing what to do if something happens. If you get caught in some nasty conditions, and end up a bit out of shape, if you have never been there before you are well and truly screwed. Ever slid a truck on purpose? I have. Kicked the trailer out? Ditto. Because I want to know instinctively what my backside told me is happening. If you have to think, it's too late.

Sorry to hear about your uncle, but it reminds me of a good point. I've ridden a lot af miles, for a lot of years; yet I still practice emergency breaking every week or so. Because I want to be able to take that bike to it's maximum breaking instantly and instinctively. It will save your ### someday.

And trucking's no different. Lock up your brakes in an empty slick lot so you know how it feels. Grab the johnny bar and let the trailer lock up so you know what it feels like when it breaks loose. Romp on it so you know what a power slide feels like. Or park every time it's gets icky, and come on here lamenting some day that "I just couldn't do anything to avoid it."

But it ain't luck, not by a long shot.

I'm out!

 

I've done the exact samethings just to see what it feels like and to know how to react. I know companies, good paying companies that won't hire you if can't or won't chain up. It's simple, it's part of the job.