High Winds

His speed was reasonable, but if you watched the video, he should have used the shoulder more, lean into the wind, I have done this many times, even had to use the left lane and lean into the wind. But if you are not comfortable and feel totally safe, Pull off the road for a number of hours, till the wind calms. taking a chance is only used in playing poker.

 

One thing I had to learn the hard way was to watch out when changing directions in the wind. Had 40k of beans on truck and was headed north with a tail wind. When I reached my junction to I-90, I turned and got a gust just as I turned onto the on ramp. I got lucky and the rig stayed upright, but it made for a very exciting 3 seconds. I started paying attention to the wind after that.

Sometimes you get lucky and learn a hard lesson without mishap. My wife swear I have an angel on my shoulder.

 

I had read a report a few months ago, on what speed was the best speed for driving with a crosswind, and the report indicated that speed was not a factor in a trailer being blown over....but I still feel more comfortable slowing down some so I can have a chance to react to the wind and steer with the wind if I need to.

So the only way to prevent a blow over would be to not be on the road....as going at 10 mph or 50 mph you would have the same chance of being blown over.

Some experienced drivers have said to always watch the double trailers, as they are the first ones to get blown over....

I liked the chart that was posted on this thread for go/no go decisions. If I saw a fresh blowover of a double trailer, I would be heading for a parking spot - and I would park facing into the wind or away from the wind...and take a long nap.

 

My companys policy is if your moving its preventable because we should have known not to be driving, but if your parked its non preventable.



American Trucker

 

i was in the virginia mountains right before christmas as that nor'easter blew through to NYC, and the wind got my attention several times.

 

The wind woke me up BIG TIME this morning in WY.




American Trucker

 

Watkins Shepard





American Trucker

 

Didn't read all the posts, but saw some good advice while scanning... if your wagon is empty, high crosswinds can be downright dangerous, with sudden gusts leading to unexpected and untimely lane changes. I used to deadhead clear across country for one environmental outfit, and clearly recall jumping off at the Armadillo Petro when winds were gusting over 70 m.p.h. Made an unexpected lane change with that empty 53' wagon... luckily, there was nobody else around, as I make a point of "riding the gap" between packs of vehicles. Another point to remember, applicable to taking ramps in windy conditions: some freight gives your rig a lower CG or Center of Gravity than other freight, which can make a difference in windy conditions, although it's more of an issue in relation to the ramp itself. Example: a reefer wagon loaded with boxed meat will have a lower CG than a reefer wagon loaded with bin lettuce, even if the net weights are identical. Granted, a loaded wagon is far less likely to roll over than an empty wagon, but if you're going into a ramp too fast, a sudden gust of wind from the wrong angle may mean the difference between keeping it upright or going for that "long layover"---particularly if you just picked up a load with a higher CG than your last load, and you're still used to the first load's CG. Hopefully, this will make sense to you new drivers, and perhaps allow you to avoid heller grief at some point in the future. Lastly, be careful while parking on severely cambered roads or steeply-downsloping dirt shoulders... if your truck is already heeling or leaning down to leeward, it's that much easier for a good gust to knock it down. I clearly recall parking on such a shoulder, and immediately feeling uncomfortable with the rocking due to high winds... I got back behind the wheel and relocated so that my rig was leaning into the wind instead. The one hand had it right: if wind is an issue, park the truck and let the winds blow themselves out, then make up the difference later. Weather will inevitably change as systems move across country. That's my spiel, just a few observations on high winds... of course, if those winds are favorable, you can boost your fuel economy big-time as you sail downwind.