Time for chains again

Few years back, when we had that bomb cyclone hit Colorado/Nebraska/Kansas, the chain law was up on I 76 from MM 49 to MM 55, the same with that stretch of 70 west of Limon

See my above comment

There's also chain signs on 287 in a couple spots between Lamar and the Oklahoma line. Some of those skinny roads will close long before the big road will, I recall a couple times last winter that 385 closed north and south of Burlington, same with 71 north of Limon. I would not want to get caught on some of those roads in a blizzard, CDOT might not send out plows until it clears, you better hope the farmers are feeling nice, and they might demand you put your chains on before they pull you out. On the upper plains area, CO138/113 between Sterling and Sydney, Ne. and Hwy 71 between 14 and Kimball, Ne. have pretty decent hills that can easily cause a spin out. Winter of 2021, the one hill on 71 was just pure ice, even with chains it was a struggle to go1 mile, 5 or 6 4 wheelers slide off the road.

 

Usually the cheap freight haulers stay south during winter thank God.

 

Colorado has gotten in the habit the last couple years, if they catch you west of Denver and the chain law is, and you're parked refusing to chain, they'll politely turn you around and send you back to Denver, sometimes with a police escort. The mtn communities aren't playing anymore, and this last year Colorado passed a slew of new laws aimed at trucks on 70, the sad part, the 4 lead legislators live in the mountain communities, despite several businesses in their area pointing out that they might have problems getting trucks this winter, they still sponsored laws that our dimwit Gov. signed.

 

BTW one change to Colorado's chain law on I-70, chains are now required from MM 259 to the Utah line, both directions, used to be 259 to 133.

 

Loads are now paying $2 a mile to Colorado and $1 a mile coming out so I won't have to worry about chaining up there.

 

Not necessarily the cheap haulers, it was the guys with brains. I used to go to Florida every year from Wisconsin, and naturally noticed all the trucks. It was like magic, south of say Atlanta, you never saw a rusty truck. You could tell the ones that stayed south by the unpitted chrome.

 

I always made my biggest money in winter time with flatbed and its not even close just by staying in cold areas.