To chain or not to chain...

Yes and no. I chain up before I get stuck, but I won't throw them on just to keep going and get myself in trouble unless I absolutely have to. If you get stuck it's because the conditions are real bad, and in those situations the last place you want to be is stuck in the middle of the road with your head under the truck trying to get the inside of the chain to latch up. That's a quick way to get a 1 way ticket to see your maker.

 

Lucky, that sounds like the exact advice given to the OP.

And I agree.

In winter months I keep a very close eye on the weather that I am likely to encounter.
I'll head into a storm, but I will stop before conditions are such that I will need to chain - if at all possible.
Then I'll send a Qcom late call for the bad weather.

There are several factors I need to keep in mind while running a load.
Like, is it JIT, so a plant will have to shut down if I don't get it there 'just in time'.
Or, is it a hazmat load.
Or, how broke will I be next week if I don't make delivery by Wednesday night.
Or, will I get in trouble for shutting down.
Or, will fellow truckers look down on me because I decided to do the safer thing.

Or, will I kill myself or someone else trying to get this load through at any cost.

 

I look at like this.. if the roads closed I'll park, if chains are required to roll I'll chain up. If I'm uncomfortable with the conditions I'll park as long as in doing so I don't get stuck. What I dont like is rolling at 25 mph or freezimg my fingers to that point it gets but I do it..

 

This will actually also depend on the company you drive for. Some companies will not allow you to chain, some, like the one I drive for, will never pressure you, if you feel it is unsafe, make the call and stop. Some require you to chain if the road is not closed.

I have chained, but I have decided it is not worth it

 

If you are already stuck...you're not going to get the chains on...these aren't 4 wheeler that you can toss the chains up against the tire and spin it to grab some traction. With the weight on each tire, that chain is just going to stay where you dropped it...not get sucked under! Also, spinning the tires is going to create a new problem...melting the surface snow, then when it freezes, you have now got a truck parked on ice...worse than the snow!

If you are going to run the West, and (especially as a rookie making little cpm) you need to learn how to safely run in the snow...not necessarily ice, but in the snow. Your pay is depending on you making miles....you don't make any miles sitting at a truck stop waiting for the chain law to be lifted. Most times it will be a few hours...but every year there are several storms that will shut down highways for 2-3 or more days....can you afford to sit half the week? Had you kept moving when the conditions weren't as bad, you might have gotten through the snow and continue on with what you are getting paid to do.

Read the other threads about chains and snow/ice....every year it's the same thing, so many of these "old pros" that claim "it is unsafe if they require chains" in my opinion never learned or are just telling tales or repeating what some other "driver" told them way back when. I remember the days when a driver was a driver, not a truck stop vagrant!

If you decide to "sit out the chain law"....I really don't need to see you whining about not making any $$$ here on the forum. Put on your big boy pants and learn how to become an all around trucker!

 

They aren't to "get you out of trouble." That is not the voice of experience. Chains go on BEFORE you need them. That's the whole point: to give you traction to keep on trucking or to at least keep on going to a proper place to park. If you are spun out or stuck, you were driving without the control needed to stay safe.

We have extended periods of frozen,snowy roads followed by the annual mud season. Chains are just part of getting the job done here. Doesn't mean you take chances or feel invincible, but you certainly don't stop trucking when it gets slick. You just put them on, it's really not that hard.

 

Only reason that matters if you shut down or not.

 

LOL truckstop vagrants that is funny...


Here is the problem with "learning how to become an all around trucker" [h=1]Discretion is the better part of valour.. [/h]He is a rookie and will need to learn his own judgments not having people from the cheering section jeering him into bad choices.. Here is what you do man.. You have to learn to drive in the snow.. so drive in it but slow the heck down and increase following distance. Take your time and learn how the truck reacts... Turn your CB radio on when you are going through bad weather (it should ALWAYS be on it will help you know what you are going into).. If at any point you feel out of your comfort zone park it.. I don't want you on the road with me..

As far as chains go.. I have driven through 17 winters out here 18 is coming up.. I have had to chain up 2 times.. Its not hard you will just be wet and cold.. but also remember that those chains are not tracks on a dozer or a tank.. they help traction they don't make it a sure thing..