Winter Driving Stories

I don't understand why drivers always use their family members experience as if it were there own. My father drove for 42 yrs and was never involved in a wreck of any kind and I spent countless miles riding shotgun with him. I will admit that I feel this time with him gives me an advantage in this industry but only because he taught me how to think the exact oppisite of guys like ramblingman who think they know everything already. When I first got in the seat I was a rookie regardless of what my father experiance was.

 

If a rookie repeats the words of a 40 year veteran driver is it any less true?

If one tries to show what they do know does it mean they think they know everything?

 

Need to increase it to 10 more if you want to keep up with me.

yep.

Certainly educational...

Please reference to me the point where i claim to know everything? I can only share what i know, but even Albert Einstein had to admit in the midst of it all when it came down to it "I know Nothing" which is something I'm not oblivious to.

You know you've won when the other side starts flinging crap. It's a sign of desperation. Don't give up yet boys.

 

Being from Texas, where smart people live in a land without ice and snow, I dread this winter. Will be my first as a driver, and I do not want to learn any hard lessons. Will be taking my Xbox and lots of hot chocolate with me for downtime, and I have no objection to sitting it out.

Appreciate any and all advise in this thread. I will be watching other drivers when it gets rough to see what they are doing.

 

No point in driving on days like that anyway. You'll make more money selling tire chains and un-thawing southern trucks at the truck stop.

 

I was driving across Canada, going to AK and stopped to pee. I walked around the truck and checked lights. When I came back around there was a Brown Bear between me and the door. He growled at me and then he killed me. The end!

 

Ramblingman, I'll tell you this: If you need the space to recover from near jackknifes, you're doing it wrong.

I tend to be one of the fastest on nasty stuff, as it is true there is a higher comfort level for those who have spent a lot of time on crappy roads. But I've never had to worry about losing control out by myself, that is reserved for those moments when someone else decides to occupy the space I had soon planned on occupying. If you are running that close to the limit that you're at the edge of control, you need to back off a tad. The highway isn't a racetrack, and should never be run at 10/10ths, 8/10ths should be your maximum to leave some traction for any needed evasive maneuvers. (Something the squids on crotch rockets haven't learned, nor the "fly down the grade at the edge of brake smoke" crowd.) You keep running with no cushion, and the day's going to come where you are going to be well and truly screwed.

And the "see you in the middle" crowd? Would y'all stop? I've been hearing this crap for 30 years. It's as stupid and ignorant as the "I had to lay it down" line used by guys who ride bikes without a clue as to why the front brake is important. Unless I'm slipping and sliding all over the road, or flying on ice, or you see brake lights all the time; I just happen to have a higher comfort level than you. I realize many take it as a threat to their manhood to admit that someone else has more skills, but that's really all it is. I don't mean that to belittle, few of you will ever have the opportunity to spend as many hours on the trashy stuff as those of us who learned in an era when we were allowed to make our own decisions. It's no different than backing skills, if you do it a lot, you're better at it. Do you cuss out the guy who hits the hard hole first shot because he did it quicker than you could?

 

Glad you put that part in there about ice because there is no skill that can get you the traction you need if something happens ahead of you

You can be driving on a snow covered or wet road thinking all is fine and before you know it you are on ice or black ice. That happens alot around here.....miles and miles of nothing and then there will be 5 wrecks in a 2 mile stretch because all of a sudden there was ice under that snow or the road spray stopped and nobody knew until it was too late.

 

I think your spot on all accounts there and folks will probably actually listen to you since they can't cite any inexperience on your part lol.

As far as needing the space to recover from Jack knifes I needed it unexpectedly 2 times this whole last winter and I never shut down for fear of road conditions spending the majority of my winter in the far north and northern mountains. I self induced countless mild jack knifes in countless different types of weather conditions just to practice controlled recovery which was an enormous help in those 2 uncontrolled circumstances. Being my 1st winter out here in a semi truck It was important to me i learned...
1.what my truck could do under different loads and conditions
2.what i could do under different loads and conditions (stress management being the key here for me)
3.what would limit my capability to continue on in the thick. Me or my truck?

Your right though about me running too hard on the edge of control this last winter. I'm going to back it off to 8/10 this next winter as you suggest. I will by no means be parking each time a snowflake hits the ground like most on this forum suggest though. I was constantly pushing the limits just to see what they were. Like said above it was important to me i learn where limits and boundaries are in a 18 wheeler vs in my 4x4. Now that I've established a base knowledge of limits and boundaries for myself and the truck in varying conditions It's just a matter of continuing to refine the skills at hand. No need to push the limits any longer.

Not sure why people are so afraid of ice. I drove on ice for a 600 mile stretch not touching pavement in MT and WY during winter storm Cleon, 100 mile stretches of driving on ice is pretty routine in Eastern MT during the winter. You can have perfectly fine traction on ice if it's cold enough and a little loose powder on top goes a long way.

I still believe respect, but not fear is the key to getting through the worst of conditions.