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It's nice to live 40 miles from salt mines. Even nicer to warehouse a few thousand pallets of ice-melter of various compositions. Salt shortage, uh-huh, we're shipping it as fast as we can....and the rail-road brings us box-cars every day.Quote:
Originally Posted by ggiese
The southern sates do know what to do with salt we put it on french-fries :smiley4:
In my state salt causes cancer along with everything else.
We got spreaders but we dont go apeshit spreading it. Cars actually last more than 5 years before turning into rusty pieces of shit. Kinda funny reading the local news facebook page .When were having snow and ice the transplanted yankees were saying they can drive in the bad weather. Funny to read about pileups in Philly on FB though,wonder what the fuck that was about. Dont be offended my Northern friends but unless you are a ice rally race driver nobody is an excellent snow driver.
Oh ya ,we dont fucking die en mass when the summer temp gets above 90f :smiley2:
Sadly, it seems, that idiot drivers are the majority everywhere.
So, is this more polar vortex, or is it just...cold?
I've driven in most every province in Canada and at least 7 or 8 different states in the US and I can attest to the above. It doesn't matter whether its dry, wet, ice or snow, there are useless, idiot drivers everywhere!Quote:
Originally Posted by badwhale
Hmmmmm..............I've been driving in snowy conditions for about 34 years now. I spent the 80's driving semi's (logged over half a million miles behind the wheel driving professionally) through snowstorms, whiteouts and black ice and I can tell you the bolded statement above is incorrect. I'm an excellent driver in snow and have driven through conditions that would stop the average driver in their tracks. I'm not the only one either. I know quite a few people who know how to drive very well in snow.Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
Hell, that last trip south when we went to Savannah last March I had to drive through a snow storm and drifts about 1' deep across the highway for about 90 miles or so to get to the airport. Our plane was delayed 60 minutes because of snow and had to be deiced twice before we finally got off the ground.
If I'm not mistaken, ice rally cars have studded tires. And not the small studs you used to be able to use around here but spikes that are several inches long. Take those studs off and put them in a blizzard with whiteout conditions and they'd be no better than most average drivers. :smiley2:
I was an ice rally driver (and instructor, and organizer, and steward, and...). Studs depends on the jurisdiction - so none in Ontario, for example. Spikes are for ice racing (off-road) - and there is only one venue in Canada that allow unrestricted spikes AFAIK (at Sherbrooke).
In any case, past the beginner, what are usually thought of as driver skills/talents, for example, car control, have little to do with whether one is actually a 'good' driver on the road. It isn't like one is going to deliberately drive sideways in traffic, or anywhere near the limits of the vehicle on public roads.
Anybody can concentrate only on driving while driving. Anybody can be considerate of other vehicles (including bicycles) and pedestrians. Anybody can drive conscientiously - always aware of their surroundings - other vehicles, road conditions, etc.
The "three C's" define a good driver. Concentration-consideration-conscientiousness. If one doesn't have them, then that person is a bad driver - maybe he is just a bad driver that day, or that drive - but it doesn't matter what one's skills are.
However, if one wants to look at skills, etc., then yes, I agree with Kevin, (good) professional rally drivers are the 'best' drivers. Look at it this way - a fighter pilot can fly a light plane, but a light plane pilot can't fly a fighter jet (for very long :-) )
Quote:
Originally Posted by craig
Kevin didn't say ice rally drivers are the "best" drivers in snow. He said, "unless you are a ice rally race driver nobody is an excellent snow driver"
And I disagree completely with that statement. It's no different than saying, "Unless you're a formula 1 racer, nobody is an excellent driver"
I am an excellent driver on snow. I know many people who are excellent drivers in snow. Everybody knows that the way to get good at anything is to practice, practice, practice. And you know damn well that out here on the prairies, we have a lot of snow every single year and get lots of practice driving in it.........LOL
I'm not saying we're all good drivers. My mom for example is terrible! No confidence at all. She's ok as long as the road is clear and dry but come winter time, she hates driving.
I have one thing to add to your 3-C's above.........Patience. To be a good driver in any inclement conditions (rain, snow, sleet, hail, ice etc) one must also be patient as well.
I like the 3 c"s theory makes sense. The driver I love is the one that pulls out in front of you doing 40 and then drives 10 mph with his left hand signal on and turns right 3 mins from where we met. When someone starts that kind of driving I slow up and get overly cautions. My husband does the direct opposite he pulls up right on his butt and tail gates. I try to say we know that person is insane already why poke the angry bear. He says this is their pay back. I say well at any time he can slam on the brakes and pull out his had gun and show you what a pay back really is about. We fight about diving a lot.
What is an excellent driver?
Is it driving skillset?
Is it the ability to parallel park? If so, is somebody who takes 3 minutes to parallel park just as excellent as somebody who takes 20 seconds? How about people who can parallel park using (just) a reverse-180 handbrake turn?
Is it years of accident-free driving? Mileage? Number of moving violations?
Is it speed? Is it car control?
Is it attitude? Is it talent?
If there are "excellent" drivers, then that implies a grades of drivers from excellent -> good -> average -> fair -> poor (or whatever groupings/titles you want to use) ... how do you distinguish them?
There is always the George Carlin definition: "Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?" :smiley36:
I'm just saying that it appears that you and Kevin (and myself) have different definitions.
I'm an excellent driver. You should all worship my driving skills. AND since I'm so excellent (many anonymous opinions back this up) I don't have to prove anything.
There, the bar is set.:smiley37:
Relax ladies ,jeesh its obvious we arent worthy to chew the cheese off the crusty crotch of Will's jockstrap.
*folds arms, and nods approvingly, looking around*Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
ewwwwwwQuote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
Bingo! :smiley20:Quote:
Originally Posted by craig
Jamie, you must have missed my post.Quote:
Originally Posted by ggiese
Brent
96 car pile up north of Toronto Thursday on the 400 (like an Interstate), 'caused' by a localized, sudden, white out.
Or maybe just too many cheese-chewers.
-30 earlier today here, at the end of February. I need a cigar.
FWIW, I know that I am not a good driver. At least the proof of that is slowly fading from the Internet.
Quote:
Originally Posted by craig
George is one of my all time favorites!
You've pretty much itemized a list of what it takes to be an "excellent" driver so I'm not going to repeat it. It's all the above and the 3-C's and patience :smiley4:
I'm sooooo glad I didn't have coffee in my mouth when I saw this or I'd have been cleaning my monitors :smiley36:Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
I saw that on the news. It never ceases to amaze me how many people don't know what "safe following distance" means. What it is....and why it's a terrific idea to maintain it! You'll know it's me ahead of you on a freeway because I'm the dude with enough room in front of his vehicle to stop should somebody have an accident in front of him.Quote:
Originally Posted by craig
-32 here this morning (not including the windchill) and I'm darn good and ready for some spring *sighing* Meeting a couple friends for a cigar at my one friends shop......looking forward to that!
I suspect you're a much better driver than you're admitting............LOL...........but I'd be interested in seeing some links............
You tell me your stupid driving stories and I'll tell you mine! :smiley36:
It absolutely amazes me some of the driving in the Greater Toronto area. You can try to leave space between the car in front and sure enough, someone that has somewhere to be that's verrrrrry important pulls in front of you. For your info CptnBlues63, hwy 400 here is like the stretch of hwy2 between Red Deer and Calgary just add 4 more lanes and 10x the number of vehicles.Quote:
Originally Posted by CptnBlues63
I've driven on it and it's not a great place to be driving anything, least of all a fully loaded semi! :smiley36:Quote:
Originally Posted by Sailor71
When I was 18, I got a job driving a pick up and delivery truck. I hauled oxygen/acetylene and other gases around. If you're familiar, it was an International 1600 (3 ton truck like they used to use for hauling grain) truck.
So one spring day I'm driving back to my shop and am approaching the intersection where I need to turn left that had no separate left turn lane. It's slushy, slippery and nasty out so I have plenty of safe stopping distance between me and the car in front of me. At the very last second, this douche in the next lane over to the right decides he has to make a left here and yanks into my safe stopping distance effectively removing it. It follows logically I rear ended him.
This happened right in front of a gas station I frequented for cigs and gas and it just so happened that at the time of the accident, two guys I knew reasonably well were standing outside pumping gas and saw everything that happened because they recognized my truck, and me, and were waiting for me to stop so they could wave "hi" at me (they told me this a few minutes later).
I tried fighting this in court. The judge at traffic court even said to me, "You didn't leave a big enough stopping distance" I said, "I beg to differ your honor, I have two eye-witnesses right here who saw everything including the fact that I had a safe following/stopping distance between me and the vehicle in front of me and that this fellow here (pointing at him) took it away from me when he slammed in there at the last second without even shoulder checking or signaling his intent."
His response, "You hit him from behind, you're 100% at fault"
I've never been so pissed in my life.
When the wife and I are on vacation with the 24' travel trailer behind us, I spend a lot of time on freeways slowing down to leave a safe space in front of me. We get lots of honks and get flipped off frequently but we both just smile and wave........
Get a dash cam.
You wouldn't have thought it would be necessary with two independent witnesses and in light of the fact that I them and the judge still told me "too bad for you" I suspect a video still wouldn't have swayed him either.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mangyrat
I have been thinking about getting a dash cam after watching a video on YouTube a friend sent me a link to. Apparently it's big business in some places for scam artists to pull in front of an unsuspecting victim on a freeway and stop suddenly causing a rear-end accident. My friend told me, they then offer you the option to give them cash to not report the accident.
So the video was a guy with a dash cam. A car pulls in front of him on the freeway and slams on it's breaks but the dude with the dash cam stops in time. The scam artist then backs up and bumps into the car with the dash cam. Both drivers get out of the car and dude with the dash cam points it out to scam artist. I'm assuming he told the guy, "No, I'd rather take this one to the insurance companies" but who knows the end result. All I do know is, he should have reported it to the police and provided them with a copy.
I've had enough of hearing Pennsylvanians continually bitch about snow and cold temperatures.
I'm loving this winter. We still have time for a few more snow events and I am hoping that they run out of salt.
Sadly, people do dumb and dangerous things in the snow, so I am sorry about the bad things that happen and for when people lose their power or have a freak accident.
But, if we lived in the olden days near the mountains or up in like Minnesota this current time, we'd just think nothing of it at all. Maybe I should move north. I actually did live in Minnesota for a bit as a kid and I have to tell you...I loved it; polka music and all.
I actually want to do a winter in the Antartic. It's like a test of your endurance and it could be very dangerous.
It is kinda like when people say, "Is it hot enough for ya?" when it is in the high 90's and humid.Quote:
I've had enough of hearing Pennsylvanians
continually bitch about snow and cold
temperatures.
All I know is road construction season started here today. They are doing new water mains and sewers in my neighbourhood. .
:smiley36: Yeah.Quote:
Originally Posted by craig
I love winter. I love it. I realized today that I welcome spring, just to not hear people bitch about winter so much. Some start in December.
BUT, I try and not bitch about any season. It seems that PA is at the perfect place to experience every season to its fullest.