Black Ice Tour

[babyfett]

Took me almost 2 hours to get home from work today due to black ice from freezing rain here in metro Atlanta. Got stuck in a major traffic jam and did not move for nearly 30 mins so I turned around and took the back roads to get home. My car slid a few time but I managed the drive going very slow.

[Dougie]

It amazes me how many people that don't know, or have not learned, how to drive in the snow and ice. I know some people grow up where there it never snows. I'm talking about the people that grow up in those areas and still don't know. My hometown gets snow for several months during the year. It's built on the side of a hill. If you don't learn to drive on ice you don't make it home.

Glad you made it home without incident.

[babyfett]

I kept the car on the road. Just fish tailed ever so slightly a few times. The bad part was the other idiots who seemed to be in a hurry to meet Jesus. I bet most of them where from the north thinking they can drive on ice because they can on snow. Wrong, with snow you have some traction. With black ice virtually none except for your cars momentum.

[Dougie]

That is very true will all ice. Black ice you wouldn't know you were on until you slide. That is why it's called black ice. I have had to drive on ice, snow, mud, snow on mud, wet clay, snow on wet clay, snow on ice, black ice, etc. Bare ice and black ice are the worst. Black ice is bad because you will start to slide and not know why because you can't see it. Bare ice you can see before you slide. A small amount of snow improves traction on bare ice. No snow and you have a big skating rink. Happy sliding.

[Little Faerie]

Snow that has been packed on roadways after plows failed to scrape down to the asphalt is just as bad as ice. You literally have no traction, only you think you do because your eyes see what appears to be snow, only the pressure from the plow mixed with the salt and lowering temperatures turns it into a dull white frictionless glaze. I spun my car off the road backwards into the opposing ditch one winter coming off a curve because of that, and I know how to drive on the stuff and had appropriate tire gear. My girlfriend at the time also spun her truck off a different part of that road just a few hours before me (only I didn't know because she was at work). I was taught from the beginning how to drive in winter, when I was learning for my license we had a snow/ice storm... That's one way to get experience lol! Thankfully nobody was hurt in either accident, just a bit of dignity. We both slid into snowbanks, I had a minor ding from a fencepost. My kid was around 2 years old and thought it was a fun ride. I'm going "oh crap! Here we go... hang on baby!" while the car is completely unresponsive to any maneuvers to gain control, and she's in the back in her carseat going "Whee!!!" and giggling her head off.

Point, winter weather can really suck to drive on... knowing what you're doing it can be bad enough... when the roadways are packed with people who haven't a clue, or think they do but they're really wrong, it really really sucks!

[Bettypooh]

Warning: People in upstate SC can't drive safely in the rain Snow or ice? Forget it And it's not because we never get snow or ice- it's because they don't screen out total idiots before issuing driving licenses We get a lot of 'transplants' from northern states who get into trouble in the snow here because they don't realize that snow here is denser and wetter and a lot slicker than what they're used to from 'back home' We try not to laugh too hard when these self-proclaimed 'expert drivers' need Bubba to pull them out of the ditch After a couple days of icy weather it's safe to drive here 'cause the idiot's cars are all in the parking lot of the body shop Over 150 accidents here in the last several hours and getting worse

Y'all drive safe- I'm waiting till this one thaws out!

Bettypooh

[LILJIM]

Dad taught my brothers & I to drive. His rules 1 Watch out for the idiots on the road (Rule two for driving in snow & ice ) 2a Slow down 2b Remember rule 1....

[rusty pins]

Been there and done that! 3 hours commute home, especially when they close off parts of the interstate due to ice or an accident. I drive a 4-wheel drive vehical and even with that I slow down while people in 2 wheel drive cars are trying to zip around me all the time. I laugh 2 miles down the road when I see them spun out in the ditch! Only problme is, they might take someone with them when they crash! It's true that some people from sothern states don't have any idea on how to drive safely on snow and ice, but it dosn't take much to realize you can't go 70 mph on ice, especially when you see everyone else going 30 mph! Just like so many other areas of people's lives today. They just lack any common sense!

[AutieAB]

I had some <expletive deleted> heads wanting to meet their maker and take me with them last night. I was slowly and carefully creeping up a steep and icy hill in low gear, moving at about 15 when some really intelligent prat in a huge truck decided that the best way to get up it was to take as big a run up as possible... Fortunately there was no ice behind me, it seems so he could slow down before I became his new hood ornament

For the most part though, everybody was being very well behaved and keeping it nice and slow.

[Bettypooh]

Please be advised that due to icy road conditions, common sense has been canceled for the present and foreseeable future. Please stay tuned to DailyDiapers for the latest information

Bettypooh

[LuvsGurl]

It amazes me how many people that don't know, or have not learned, how to drive in the snow and ice. I know some people grow up where there it never snows. I'm talking about the people that grow up in those areas and still don't know. My hometown gets snow for several months during the year. It's built on the side of a hill. If you don't learn to drive on ice you don't make it home.

Glad you made it home without incident.

As a person who has dealt with ice and snow for a number of years I can say one thing. You CAN'T drive on ice. 4x4, AWD, winter tires, it doesn't matter. Tires on ice slip, period.

On the other hand, driving on snow isn't bad as long as you can keep your momentum going and don't try any rapid direction changes. 4x4 or AWD will help you go and help you turn, but it won't help you stop. A lot of people forget this simple fact and end up in a wreck or in the ditch.

[belinda_sue_fox]

I take it your helicopters were grounded due to the weather. Ice on roads take your helicopter, it's obvious.

[Little Faerie]

Warning: People in upstate SC can't drive safely in the rain Snow or ice? Forget it And it's not because we never get snow or ice- it's because they don't screen out total idiots before issuing driving licenses We get a lot of 'transplants' from northern states who get into trouble in the snow here because they don't realize that snow here is denser and wetter and a lot slicker than what they're used to from 'back home' We try not to laugh too hard when these self-proclaimed 'expert drivers' need Bubba to pull them out of the ditch After a couple days of icy weather it's safe to drive here 'cause the idiot's cars are all in the parking lot of the body shop Over 150 accidents here in the last several hours and getting worse

Y'all drive safe- I'm waiting till this one thaws out!

Bettypooh

Very, very true. I've known a lot of people who think they can drive on the stuff and can't. I'm from mid Missouri, when I lived there we used to get some of the nastiest winter weather... it runs from bitter cold with an inch of solid ice to nothing but mushy slushy snow and everything in between. The snow often has hidden ice underneath too. All the out-of-towners would end up in the ditch within a day. My ex husband used to get calls to help pull people out of the ditch every winter. Ironically, he pulled me out of the ditch that one time I did slide off. We lived in a rural area... you were lucky if the plows had made it, the tow trucks certainly weren't coming out in that to get you. People depended on locals who had trucks to get their sorry city-slicker butts out. Stay safe Bettypooh... and the rest of you too! Watch out for the idiots in your area!

[drynot]

It continually surprises me when people think they can drive normally in inclement weather. It always seems to be ( in my neck of the woods anyway) big, jacked up 4x4's on huge mudder tires blowing by me without a care in the world. I see those guys buried in the rhubarb on a regular basis. It also amazes me how many vehicles I see in the ditch on perfectly flat, straight roadways....

I've been in the ditch a couple of times myself. Usually right after I've done something stupid like driven too fast for conditions or not paying attention. I learned my lesson long ago and now I take my time, outfit my vehicles with proper tires, and enjoy the drive.