Date:         Thu, 1 Dec 2005 19:10:53 -0500
Reply-To:     Kim Brennan <kimbrennan@MAC.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Kim Brennan <kimbrennan@MAC.COM>
Subject:      Re: sucks in snow!
In-Reply-To:  <438F8AF0.6030502@charter.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed

I'll toss in one minor caveat that has not been addressed.

Driver education.

Down here in the Washington DC area, folks simply are never trained on
how to drive in the snow. The result is people spinning wheels, and
crashing all over the place. While I'm a native of DC, all the rest of
my family is from Illinois, so I was trained on how to drive in the
snow (and I like driving in it...as long as I don't have to deal with
the idiots who don't know how to drive in it).

Snow tires can help, but if you know how to drive in the snow, you can
deal with many situations without requiring dedicated snow tires.

So, what are things to know and do?

1) Slow down. When snow is on the ground you need to remember to change
your driving habits. This means you accelerate and decelerate
GRADUALLY. You SLOWLY build up speed (or reduce speed.)  Don't rush it,
or you'll lose traction. Lost traction means, spinning tires, sliding
vehicles and the resulting nastiness those usually cause.

2) Think ahead. Yes, you are going to have to PLAN what you do. You
can't swerve quickly anymore than you can accelerate or brake quickly.
Are there steep roads where you are planning to go? Are there flatter
alternatives? Use them. Anticipate what other drivers are going to do.
Assume the worst (that way you can be pleasantly surprised when it
doesn't happen.)

3) Don't stop. This one is tricky. Depending on the depth of the snow,
one of the key factors that works for (or against) you, is momentum. If
you have a hill to climb don't stop at the bottom (or mid way up) and
expect to make it up. Build up some momentum and let it aid you in
going up the hill. Be aware that snow that lifts up your vehicle from
off the road, is likely too deep to travel in for very far. Vanagons
have a lot of ground clearence and narrow tires. That's a big advantage
they have over other vehicles.

4) Stay in control. This goes hand in hand with the others. You do not
want to be going so fast that you can't stop safely. You want to think
ahead, slow down with your engine, not your brakes, as you come up to
that sharp curve. Getting there safely (but late), is much better than
not getting there at all.

5) Know your limits. Please, stay off the roads if you can't handle the
above, but given the opportunity, find out for your own gratification
what you and your car can and can't do. For instance, one good
technique is to find a large empty (and hopefully unplowed) parking lot
(schools work nicely for this) when the first major snow fall occurs.
Make sure there is plenty of room around you. Then find out what it
takes to spin your wheels. How much braking you can do before your
wheels lock up. How fast can you turn before your vehicle starts to
slide. When you have a good feel for what your car can (and can't) do
in the snow, you'll be better able to apply the other rules and safely
travel through the winter season.

Final thought. Driving in snow is different than driving on ice, or
accumulating sleet. Neither ice nor sleet compact. Snow does and fresh
snow can give you good traction, if you decent tires. With ice or
sleet, you'll have to take more time and be more patient and travel at
slower speeds (unless you have studs).