The doom and gloom media is predicting a "major snow event" for St. Louis...



Before the "catastrophic event" pic:



Stay tuned for the "after" pic:

We are all DOOMED (mostly because MODoT is awful).

Kind of like a "major award"???

I remember going to school in 5-8” of snow; nowadays they cancel school if snow is just predicted. What have we become?

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
I remember going to school in 5-8” of snow; nowadays they cancel school if snow is just predicted. What have we become?

Ditto, and we walked to school.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
I remember going to school in 5-8” of snow; nowadays they cancel school if snow is just predicted. What have we become?

Cancel around me if it gets single digit temps.
I remember standing out waiting for the bus when it was nasty cold.
Empty nest now though so I don't really have to worry about it anymore.

This popped up in my FB feed:

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
This popped up in my FB feed:

Hahahahaha, that's good.
We had Snowmageddon last Winter in N.E. Ohio and it kinda lived up to it. 12-14 inches of snow around me and things sucked for a few days.

My dogs and I aren't too concerned...



After all we are prepared...



A friend loaned me two Rock Island Auction catalogs to drool over so plenty of eye candy to look at, a fire to stay warm, and bourbon and/or beer for later today.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
What have we become?

For one thing, populations and population densities have increased steadily in this country for the last 70+ years. When more people (cars) use the same roads that have been in existence for that period, when events like snowfalls occur that complicates matters. When I moved to Denver in 1986 from the Washington, DC, area, and in the midst of an economic downturn that had commercial property owners paying tenants to stay, I actually laughed when the locals complained about the traffic. I don’t do that any more.

In addition, the number of motor vehicles per capita has increased. When I was a kid, two-car families were very rare because it was not common for wives to work outside the home. And even when two cars aren’t an economic necessity, people are generally richer today and can afford cars for everyone who can drive—including children who almost never had cars in my youth. All those extra people and cars make traffic more congested, and when it snows, and no matter where, that will make life more difficult than it would have been 70 years ago. Keep in mind as well that as traffic congestion increases, drivers become more frustrated and take out their frustrations by driving more aggressively and dangerously.

As for why few students walk to school, it’s because their parents can, and are willing to, drive them. Part of that is due to modern paranoia about everything from the fear of kidnaping to being accused of child neglect, but the other part is because, again, Americans are rich enough to afford to drive their children to school.

^^^
I’ll go a bit further and suggest that drivers these days are more often than not, clueless to how to drive in changing conditions. 4WD does not help brake any better than 2WD. Speed+Snow/ice= bad.

quote:

4WD does not help brake any better than 2WD. Speed+Snow/ice= bad.

Yes it does. Helps braking, helps steering, helps going. Everything about 4wd is superior to 2wd in snow. The proper tires make the biggest difference, but all other things being equal 4wd wins in every category when it comes to winter driving.

So we should start with tires. If you do not have the proper tires you probably shouldn’t be out in the snow absent an emergency.

quote:

Originally posted by a1abdj:

quote:

4WD does not help brake any better than 2WD. Speed+Snow/ice= bad.

Yes it does. Helps braking, helps steering, helps going. Everything about 4wd is superior to 2wd in snow. The proper tires make the biggest difference, but all other things being equal 4wd wins in every category when it comes to winter driving.

So we should start with tires. If you do not have the proper tires you probably shouldn’t be out in the snow absent an emergency.

I think you misunderstood me. Clearly 4WD is better for driving, and when allowing the vehicle to compression brake, but when people drive faster because “they’ve got 4WD” and mash the brakes it does not do additional good. And from personal experience in patrol, I’ve seen just as many 4WD vehicles in wrecks as passenger cars without it. Perhaps before tires and 4WD, we should begin with experience. I remember driving a 68 Torino convertible in 6” with no issues.

It’s in the low 80’s here today but by tomorrow we may see the 30’s. I miss snow only on Christmas, other than that I’m fine without it.

Already a 13 car pileup that has 70 closed.....that didn’t take long.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
This popped up in my FB feed:

More than a grain of truth to that. I often tell people to believe it when you’re scraping it off your windshield.

That's beautiful. It would qualify as "a pain in the butt" if (in one snowfall) it reached halfway to the opening of the oven, because I'd have to shovel it. No kids around to do that anymore; they have their own drives and sidwalks to shovel. "Ugly" would be if it actually reached the opening to the oven. That's the view from adulthood.

When I was 10, though, I would have seen 16" of snow as great.

quote:

Originally posted by h2oys:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
I remember going to school in 5-8” of snow; nowadays they cancel school if snow is just predicted. What have we become?

Ditto, and we walked to school.

And uphill, both ways, and barefoot too.

quote:

Originally posted by 2BobTanner:

quote:

Originally posted by h2oys:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
I remember going to school in 5-8” of snow; nowadays they cancel school if snow is just predicted. What have we become?

Ditto, and we walked to school.

And uphill, both ways, and barefoot too.

Wrong. I had on shoes and it was pretty level both ways