Today I am in the Northwest corner if Missouri heading toward the lower southeast corner of Iowa. Winter storm warnings are numerous and the outlook is not pretty for the coming week. According to NPR:
http://www.npr.org/2011/01/31/133375046/monster-storm-prediction-has-midwest-freaking-out?ps=cprs
When Driving on Snow and ice, the things to remember are:
1. Speed kills... Do not drive too fast for the road conditions, slow down and be gentle with braking.
2. No push, no pull, no slide... if you maintain even rpms with minimal accelerating and minimal braking the risk of sliding on slick roads is dramatically reduced.
3. If you have to stop to put chains on your tires, then it is time to simply get off the road and wait it out. Even with chains the risk of sliding is still present. For that matter, just because you chain your tires does not necessarily mean that others are doing similarly.
4. Extend the length of your following distance. If the car in front of you stops suddenly, will you be able to stop without hitting them or someone else because you sent yourself into a slide?
5. If you do not have to be out on the roads, then do not drive. Better safe than sorry.
Winter weather is no laughing matter when it comes to driving. People every year lose their lives (or sometimes just limbs) in traffic accidents that could have been prevented with simple measures of common sense, common road courtesy, and most importantly Patience, behind the wheel!
Be safe out there in the world people, and please drive safely whether it is winter or summer.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Just a thought...
Driving all day gives one time... time to see the scenery and admire its beauty. Time to contemplate things. Time to plan things. When I am out on the open road, many things come to my mind. Some of those things stay and linger, others disappear as quickly as they came.
Today, I am driving through Kansas... it is flat and windy and generally speaking, a rather boring and uneventful drive. This got me to thinking about other places I have driven. Virginia, for example, with its incredible landscapes and scenic views off mountain roads. I must admit, though, that wide open places like Kansas give one a feeling of freedom, but not on the scale that one gets in Arizona. I love the interstate 40 run through Arizona for that reason primarily. Most people might be thinking "...it...it's Dessert though! What is so exciting about that?" If you have never driven it, then you will never know. The dessert is peaceful and serene with wide open skies where every star is visible for as far as the eyes can see at night. Regarding that incredible feeling of freedom, the dessert is expansive, and if one were to leave the road, no one would ever find you again... especially if you did not learn how to survive in a dessert environment. If, however, you did learn dessert survival, it is the ideal "hiding place" to get away from the troubles of modern society.
I have noticed that most people drive as fast as they can to get from place to place. Sadly they miss the beauty of the scenery as tunnel vision between the lines on the road takes hold of them. Perhaps if more people took the time to notice the beauty of this country that we call home, there might be a more a concerted effort to stop polluting it and poisoning ourselves in the process...
Today, I am driving through Kansas... it is flat and windy and generally speaking, a rather boring and uneventful drive. This got me to thinking about other places I have driven. Virginia, for example, with its incredible landscapes and scenic views off mountain roads. I must admit, though, that wide open places like Kansas give one a feeling of freedom, but not on the scale that one gets in Arizona. I love the interstate 40 run through Arizona for that reason primarily. Most people might be thinking "...it...it's Dessert though! What is so exciting about that?" If you have never driven it, then you will never know. The dessert is peaceful and serene with wide open skies where every star is visible for as far as the eyes can see at night. Regarding that incredible feeling of freedom, the dessert is expansive, and if one were to leave the road, no one would ever find you again... especially if you did not learn how to survive in a dessert environment. If, however, you did learn dessert survival, it is the ideal "hiding place" to get away from the troubles of modern society.
I have noticed that most people drive as fast as they can to get from place to place. Sadly they miss the beauty of the scenery as tunnel vision between the lines on the road takes hold of them. Perhaps if more people took the time to notice the beauty of this country that we call home, there might be a more a concerted effort to stop polluting it and poisoning ourselves in the process...
Saturday, January 29, 2011
My first year driving a truck... a few observations
In July of 2010 I decided to change careers after 23 years in the restaurant industry. Most people might say I became "a trucker", but "a trucker" I am not. I have met truckers by the dozens since changing careers. They are definitely a breed apart. I like to think of myself as a freight transport and relocation specialist... I happen to drive a truck to do that.
The past several months has indeed been interesting, to say the least. I have seen more of the United States in just under a year than most people see looking at a map. I must say, every city is virtually the same: the same restaurants, the same shops, the same traffic, et cetera. Another thing that is consistent is that the vast majority of drivers... drivers of cars that is... do not seem to understand a few basic things, which I will outline here:
1. There is a difference between "being licensed to drive" versus "knowing how to drive".
2. Eight-teen wheeled trucks, contrary to popular belief, CANNOT stop on a dime. Did you know that at 50 miles an hour on dry roads it will still require the length of three football fields to stop a truck and fully loaded trailer?
3. If you cut a truck off when changing lanes you will, I promise, blip-blap severely under the front of the truck and you will be sucked off the pavement with wet-dry vacuums when the police and EMS are cleaning up the accident site. It will most likely be the last mistake you might ever make.
4. If you are going to pass a truck, THEN PASS, please do not hover right next to the truck, it is the absolute least safest place for a car to be if something bad were to happen.
5. If a truck is signaling to change lanes, please understand one thing specifically: The turn signal is INTENTION, and most definitely NOT simply a "request".
6. The common mistake most drivers of cars make is thinking only of getting to their own "point B"... without a single concern for the other drivers around them or the journey between "A" and "B".
7. The average driver will always try to blame the truck driver for any accident or near miss... but they fail to realize that, at least from my current set of experiences over the past year, ninety percent of the time it is the drivers of cars that create the hazards that cause accidents (please see numbers 1-6).
The past several months has indeed been interesting, to say the least. I have seen more of the United States in just under a year than most people see looking at a map. I must say, every city is virtually the same: the same restaurants, the same shops, the same traffic, et cetera. Another thing that is consistent is that the vast majority of drivers... drivers of cars that is... do not seem to understand a few basic things, which I will outline here:
1. There is a difference between "being licensed to drive" versus "knowing how to drive".
2. Eight-teen wheeled trucks, contrary to popular belief, CANNOT stop on a dime. Did you know that at 50 miles an hour on dry roads it will still require the length of three football fields to stop a truck and fully loaded trailer?
3. If you cut a truck off when changing lanes you will, I promise, blip-blap severely under the front of the truck and you will be sucked off the pavement with wet-dry vacuums when the police and EMS are cleaning up the accident site. It will most likely be the last mistake you might ever make.
4. If you are going to pass a truck, THEN PASS, please do not hover right next to the truck, it is the absolute least safest place for a car to be if something bad were to happen.
5. If a truck is signaling to change lanes, please understand one thing specifically: The turn signal is INTENTION, and most definitely NOT simply a "request".
6. The common mistake most drivers of cars make is thinking only of getting to their own "point B"... without a single concern for the other drivers around them or the journey between "A" and "B".
7. The average driver will always try to blame the truck driver for any accident or near miss... but they fail to realize that, at least from my current set of experiences over the past year, ninety percent of the time it is the drivers of cars that create the hazards that cause accidents (please see numbers 1-6).
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