WINTER DRIVING, AND LIVE TO TELL ABOUT IT

Our recent series of winter storms proved the obvious once again: snow and ice makes for tricky driving. On my short drive home during the storm the other night, I saw a tractor trailer jack knifed into a snow bank, a car down an embankment and another car stuck in a snow drift. These drivers proved that snow and ice are slippery, and driving on them requires special driving techniques. Obviously! If it’s so obvious, then why do drivers feel the need to test these physical limits regularly, much to the delight of tow trucks and body shops throughout the area? Winter driving is not impossible. It just requires some discipline and a little common sense.

The first rule: SLOW DOWN! Obvious, but how many tractor trailers or SUVs have whizzed by you on the Turnpike, only to end up off the road a few miles later? Think about it, tires are rubber and so are hockey pucks. The difference between your car navigating safely and sliding across a winter road like a puck is the traction gained from the tread of the tire. The slower the vehicle travels, the more chance the tire has to disperse snow or moisture out of its tread, and grab for more. If the tread does not clear whatever form of moisture, it’s just rubber floating on the surface. Your tire is now a hockey puck with no traction. Slow down and let the tread work for you.

As you start out on a winter’s day, begin slowly to get a feel of the road conditions; to learn what the appropriate, safe speed may be. Winter driving experts advise drivers to double their distance to other cars, as compared to dry conditions; that’s two car lengths for each 10 mph. Also, keep alert, looking ahead for changes in road surfaces and conditions. Always look for an out in case of a collision or a slide. If you do need to stop quickly, remember not to pump your ABS brakes. Allow them to work as designed by applying steady, firm pressure. While ABS brakes and stability control are handy inventions, they don’t replace common sense when things get slick. Slow down and stay alert.

When driving in the winter, beware of the false confidence of 4 wheel drive. 4x4 can help you get out of a jam, but it can also put you in one. 4 wheel drive only helps if a drive wheel is slipping, like if you are stuck in a drift. Once your vehicle is underway, traction is a factor of tires, not how the wheels are being driven. A state trooper was interviewed during our last storm, and he said that nearly all of the rescues for that storm were a result of SUVs going too fast. His comment, the braking ability and stopping distance of vehicles are the same, regardless of rear wheel drive, front wheel dive or 4x4. Need proof? A friend’s 4x4 SUV slid through a red light during that storm because the tires were on ice. 4x4 did nothing to help him. The fact that he was driving slowly is what saved him.

Final bit of advice: prepare your car properly for driving. Clean the snow and ice off of the entire vehicle, not just a peep hole through the windshield. You don’t need a chunk of snow sliding from your roof to your windshield, obscuring your vision as you brake to a stop. Meanwhile, the car behind you doesn’t need a huge boulder of snow flying off your car and into his. Defrost your windshield and windows fully before your drive, to ensure that you can see around all 360 degrees of the vehicle. It’s hard enough to see when driving in rain, sleet and/or snow; you don’t need to add to the danger by peering through a peephole.

As proud Mainers, we know that snow is a fact of life. With a little common sense and discipline, drivers can stay safe all winter long.