a precautionary tale
So I sent off an email this morning to my coworkers that may be worth repeating here:
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Executive summary:
- Hondas: great in the summer, not so great in the snow
- Despite popular belief, extra weight in the car does not make it easier to drive up the hill
- It does, however, make it easier to slide down one
- Stan is working from home
I thought I'd share my experience this morning for you, in case you decide to brave the elements. After talking to Sarah [my coworker] the other day, I became convinced that part of the reason my car was having so much trouble on a snowy hill during the last storm was because it was too light... so I loaded a couple of cinder blocks where the front seat once was (what a convenient place to put them!) and set on my way. My street is on a bit of a slope: I'm in the middle, the dead-end is about 50 yards downhill, and the main street is about 200 yards uphill.
When I tried pulling out onto the street, things did not go all that well. Instead of taking a right turn and going up, my car decided to slide sideways to the left. I struggled with it for a few minutes, then decided to try it without the cinderblocks - so I put the parking brake on, and went to the passenger side door.
Maybe my heft was holding it in place, or maybe my car wanted to go sledding, but it started moving downhill on its own. In a move I've picked up from bad comedy movies, I had to chase it down, open the door, and jump in - just in time for it to hit the snow bank at the bottom of the street.
Yay.
Luckily, a snow plow came in a few minutes, and stopped right next to my driveway after seeing a Honda imprinted in the snow bank below. The driver didn't want to risk hitting my car, 'cause she was sliding all over the road herself. She tried backing up, then turning around, but ended up being stuck in the middle of the road, after sliding a few yards in the direction of my car.
Yay x2.
A huuge sand truck came shortly and rescued the plow truck, but I was left to my own devices. It took me a good ten minutes to make it back to my driveway... so I guess the moral of the story is, stay warm and drive safe, but only if you have to!
-----
What I did not mention was that the plow truck driver was either really frustrated or had a really foul mouth - even though the truck was a good distance away, I distinctly heard some words that should not be repeated in print. Good times!
-----
Executive summary:
- Hondas: great in the summer, not so great in the snow
- Despite popular belief, extra weight in the car does not make it easier to drive up the hill
- It does, however, make it easier to slide down one
- Stan is working from home
I thought I'd share my experience this morning for you, in case you decide to brave the elements. After talking to Sarah [my coworker] the other day, I became convinced that part of the reason my car was having so much trouble on a snowy hill during the last storm was because it was too light... so I loaded a couple of cinder blocks where the front seat once was (what a convenient place to put them!) and set on my way. My street is on a bit of a slope: I'm in the middle, the dead-end is about 50 yards downhill, and the main street is about 200 yards uphill.
When I tried pulling out onto the street, things did not go all that well. Instead of taking a right turn and going up, my car decided to slide sideways to the left. I struggled with it for a few minutes, then decided to try it without the cinderblocks - so I put the parking brake on, and went to the passenger side door.
Maybe my heft was holding it in place, or maybe my car wanted to go sledding, but it started moving downhill on its own. In a move I've picked up from bad comedy movies, I had to chase it down, open the door, and jump in - just in time for it to hit the snow bank at the bottom of the street.
Yay.
Luckily, a snow plow came in a few minutes, and stopped right next to my driveway after seeing a Honda imprinted in the snow bank below. The driver didn't want to risk hitting my car, 'cause she was sliding all over the road herself. She tried backing up, then turning around, but ended up being stuck in the middle of the road, after sliding a few yards in the direction of my car.
Yay x2.
A huuge sand truck came shortly and rescued the plow truck, but I was left to my own devices. It took me a good ten minutes to make it back to my driveway... so I guess the moral of the story is, stay warm and drive safe, but only if you have to!
-----
What I did not mention was that the plow truck driver was either really frustrated or had a really foul mouth - even though the truck was a good distance away, I distinctly heard some words that should not be repeated in print. Good times!
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