Arghhh! Snow!

[Lace Neil Singer]

It's about five inches deep here, and I can't get to work! Stupid snow. -.-

[Rapscallion]

Our wagons are mostly fine out there, but we're talking 18 tonne wagons. Fortunately, the council around by us wasn't too surprised at getting snow at christmas, unlike other years, so they've done a moderate amount of work this time. Too much white crap, mind.

Rapscallion

[Lace Neil Singer]

Where I am, the snow ploughs and gritters always bypass the village where I live. And it always receives the bulk of the snow. -.-

[protege]

With the elementary school around the corner from me...my block is *always* clear. No matter how little snow we get, the plows and salt trucks go by constantly. As for the rest of the borough, that's another story. But, the city of Pittsburgh sucks at keeping their streets clear. Every year, the director of public works claims that they "didn't see the storm coming," and then can't understand why his phone goes red from angry citizens

[Lace Neil Singer]

This snow was forecast so there's no excuse. Last time it snowed like this, the council got a bollocking cuz they salted the roads around the council buildings and their staff car park, and didn't touch any other roads. You'd have thought they would have learned their lesson.

[Frantic Freddie]

5 inches? Wimp

Welcome to my neighborhood:

[Lace Neil Singer]

Um, it's like that over here now. I only guessed at five inches, I didn't go out and measure it. Also, I'm sure you don't live in England, the land of non preparation when it comes to snow. -.- Even if two inches falls, the schools are closed, people rush out and buy shitloads of bread and milk, and public transport fails.

[Elspeth]

Lace you just described the Pacific Northwest. I wish I was joking but it happens every freaking year. And these people cannot drive in this weather

[Frantic Freddie]

Um, it's like that over here now. I only guessed at five inches, I didn't go out and measure it. Also, I'm sure you don't live in England, the land of non preparation when it comes to snow. -.- Even if two inches falls, the schools are closed, people rush out and buy shitloads of bread and milk, and public transport fails.

I live in New Mexico at 6800 feet (2072 meters) elevation,but I have friends across the pond & they tell me the same thing.Our storm preps consist of puttin' the chains on & makin' sure we have enough beer & whiskey to make it thru the storm.

Our roads don't get plowed but we're in an unincorporated area so we don't expect it.We just chain up,slap the lever into 4WD & gun it

[Lace Neil Singer]

Come over to England; your skills are needed. XD

[Bardmaiden]

About a foot and half where I live. My b/f is going to be an hour and half late home from work, he thought he may not even get home at one point. He is a train conductor and the trains are breaking down all over the place, the strain on the engines...

I feel really sorry for those guys who get shouted at for something that is completely out of their control.

[Frantic Freddie]

Come over to England; your skills are needed. XD

Gimme some fish & chips,a few of those good Brit beers & I'm there!

Tires make a lot of difference too,your basic street tire's useless in any kind of snow.Since I have to traverse 1.5 miles of bad dirt roads & sometimes have to drive thru the canyon I use all-terrain tires.

Last year we had a LOT of snow & I had to drive about 15 miles thru it a couple of times,never had any problem as I passed numerous people that had gotten themselves stuck (they had people helping them so I didn't stop).

Some advice,carry the following things in your car in case you get stuck:

Blankets (the Mylar Survival blankets aren't any larger than a pack of cigs,so it's easy to carry a few.The military surplus wool blankets are great,cheap & warm,but they take up more space)
A good flashlight (you don't have one already?) with FRESH BATTERIES!!!
Some kind of high protein snack bars,the more fat & sugar the better.I have 2 mil-spec MREs with heaters in each car.
Water.You can carry a canteen like I do or stash small bottles around in your car (look at your spare tire well,you may have extra room in there for stuff)
Here's the one nobody thinks about: TOILET PAPER.You can squish down a roll or just unroll some & put either in a Ziplock bag.

Kitty litter (the cheapest kind,not the clumping stuff) can be used for traction on ice,carry a bag of it.

More advanced stuff would be a shovel (I have 3 East German mil-surp ones,think I paid less than $10 each),a tow strap or chain (only if you know where & how to use it) & tire chains.If you invest in tire chains,practice putting them on BEFORE it snows.Don't ask me how I know this

If you get stuck,unless you're close to home,say a few blocks,STAY WITH THE CAR!!! You've got shelter & unless you run out of gas,warmth (2-4 people in a car will usually keep it above freezing unless you're in the Arctic).Also if they're looking for you it's easier to find your car than your frozen corpse 200 yards away.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Plus if you get desperate, you can always eat the other people in the car, right?

[telecom_goddess]

Wow sounds like England is getting a white everything so far.....I kinda wish I could see it myself. I know firsthand though that snow can be annoying after the first 10 minutes.

[AccountingDrone]

Meh, I grew up in the Buffalo weather belt, sledding out of the attic [3d storey] window on the back of the house.

I regularly carry in the winter:
a sapirka
2 pieces of expanded metal grating
munchies and water - some MRE components, some balance type bars, some jerky, a nice selection to keep me amused for a few days in a pinch. I even have some dried soups, and an old style mess kit and an esbit stove and fuel tabs. i can always melt snow and make soup. Before you get whingy, you do not build a fire in the vehicle, I am quite adept at winter camping and have known how to make a proper igloo since I learned at the age of 8 ... they make great playhouses in the winter. An esbit can make it get up to quite a toasty temp inside, and since there is no door there is ventilation inside. You can clear the snow mostly off the ground and turn pine boughs and a space blanket into quite a nice couch.

Space blankets are great, but I have a navy issue pumpkin suit .... orange arctic survival suit. I can go to sleep in a snow bank in comfort =)