An open letter to all idiot drivers in my area

[laborcat]

Dear Idiots that drive on the roads around here,

First of all, really. Turn on your headlights when you're driving in this mess at 5pm. I can't see your winter-dirty silver car in front of me until you hit your brakes. And clean off your back windows, people. How on earth can you drive a car with only that little area cleaned off the front winshield (or the area cleared off by the wipers only)?? Last I checked, not being able to use your mirrors really limits your ability to, I don't know, SEE what's around you. Like me trying to get by that cross street and out of your way before you pull out in front of me.

Second thing. City of Riverside, please, for the love of all that's holy in my life, PLEASE at least clear Linden and Spinning. I understand that you don't want to send trucks into the plats, but at least scrape off those two streets. I have difficulty getting to work without going on either one of those.

And on a personal note, dear Husband of mine, whom I am trying to follow home from work in case he wrecks (and is guilty of both the window thing and the lights), don't run every yellow light and expect me to stay right behind you. Jerk.

Sincerely,

Someone who knows how to drive in snow

P.S. To the woman who spun around in front of me right in front of my workplace on Wednesday, I hope you're all right. Good thing that curb stopped you from rolling into the ditch, because that one's pretty deep.

[Geek King]

Second thing. City of Riverside, please, for the love of all that's holy in my life, PLEASE at least clear Linden and Spinning. I understand that you don't want to send trucks into the plats, but at least scrape off those two streets. I have difficulty getting to work without going on either one of those.

Heh, I'd settle for them scraping the turn lanes. Kind of silly for them to scrape the straights, but leave the turn lanes at the lights untouched. I usually hit the Burger King near Lindon and Woodman for breakfast, but that's a bad intersection to not get any traction.

[laborcat]

Heh, I'd settle for them scraping the turn lanes. Kind of silly for them to scrape the straights, but leave the turn lanes at the lights untouched. I usually hit the Burger King near Lindon and Woodman for breakfast, but that's a bad intersection to not get any traction.

I go there for breakfast once in a while! It's one of the better BKs I have gone to. I hate that intersection even when there is no ice and snow, in the afternoons during rush hour when the bad timing of the lights causes that weird gridlock.

[BookstoreEscapee]

Heh, I'd settle for them scraping the turn lanes. Kind of silly for them to scrape the straights, but leave the turn lanes at the lights untouched. I usually hit the Burger King near Lindon and Woodman for breakfast, but that's a bad intersection to not get any traction.

After the big snow at Christmas, the little road between the road my apartment is on and the highway I take to get to work had no left turn lane (normally it's left, straight, and right turns, plus one lane in the other direction) because there was so much snow on the other direction's lane that they were using the left turn lane to come across. So I had to make a left from the straight lane. Good thing I realized it before I started to actually get into the turn lane. And a lot of places had only half of a right turn lane.

On a side note, not cleaning off your car sufficiently is illegal around here. Don't know how often they actually give out tickets for it, though. Mostly I just see people who don't bother to clean off the roof, though. So I end up getting sprayed with snow as they drive or dodging chunks when it breaks up and falls off into the road.

[greek_jester]

Mostly I just see people who don't bother to clean off the roof, though. So I end up getting sprayed with snow as they drive or dodging chunks when it breaks up and falls off into the road.

Um, that's possibly me. I'm only 4' 10.5", so I can't reach the roof of the car. I do clean off as much as I can reach, but I usually end up driving off with a snow Mohawk on the roof

[Mikkel]

I usually save the old wipers, when I change them, for just that snowy Mohawk.

[Chromatix]

Perhaps you need a brush with a longer handle? Still, it's better than leaving it all there.

[mattm04]

I really don't know what people have such difficulty turning on their lights in bad weather of any kind, but snow and fog seem to be the worst.

I guess they somehow haven't learned that in those conditions you use low beams not high beams. Idiots.

[greek_jester]

Perhaps you need a brush with a longer handle? Still, it's better than leaving it all there.

I live in the South East of England - it's only in the last year or so that snow has settled enough to need more than a carrier bag over your fore-arm to clear the bulk of it. Snow hasn't really settled over the last decade or so. If it happens again, I may have to invest in a brush after all.

[PepperElf]

Lights: I like to do what my parents do... Although my car has daytime running lights and, if dark enough, the headlights come on anyway... I like to turn the headlights on anyway. Then I don't have to worry.

Windows. OMG sounds like Buffalo drivers. Seriously. Most of them seem to like carting snow around on the top and, barely clean off the windows. Me, sometimes I'm guilty of the back window but I try to clean it all off. Including the roof, headlights, tail lights, and license plate. Why should I spend more gas money just to cart around snow?

someone who knows how to drive in snow

ROFL. same here.
now that i'm in the lower end of kentucky i send my family messages like "My BF's job was closed for the day - they had 3 inches of snow" just to see them laugh.

[blas]

I have an extender on my scraper, I usually dust the top of the car off with that.

Otherwise I just hope someone taller than me is walking past and won't mind doing it for me.

[Shalom]

now that i'm in the lower end of kentucky i send my family messages like "My BF's job was closed for the day - they had 3 inches of snow" just to see them laugh.

We got maybe three inches this past Friday.

My son's nursery school got canceled. Bunch of wooses we got here. We ex-Buffalonians don't even notice that much on the ground...

[nicolecj]

Um, that's possibly me. I'm only 4' 10.5", so I can't reach the roof of the car. I do clean off as much as I can reach, but I usually end up driving off with a snow Mohawk on the roof

I have a real suggestion - there is something out there called a 'snow broom.' I have two.

It is basically a big rectangle of squeegee type plastic at the end of a broom handle. It is used at car dealerships to clear off all the cars. It doesn't wreck the paint and clears all the surfaces quickly and without having to get too close to the flying snow.

Here is a link to one such product:
http://http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000...SIN=B0007LDXLA