The telltale drift of your car accompanies the sickening feeling in your stomach as you realize you have no steering control. You steer in the direction of the skid, but it has no effect. Seemingly in slow motion, your car turns sideways until the front end finds traction on the shoulder edge and suddenly, you're spinning out of control, helpless. The back end swings around, off the road and with a violent shudder and spray of snow, your car comes to a halt. Heart pounding, it takes you three minutes to calm down enough to dial 911 on your cell phone.
Even as you sit there and wait for help, a victim of barely freezing temperatures, cars whiz by, oblivious to the danger that separates their tires from the roadway.
I have driven the Upper Midwest for more than thirty years. Driving in snow, ice and rain means driving with reduced traction. Whether driving in snow, on ice or in the rain, there are three adjustments you can make that will save your life.
The Big Three Rules
* Slow down.
* Increase stopping distance.
* Don't rush.
It's going to take longer to get where you're going, that can't be helped. Better to arrive safe and late than to end up in a pine box.
Be Prepared
* In the winter, keep your gas tank full, your washer fluid full and install new wipers. Remove frost, snow or ice from windows before starting out and don't forget the mirrors, headlights and taillights.
* Good tires and good brakes are essential for safe driving under any conditions. Make sure your car is well equipped with the right tires for winter driving and they are properly inflated. Tires often lose air pressure when the temperatures drop. Check your tire pressure to make sure it is correct.
* Winter emergency supplies include blankets, candles and matches, snacks, a shovel, kitty litter, a clean metal can and flares. In the mountains, don't forget your chains.
* Check the weather before you leave. Be aware of weather alerts and possible changing conditions.
Black Ice?
It has been snowing, the temperature has hovered at 32 F or 0 C and traffic has been moving along briskly. The road, what little you can see in the tire tracks, appears dark and wet with a dull shine to it. Slow down right now! Ease your foot off the gas and let the car slow gently. At less than 20 MPH, you can test the road by lightly depressing the brake. Four-wheel drive, all-wheel drive, two-wheel drive, it doesn't matter; black ice is a killer that lurks between your tires and the road and it will kill you faster than you can imagine.
If traffic is heavy, go sit it out in a coffee shop with your favorite brew.
Snow
Driving in a snowstorm can be hazardous, but you will have better traction and four-wheel/all-wheel drive will help considerably. Slow down and take your time. Double the distance between you and the next car to allow yourself room to stop.
Rain
Rain presents hazardous conditions for different reasons. Shortly after rain begins to fall, oils embedded in the roadway float to the surface, making the road as slick as ice and the same rules apply. Slow down and give yourself extra room to stop. On the highway, hydroplaning is possible. The combination of speed and water may cause your tires to leave the road and ride on a thin dam of water resulting in loss of steering control. Slowing down avoids this hazard. If you sense you have lost your steering due to hydroplaning, ease up gently on the gas, decreasing speed gradually until you have regained control.
I've seen too many accidents caused by people who were just in a hurry. They didn't slow down. They tailgated. They spun out of control and crashed, sometimes taking one or more cars with them. Every year, Snow, Ice and Rain take lives that could be saved just by slowing down and leaving extra room to stop.
Don't be the next car I see rolled over in the ditch.