A few photos during the icy week here in Texas...

I started off the week on Monday heading into Dallas and onto Fletcher, OK to pick up a load. Got up Monday morning here in Sulphur Springs to find everything covered in ice, including I-30. I was empty so I was keeping the speed to around 25 or so, same as just about everyone around me. At one point, though, a bus full of passengers comes flying past everyone. Not exactly doing 70, but probably more along the lines of 50mph. A little later traffic came to a halt. I sat for about 45 minutes. Once I got going what do you think I saw:



Along the same stretch alot of drivers were taking to the service road to get around the backup. Here's a shot of a FedEx rig trying to make it up a small hill, but having no luck. He was traveling way too slow and couldn't get any traction. The UPS truck was trying to go around him until a sand truck got in the way.



These shots are along I-20 between Sweetwater and Abilene on Wednesday. I picked up a load in Shreveport, LA the previous day and headed west along 20 that night. Got off in Abilene and headed south from there, but the roads were fine. I guess they got a bit worse later in the night.

 

Great photos. I'm happy to say I missed the weather in Texas. It was raining on Sunday when we left. We did get shut down in OKC later that night. We took off the next morning and once outside of OKC the roads cleared. We had great weather Monday through Thursday night. It rained all day as we drove from AZ to Belton, TX. From El Paso to thirty minutes past the I10/I20 split it was below freezing, the roads were OK. At Junction we hit the fog.

 

Just got to reading through Steve Booth's thread in the O/O forum and noticed the same car hauler! Treacherous driving to say the least.

 

I did the safe thing and shut down, I sat for two days, was worth it.. Sat in Austin Texas.

 

You're absolutely right. Maybe you have enough experience where you can handle these kind of conditions. I know I can. I know my limits.

Problem is, it seems a lot of "southerners" don't know how to drive worth shit on snow, let alone ice. I've seen a lot of accidents up here, and a lot of idiots going full speed on black ice. They usually come on the radio "damn penner why you going so doggone slow" or something to that effect. They clue in pretty quick!

Not a knock on southerners btw.

 

I don't necessarily see this as an issue of what an experienced driver can handle safely. If the people you share the road with can not handle it, you are still screwed!!

 

So true! Defensive driving isn't very easy on ice, much less snow. :wink:

 

Hey nrvsreck, looks like we were in the same place. I saw the same wrecks as you. Pretty dicey out there that weekend.

 

Yeah, I couldn't believe all the carnage. When I used to travel up north I never saw any of that. I don't know if it's just the inexperience of us Southerners or if it's TXDOT just not being properly prepared or trained for our occasional ice storms.