Quote:
Originally Posted by LA90077
So seasoned driver chime in Snow and Ice advice.
Any advice is appreciated.
1. Was watching a youtube video and a driver was spinning his tires in a truck stop. The trucker filming said "He should shift up to a higher gear. That is something they won't teach you in trucking school."
So if I am spinning my tires what gear should I be in?
2. Going down a steep hill in bad weather (rain/snow). To Jake or not to Jake?
3. If I am driving slow and you want to pass should I just stay in my lane and let you pass on the left. Or move over to the shoulder were the road might be a little dicier.
4. When to chain, does anybody chain before they are told to? If I am going over a mountain pass and know I will be running on bad roads. Would you chain at the base of the mountain pass. Or wait until the Highway Petrol tells you too?
And yes experience is the best teacher, just don't want to find out the guard rail can't stop a sliding truck.
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if you are already out and doing your job, and the snow starts, or you run into a snow storm,
best advice is to SLOW DOWN, i do, at the very least 5 to 10 mph below the posted speed limit, and i move over to the far right lane, and if it gets worse, i drive @25 mph, in the far right lane.
i been doing this for just over 35 years now, and have not had any problems. i let the cowboys and billy-big-rigger, zip by me in the left lanes. in fact, many times, i will have several other trucks behind me in the far right lane, and we just all chug along.
of course, a raging blizzard can happen at any time during your run, i always pull over into either a rest area or truck stop if i can to seek "shelter".
i watch the weather reports as well, and if it going to get too bad, i stay home, in fact, my employer CALLS ME and tells me to stay home.
no sense in going out and looking for trouble.
1) i always carry either kitty litter or a mechanics "speedi-dry" in at least a 5 gallon pail for such occasions. when in a truck stop, and there IS already snow on the ground, i do not just park on top of it, what i do is drive forward and backwards in the parking spot, several times. this packs down the snow, for an easier out. that trucker must have parked on fresh snow. what happens here is the all of our tire are warm t0 hot, and this melts the snow, then freezes it later, and causes a driver to now be in an icy rut.
2) frankly even on flat surfaces, i DO NOT use my jake.
what i have been told is that yes, the jake slows down the rig, but the trailer might very well swing out from under you, so it was told to me, just use the brakes without a jake....others can chime in on thier experiences with jakes in bad weather, i just do not use them.
3) STAY IN YOUR LANE...!!!
you may not be able to see any drop off's!!!!!!!!
4) i never chained in my life....
if it is that bad, every company i have ever worked for, said stay home, or park someplace!...others here can chime in on chaining
5) and yes, experience IS the BEST TEACHER....however, what i have been thru and experienced over my 35 + years, will be different from many others, so absorb what you can and you will find what works BEST FOR YOU.
good luck