Quote:
Originally Posted by steiny93
To the question, can one foresee black ice.
100% absolutely
'Black ice' is clear ice, which some people don't notice it's present until its to late.
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Amen!
I always have had trouble with the term "Black Ice". To me it is used by folks who end up in trouble and need a way to make it "Not my fault" because after all it was "Black Ice" that got me and in no way could I have avoided it. In all reality, it's just darn slippery roads that you need to drive appropriately on.
I make my living driving and in 40 years on the road, driving an 18 wheel, 65' long, very light van (1/2 miles empty) in upper midwest winters, I have learned to "read" the road conditions long before I need to react to them. Can't really say how I do it, I guess it's just experience and the feel of the steering and applied power to the ground that are giving you information every second you are moving.
When it get's crazy icy, especially if ANY wind is present, I will take off my right shoe and run the throttle pedal with my big toe. I'm serious! Apply just a minuscule amount of too much power and your drive tires go sideways. Let too much power off the same way, even without any engine brake turned on, and just the engine slowing down will produce the same results.
Someone earlier mentioned having "neutral" power... neither too much acceleration, nor deceleration. There is a very small window in the middle that you need to stay in when conditions like that are present. The scariest thing for me is going down a big grade on ice. I will start off the top of a hill at 20 mph and be up to 50 or 60 before I get to the bottom just because there is no way to slow it down without chaos.
The second scariest thing is what someone is going to do when they get close to me. Car or truck. If something goes wrong for them, it is likely all over for me too. I've had cars pass me, get a blast of wind when they get in front of me and lose control. I've always been lucky to avoid a collision, but had a few close calls.
I feel for you folks down south who are not accustomed to driving in snow and on ice. It is for sure an acquired skill and when you find yourself thrust into it with nowhere to go, you either need to learn fast or get off the road. Sitting conditions like that out somewhere may well save you lost of property, or your life!
Oh... Full disclosure here... I am very comfortable in my semi truck in all kinds of weather conditions. I know how it will react and how to handle it. IF I were pulling my 5'er with my pickup or driving a class A... I would be scared to death and likely pull over and wait it out. I sure don't have the experience hearding that thing down the road in bad conditions. It is parked all winter!