Snow! Am I the only one who has had enough?

[Arry Awk]

uncle mick wrote: http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/lisptic ... lSomething similar Arry? Thanks U mick! sounds the same stuff, under a newtrade name. No wonder it was banned here,if it contained toluene!Ratio: 3 of Nitro, plus 1 of toluene could blow yer sox off!and everything else too! TNT!

[blackprince]

raveydavey wrote: ABS effectively gives you no brakes at all on snow and ice - remember the whole point of an ABS system is that it stops the wheel from "locking up" under braking, thus allowing you to steer around any obstacle in theory.So, unless you have an early 90's Audi (which had a switch on the dash to allow you to turn the ABS off in icy conditions) you press the brake pedal down, the wheel starts to slip on the ice and the ABS releases the braking effort to stop what it thinks is a skid - the result is that you don't stop! Ravey is absolutely correct that on snow and ice surfaces all the electronic wizardry ( ABS, traction control) give you no braking at all. In fact on snow you were better off in the old days when without ABS you could brake and lock the wheel and with a bit of luck it would act like a snow plough and build up a ramp of snow in front of it which would stop you.If you look in your car owners’ manual you will probably find that the manufacturer says you must have winter tyres and snow chains for driving on snow and ice. In the UK the common excuse given for the annual “white hell - end of civilisation as we know it” scenario on the national news , which an inch or two of snow brings about, is that the infrastructure to cope with snow and ice on the roads is too expensive for us to invest in because we experience these conditions so infrequently. Lack of public investment in gritting lorries & snow ploughs may mean that some of our roads will remain blocked for longer than they do in countries which are better prepared for snow and ice- you will not be going anywhere on a road which has 3 ft snow drifts. But what is stopping individuals investing in the equipment they need to drive safely on the cleared roads which may have a light snow or ice covering. Snow chains, costing about £50, seem like a good personal investment. Even if you only use them once every 5 years they could prevent you having to abandon your car (worth thousands) on a slight incline, or worse, risk life and limb in an accident. Of course, to be effective in keeping the traffic moving everybody would have to have them, which means they have to be a legal requirement, as they are in several European countries.        

[Si]

In Alpine countries (where they get several feet of snow at a time, and constant freezing temperatures,) as well as having chains/studded tyres on their vehicles, they also never use salt. The snow plough leaves several inches of snow on the road surface, as snow offers more grip than ice-covered tarmac. If the road becomes clear of snow, or ices over, they shovel fresh snow back on from the drifts at the side of the road.

[Crazy Jane]

At least it mostly seems to have washed away after last night.The other week i escorted my 83 year old neighbour up to the carol service at Burley St Mathias, tbh i'm bloody amazed there's anyone that age left after the winter, he walks with a stick and was skidding like hell, and i kept thinking if he falls either he goes down with me for a softer landing (for him!) or it might be an ambulance job. Really quite hair raising.

[Trojan]

My son in law who served in Germany for many years, says that the authorities there don't clear the roads, cars have by law to have a set of winter tyres as well as normal ones. After a certain date off come the alloy wheels and on go the bog standard black ones with the heavy duty winter tyres. Areas where snow gets really bad, you must have tyre chains by law. Temperatures in Berlin regularly drop to minus 20 degrees. The authorities also don't clear the streets, every individual has by law to clear the path in front of his own property.We certainly cleared Troy. The council haven't been near. It was driveable with care, but walking was a nightmare. We've had my daughter and son in law over Christmas and their dog Marco, who has to be walked every day. He is a powerful German shepherd, and very difficult to control on icy pavements.

[Crazy Jane]

what do people do if they're not capable of clearing the path? Like if people are really old or ill?

[Trojan]

Crazy Jane wrote: what do people do if they're not capable of clearing the path? Like if people are really old or ill? Dunno he didn't say.

[raveydavey]

Crazy Jane wrote: what do people do if they're not capable of clearing the path? Like if people are really old or ill? Stay in, or rely on relatives or a kindly neighbour?I cleared the snow and ice from our path and the pavement outside our house the day it landed, which has enabled me to keep it clear since.However, even now a week(?) since the last snow there is still packed ice and snow outside the homes where no-one bothered making the streets treacherous.

[blackprince]

raveydavey wrote: Crazy Jane wrote: what do people do if they're not capable of clearing the path? Like if people are really old or ill? Stay in, or rely on relatives or a kindly neighbour?I cleared the snow and ice from our path and the pavement outside our house the day it landed, which has enabled me to keep it clear since.However, even now a week(?) since the last snow there is still packed ice and snow outside the homes where no-one bothered making the streets treacherous. Clearing the pavements of snow used to be accepted custom and practice in the Leeds of my youth. We kids used to be told by our parents to clear the paths for older neighbours as well as the frontage of our own houses. If we were lucky there might be a few pennies at the end of it to spend on sweets but if not it didn't matter- it was just something we were expected to do for elderly neighbours.I know from an english acquaintance who lives in Germany that not only is it a legal requirement to clear snow outside your house but there is a time limit to do it. Any thoughts of backsliding on this civic duty went out of the window when they realised they lived opposite the local mayor.

[chameleon]

--->CnosniA reduced service between London Kings Cross and Leeds.get up front with ya shovel lad