snow in texas

[pltkcelestial18]

so there isn't any specific sucking in this. it's more something I see/think every time it snows in Texas.

I live in Texas and it doesn't snow much in Texas. I have seen it more in the past 5 years than growing up, but it still doesn't happen very often. I currently live in the DFW area, which is where most of my family is, and my parents are in East Texas. It took my parents almost 5 hours to get home, a trip that normally takes 2 and half hours, because the snow was so bad. They saw 30 wrecks on the way home, and my dad posted a picture of what looked like an 18 wheeler turned over.

Also, the news basically said that if you are in a minor accident, you're basically screwed, because emergency services are being dispatched to places based on how bad of an emergency it is and they're not rushing any where because of the snow and ice on roads.

I totally get not being used to driving in the snow. I'm not used to it either, but it seems like a lot of people here don't have the sense to go slower and be more careful. I've seen people in the past drive in the snow like there's no tomorrow.

Crazy people.

[Pixilated]

Trust me, this kind of idiocy is common in areas where snow is a regular occurrence, LOL. Here in my section of Southern Ontario we don't get a lot of snow, but it still seems to take half the winter before it suddenly dawns on people that ... the roads are slippery! Really!!

[PepperElf]

it's snowing here in KY too.
it's not even sticking to the roads yet but... my bf said they might let people go home early... which kinda sucks for him cos he was planning on working an extra long shift today to make up for having monday off (unpaid day off).

[Lyse]

We don't get regular snow here, but I've seen exactly what you're talking about. It is especially bad when the other driver has a SUV or truck. 4 wheel drive is great but it doesn't mean you have 4 wheel stop!!! More than once I've had someone pass me honking and flipping me off because I was driving to the road conditions and not the speed limit. Twice I've honked and waved to them as I passed them after they went into a snow bank.

[PepperElf]

talk about pwnage!

what drives me the battiest though is... disproportionate reactions to ice. On one hand we have the drivers who think "oh it's just snow! I can drive full speed" and on the other hand we have drivers who think "the highway looks damp - it must be black ice! I'd better cut my speed in half!"

Both groups suck. The first group because they crash - and if you're lucky they don't pull anyone else down. The second group because they cause needless traffic jams on roads that don't even have ice!

I encountered both last year during the big snow fall. "Group 2" was doing 40 MPH on a 70MPH road. When I finally got around them I realized all the "ice" they were scared of was just damp highway. The constant traffic & salting was keeping it in water-form. But on my own road the ice was thick enough that the best speed to drive was 2mph... and other drivers were sliding around because they were going too fast. and yeah one crashed into a ditch.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Ah, yes, the old "see one flake and flake out" driving situation. Believe us, it's not confined just to Texas. I lived in the Metroplex for a few years, so I know how the people down there reacted to any weather colder than 70: bundle up in pants and long sleeves, looking at me (from the DC Metropolitan Area) in shorts and t-shirts like I was insane.

[Chromatix]

Up here in Finland we get a unique variant of the problem: when the very first snow falls, a lot of people are still on summer tyres. And they think they remember how to drive from the previous winter - when they had winter tyres (often with ice studs) until the thaw took hold properly.

The practical upshot is that they're driving in winter conditions on summer tyres and *far* too much confidence. And accidents happen as a result.

Fortunately enough people have sufficient sense that mass scenes of carnage are normally avoided.

[pltkcelestial18]

what drives me the battiest though is... disproportionate reactions to ice. On one hand we have the drivers who think "oh it's just snow! I can drive full speed" and on the other hand we have drivers who think "the highway looks damp - it must be black ice! I'd better cut my speed in half!"

Both groups suck. The first group because they crash - and if you're lucky they don't pull anyone else down. The second group because they cause needless traffic jams on roads that don't even have ice!

Yea I stayed the night at my grandparents last night. They live out in the country near DFW. My aunt and uncle live across the street and my uncle had to work Christmas day (yesterday). He works for the fire department in one of the cities part of DFW near where they live and he said his 30-45 minute drive home this morning took him 2 hours because of people like above. There were people driving 10-20 mph when the roads weren't even that bad. On the other hand, while he was at work, they were driving out to an accident and saw another accident on the way. They had stopped and saw another handful of accidents occur while they were stopped helping.

[Sunshine]

East texas gets more snow than my part...west is even worse...stupid rednecks in jacked up trucks driving like its july...sigh.

[violiavampyr]

Didn't see snow here, but had a decent amount of wind. It snows here once in a while, don't think it will this year.

[AmbrosiaWriter]

Grew up in MA, know how to drive in snow and when to kick my car into low gear instead of normal drive.

Boggles me when people I know have lived here for their entire lives still don't know how to drive in snow conditions. Love seeing those big ol' SUVs careen right into a giant snow bank while my little Toyota just kind of scoots along with complete control and traction.

[Pagan]

East texas gets more snow than my part...west is even worse...stupid rednecks in jacked up trucks driving like its july...sigh.

Are you anywhere near El Paso? I know there's snow down there right now. I think I even heard that Fort Bliss had shut down. My mom sent me some pictures from Las Cruces (in New Mexico, up the road from El Paso) yesterday. White Sands Missile Range shut down yesterday and was still shut down today, San Augustine Pass (through the Organ Mts) had been closed as well as Anthony Gap and Transmountain in El Paso.

[Sunshine]

Miss pagan i am four full hours east of el paso. Yeah, they got alot ( for them). We got about an inch, and its already melted, and since its supposed to be in the 50s tomorrow on that will be our "white christmas"

[protege]

Boggles me when people I know have lived here for their entire lives still don't know how to drive in snow conditions. Love seeing those big ol' SUVs careen right into a giant snow bank while my little Toyota just kind of scoots along with complete control and traction.

Here in Pittsburgh, one little snowflake can turn every road in the county into a giant parking lot. It snows here, it has snowed here every year for 250+ years. Yet, people still freak out over it.

Friday morning, I got stuck behind some idiot in an SUV...who wouldn't go over 10mph. Was the road covered in snow? Nope. Ice? No. The road was perfectly clear. Sure there was some snow near the edges, but not worth going that slow over. Why was she driving so slow? Who knows. As soon as I got the chance, I put my foot down and passed her. She's the one holding up traffic, and flips *me* off?

[Argabarga]

25+ years of driving in snow means I can get to work in a tail-happy old camaro just fine while the idiots in their 4x4's go sailing off into ditches because they think the magic button on the dash makes them immune from ice...

Foolish mortals