Friday, January 14, 2005
And what did we learn this week boys & girls?
Me? I learned, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that I could not live in the bible belt. Business took me down there and I've gotta tell you it was one freaky motherfuckin' trip. To quote someone, I was "edgier than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs" by the time I flew back.
Consider these random snippets of adventure:
1) Dining in a hole-in-the-wall Mexican dive, and suddenly discovering you're the sole gringo in a room full of Latin Kings. Like the cars in the lot shouldn't have raised a red flag. "What could go wrong", thinks I...
2) The woman at the grocery store (dressed in sweats) with the two kids (screaming at the top of their lungs) while she calmly chatted on her cell phone. The big hair and perfect fingernails clued me in to the fact that she was a world reknowned neurosurgeon, undoubtedly talking to a colleague about the latest techniques in sub-cranial suturing.
Yes, boys and girls, we're fucked as a country and perhaps a civilization. I sometimes think a massive comet strike would be a grand improvement...
3) Walking to lunch, when suddenly an episode of "Cops" breaks out at a neighboring apartment complex. Yelling, followed by broken glass, followed by screams and the sound of more breaking glass. My colleagues stand and watch, slack jawed, while I look for cover to call the police before the bullets start flying. Just another day in paradise...
4) The five AM drive to the airport (75 miles away) in an ice storm, driving a rental car, with religious programming and eighty seven different kinds of country music to listen to. Who knew that there's such a thing as "electric country", "classic country" or "hip-hop country"; still, all the basic country themes (trucks, drinking and being done wrong by a woman named Lucinda) are there.
On the plus side, I did finish "Ghost Rider" by Neal Peart. Decent enough book if you're a Rush fan or bike person, but not exactly a fun read. It's all about how tragedy shapes our lives and hardens us, and Neal knows a thing or two about tragedy. In a two year period, he lost a 19 year old daughter in a car accident, lost his wife of 20+ years to cancer, lost his dog and saw his best friend imprisoned. And you thought YOU were having a shitty year.
Consider these random snippets of adventure:
1) Dining in a hole-in-the-wall Mexican dive, and suddenly discovering you're the sole gringo in a room full of Latin Kings. Like the cars in the lot shouldn't have raised a red flag. "What could go wrong", thinks I...
2) The woman at the grocery store (dressed in sweats) with the two kids (screaming at the top of their lungs) while she calmly chatted on her cell phone. The big hair and perfect fingernails clued me in to the fact that she was a world reknowned neurosurgeon, undoubtedly talking to a colleague about the latest techniques in sub-cranial suturing.
Yes, boys and girls, we're fucked as a country and perhaps a civilization. I sometimes think a massive comet strike would be a grand improvement...
3) Walking to lunch, when suddenly an episode of "Cops" breaks out at a neighboring apartment complex. Yelling, followed by broken glass, followed by screams and the sound of more breaking glass. My colleagues stand and watch, slack jawed, while I look for cover to call the police before the bullets start flying. Just another day in paradise...
4) The five AM drive to the airport (75 miles away) in an ice storm, driving a rental car, with religious programming and eighty seven different kinds of country music to listen to. Who knew that there's such a thing as "electric country", "classic country" or "hip-hop country"; still, all the basic country themes (trucks, drinking and being done wrong by a woman named Lucinda) are there.
On the plus side, I did finish "Ghost Rider" by Neal Peart. Decent enough book if you're a Rush fan or bike person, but not exactly a fun read. It's all about how tragedy shapes our lives and hardens us, and Neal knows a thing or two about tragedy. In a two year period, he lost a 19 year old daughter in a car accident, lost his wife of 20+ years to cancer, lost his dog and saw his best friend imprisoned. And you thought YOU were having a shitty year.
Saturday, January 08, 2005
Bike Guy on Winter Driving
So I've been driving now for about 23 years, all of which have been spent in places with real winters. Some (Colorado, for example) have pretty consistant winters - you know what to expect and rarely get surprises. Other places (like Minnesota and New Jersey) offer a mixed bag of wintertime driving grief - snow one day, black ice and freezing rain the next. I'd have to say I've amassed a good knowledge about what works and what doesn't, so below please find a few helpful tips for you, dear reader:
1) Don't be an asshat. This is the big one, boys and girls. When the weather sucks, you need to chill out. You're NOT going to get to work (or home) on time. It's going to take longer and you're going to be dealing with people who are scared shitless and REALLY shouldn't be on the road at all. Kick back, give the drivers around you a break (and a little more following distance) and be happy that you'll get where you're going eventually.
2) Don't buy into the myth of all wheel drive. Yes, AWD (or four wheel drive) can help you get moving on snow and ice, but that's about it. It will NOT help you stop quicker or (generally speaking) turn faster. I can't count the number of 4wd pickups and AWD SUVs that blew by me on Wednesday's hellish black ice commute to work. At 70 MPH on ice, hit the brakes and you're about a missle with absolutely ZERO control, regardless of how many wheels you've got driving.
3) If you live where it snows regularly (and YOU drive regularly), you NEED snow tires. Not all season radials, snow tires. Why? They give you the best possible handling (and therefore greatest safety margin) in winter conditions (snow, ice and just plain cold weather). A set of GOOD snows, mounted on steel wheels won't set you back a fortune - in fact, they'll generally cost less than your $500.00 insurance deductible, which you may need to cough up if you DON'T have snows.
On Wednesday I passed a guy in a brand new BMW M3 who'd just spun on ice and destroyed his front suspension. Why the fuck would you buy a BMW M3 and try to drive it in the winter on "summer only" high performace tires? If you can't afford to buy snow tires for a car like that then you certainly can't afford to drive it, can you?
What's my beef with all season radials? Nothing really - they're fine if you only need to drive to and from the grocery store and never drive in deep snow or on ice. Otherwise, they're too much of a compromise. When was the last time you heard about a revolutionary new vacuum cleaner/blender/home computer/marital aid/ice cream maker?
4) Front wheel drive or rear wheel drive? I've had both, and I actually prefer rear wheel drive. Why? Better balance, better handling. Front wheel drive carries most of the weight in the front, which provides marginally better traction on level ground. Basic physics tell us that weight transfer occurs under acceleration, which takes weight OFF the front and applies it to the rear. Likewise, braking transfers weight TO the front wheels, which raises the potential of breaking traction on slippery surfaces.
Rear wheel drive gives me good enough traction and better handling, especially with good snow tires.
5) SUVs and pickups are top heavy and more prone to rollover accidents. If you really need AWD and want your wife / husband / lover / invisible friend to be safe, buy them an AWD sedan or wagon. Size does NOT equal safety - handling and proper driver training equals safety. It's not like you don't have choices, either - almost every automaker now builds AWD cars and wagons, in damn near every price point. And yes, you still need snow tires with AWD.
6) Distance, distance, distance. Increase your following distance in bad weather, both to give you more braking room and to see the road in front of you. Few things suck as much as changing a tire in a snowstorm by the side of the road because you just pretzeled a wheel and blew a tire after hitting a monster pothole. Safe driving in the winter is all about giving yourself options - room to brake, swerve and regain control.
7) Big wheels may look cool, but they're no good in pothole country. Yo cuz, I know that rollin' on dubs is badass (especially for a playa like you), but wadding those spinners on the LIE or Cross Bronx is an Opie move. Downsize, see? Sixteens with snows may not scream "Baller", but they WILL keep more bling in your pocket, dig?
My car came with 17" wheels. For winter driving I've got a set of 16" wheels with taller tires. Sure, the car doesn't stick as well in corners on dry pavement, but I don't need to replace the wheel and tire everytime I hit a pothole. Need advice on what works for you? Visit the Tire Rack (and no, I'm not a paid spokesmodel).
Anyway, enough of my preaching. Let's be safe out there.
1) Don't be an asshat. This is the big one, boys and girls. When the weather sucks, you need to chill out. You're NOT going to get to work (or home) on time. It's going to take longer and you're going to be dealing with people who are scared shitless and REALLY shouldn't be on the road at all. Kick back, give the drivers around you a break (and a little more following distance) and be happy that you'll get where you're going eventually.
2) Don't buy into the myth of all wheel drive. Yes, AWD (or four wheel drive) can help you get moving on snow and ice, but that's about it. It will NOT help you stop quicker or (generally speaking) turn faster. I can't count the number of 4wd pickups and AWD SUVs that blew by me on Wednesday's hellish black ice commute to work. At 70 MPH on ice, hit the brakes and you're about a missle with absolutely ZERO control, regardless of how many wheels you've got driving.
3) If you live where it snows regularly (and YOU drive regularly), you NEED snow tires. Not all season radials, snow tires. Why? They give you the best possible handling (and therefore greatest safety margin) in winter conditions (snow, ice and just plain cold weather). A set of GOOD snows, mounted on steel wheels won't set you back a fortune - in fact, they'll generally cost less than your $500.00 insurance deductible, which you may need to cough up if you DON'T have snows.
On Wednesday I passed a guy in a brand new BMW M3 who'd just spun on ice and destroyed his front suspension. Why the fuck would you buy a BMW M3 and try to drive it in the winter on "summer only" high performace tires? If you can't afford to buy snow tires for a car like that then you certainly can't afford to drive it, can you?
What's my beef with all season radials? Nothing really - they're fine if you only need to drive to and from the grocery store and never drive in deep snow or on ice. Otherwise, they're too much of a compromise. When was the last time you heard about a revolutionary new vacuum cleaner/blender/home computer/marital aid/ice cream maker?
4) Front wheel drive or rear wheel drive? I've had both, and I actually prefer rear wheel drive. Why? Better balance, better handling. Front wheel drive carries most of the weight in the front, which provides marginally better traction on level ground. Basic physics tell us that weight transfer occurs under acceleration, which takes weight OFF the front and applies it to the rear. Likewise, braking transfers weight TO the front wheels, which raises the potential of breaking traction on slippery surfaces.
Rear wheel drive gives me good enough traction and better handling, especially with good snow tires.
5) SUVs and pickups are top heavy and more prone to rollover accidents. If you really need AWD and want your wife / husband / lover / invisible friend to be safe, buy them an AWD sedan or wagon. Size does NOT equal safety - handling and proper driver training equals safety. It's not like you don't have choices, either - almost every automaker now builds AWD cars and wagons, in damn near every price point. And yes, you still need snow tires with AWD.
6) Distance, distance, distance. Increase your following distance in bad weather, both to give you more braking room and to see the road in front of you. Few things suck as much as changing a tire in a snowstorm by the side of the road because you just pretzeled a wheel and blew a tire after hitting a monster pothole. Safe driving in the winter is all about giving yourself options - room to brake, swerve and regain control.
7) Big wheels may look cool, but they're no good in pothole country. Yo cuz, I know that rollin' on dubs is badass (especially for a playa like you), but wadding those spinners on the LIE or Cross Bronx is an Opie move. Downsize, see? Sixteens with snows may not scream "Baller", but they WILL keep more bling in your pocket, dig?
My car came with 17" wheels. For winter driving I've got a set of 16" wheels with taller tires. Sure, the car doesn't stick as well in corners on dry pavement, but I don't need to replace the wheel and tire everytime I hit a pothole. Need advice on what works for you? Visit the Tire Rack (and no, I'm not a paid spokesmodel).
Anyway, enough of my preaching. Let's be safe out there.
