Work's advice for bad weather driving

Kieran_Burns

Work have sent out a communique and contained within is some useful advice if you're driving in bad weather:

We have put together a list of things you should do before and while driving in icy weather conditions.
•Plan routes to favour major roads which are more likely to have been gritted.
•Put safety before punctuality when the bad weather closes in. While it's always a good idea to allow extra time in winter for your journey, drivers must accept the inevitability of being late for work if they are caught up in an unexpected delay.
•If your vehicle skids, depress the clutch and turn the steering wheel into the direction of the skid. When the vehicle straightens steer along the road. Don't brake - it will just lock up your wheels and you'll skid further.

I read this and basically went into cycle commuting mode:

Plan routes to favour ungritted minor roads and tracks to have more fun Put 'aving a laff before punctuality when the bad weather closes in. While it's always a good idea to allow extra time to try out that track covered in deep snow, drivers must accept the inevitably of just going back for one more go when caught up in an unexpected ice chute If your vehicle skids, go home and put the ice spikers on you idiot.

CiB

Tosh. Glad I don't work for that shower... oh yeah.

If it skids, make sure you've depressed the traction control button for long enough to disable it, feather the throttle whilst simultaneously turning into the skid with a lurid grin on your face and making judicious use of the handbrake, combining the encouraging shouts of the kids from the back seats with the squawking from the OH in the front seat as you exit the roundabout after the third lap.

Volunteer for all vital journeys such as individual trips to the shop to collect milk, then sugar, eventually tea bags and then a bottle of wine. Make it clear that it may take an hour or two for each trip due to the intense fun errr... danger involved. Return after 7 hours & two tankfuls of diesel with even more stupid grin on fizzog.

Repeat till grown up.

jimmypippa

CiB wrote:

Tosh. Glad I don't work for that shower... oh yeah.

If it skids, make sure you've depressed the traction control button for long enough to disable it, feather the throttle whilst simultaneously turning into the skid with a lurid grin on your face and making judicious use of the handbrake, combining the encouraging shouts of the kids from the back seats with the squawking from the OH in the front seat as you exit the roundabout after the third lap.

Volunteer for all vital journeys such as individual trips to the shop to collect milk, then sugar, eventually tea bags and then a bottle of wine. Make it clear that it may take an hour or two for each trip due to the intense fun errr... danger involved. Return after 7 hours & two tankfuls of diesel with even more stupid grin on fizzog.

Repeat till grown up.

But what do you do with all the other cars that are in the way and not going anywhere?

veronese68

jimmypippa wrote:

CiB wrote:

Tosh. Glad I don't work for that shower... oh yeah.

If it skids, make sure you've depressed the traction control button for long enough to disable it, feather the throttle whilst simultaneously turning into the skid with a lurid grin on your face and making judicious use of the handbrake, combining the encouraging shouts of the kids from the back seats with the squawking from the OH in the front seat as you exit the roundabout after the third lap.

Volunteer for all vital journeys such as individual trips to the shop to collect milk, then sugar, eventually tea bags and then a bottle of wine. Make it clear that it may take an hour or two for each trip due to the intense fun errr... danger involved. Return after 7 hours & two tankfuls of diesel with even more stupid grin on fizzog.

Repeat till grown up.

But what do you do with all the other cars that are in the way and not going anywhere?

The other cars are stuck in traffic on the main roads that have been gritted.

jejv

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If your vehicle skids, go home and put the ice spikers on you idiot.

So you've seen the error of your ways, and got a Salsa Fargo ? Well Done.

Couldn't fit Ice Spikers on a mere-smear CX.

Bishop of Bath and Wells. Pah!

Kieran_Burns

jejv wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If your vehicle skids, go home and put the ice spikers on you idiot.

So you've seen the error of your ways, and got a Salsa Fargo ? Well Done.

Couldn't fit Ice Spikers on a mere-smear CX.

Bishop of Bath and Wells. Pah!

Oh yes they do. 8)

Please post babies to the following address:

jejv

POIDH!

Any particular preferences for age or gender ?

wod1

It is my pet hate that when it snows everyone suddenly thinks it ok to turn up 30 mins / 2 hours late and say it snowed and the traffic was bad. If it is snowy you leave earlier! its not exactly a surprise that people drive slowly and its is busier.

Not had a snowy bike commute yet this year but think it will come. If it snows too much to ride in I get up much earlier and walk in. People have forgotten that they can walk some times!

jimmypippa

wod1 wrote:

It is my pet hate that when it snows everyone suddenly thinks it ok to turn up 30 mins / 2 hours late and say it snowed and the traffic was bad. If it is snowy you leave earlier! its not exactly a surprise that people drive slowly and its is busier.

Not had a snowy bike commute yet this year but think it will come. If it snows too much to ride in I get up much earlier and walk in. People have forgotten that they can walk some times!

I could walk but, at 12.5 miles each way it might be getting a bit far for a commute.

I have cycled into work in temperatures down to minus 14, and the snow hasn't yet stopped me over the last four years

jejv

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If your vehicle skids, go home and put the ice spikers on you idiot.[/list]

So are you saying that you can fit 57-622 Ice Spiker Pros on your CX ?

That would be quite neat. The CX's I've seen didn't look like they had that kind of clearance.

Kieran_Burns

jejv wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If your vehicle skids, go home and put the ice spikers on you idiot.[/list]

So are you saying that you can fit 57-622 Ice Spiker Pros on your CX ?

That would be quite neat. The CX's I've seen didn't look like they had that kind of clearance.

Ummmmm..... where did I ever mention 57s?

(and I was using the generic term ice spikers... I'm referring to the 35c Marathon Winters - ice spiker tyres)

jejv

Ahem.

If I google [or duckduckgo] "Ice Spiker" I get hits for Schwalbe Ice Spikers, Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pros,
and some kind of extreme hair gel - which would be of limited utility to me personally.

AFAICT, the only person round BR who uses "Ice Spiker" as a shorthand for anything is MRS, who is using Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pros.

To get this straight: normal 42-622 Marathon Winters or 40-622 Nokian W240s, as might be found on a shopper in Stockholm or Helsinki, won't fit. And you have trouble making the special little Marathon Winters fit under the mudguards ?

Would the Bishop care for a nice crunchy carrot ? Perhaps with some yoghurt dip ?

Kieran_Burns

Would you like to see a photo of my Tricross with 35c Marathon winters on? :P

The Rookie

Not really, most of us simply believe you when you say it......MOST of use that is!

pangolin

jejv wrote:

Ahem.

If I google [or duckduckgo] "Ice Spiker" I get hits for Schwalbe Ice Spikers, Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pros,
and some kind of extreme hair gel - which would be of limited utility to me personally.

AFAICT, the only person round BR who uses "Ice Spiker" as a shorthand for anything is MRS, who is using Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pros.

To get this straight: normal 42-622 Marathon Winters or 40-622 Nokian W240s, as might be found on a shopper in Stockholm or Helsinki, won't fit. And you have trouble making the special little Marathon Winters fit under the mudguards ?

Would the Bishop care for a nice crunchy carrot ? Perhaps with some yoghurt dip ?

What on earth are you blathering about. Marathon winters aren't that wide, they will fit lots of bikes.

If we all go around shouting 'AH-HA!' every time someone refers to a product by slightly the wrong name, well, we would all post a lot like your last post.

Kieran_Burns

it wasn't even the wrong name if you want to be particularly pedantic... I said ice spiker (note lower case) as in: a tyre with spikes for ice

I wasn't even consciously aware of the brand Ice Spiker (note capitals).

Given the fact that I have repeatedly posted recently about buying some Marathon Winters (with photos) I thought it would've been reasonably obvious, but hey ho: I have a fine cup of tea in front of me and am laughing at a major incident on a client site where no one could print after coming back in the New Year. They had turned the printers off.

So, I am way too relaxed to worry.

Kieran_Burns

Incidentally and much to my surprise, the 35c Marathon Winters fit under my mudguards. They are the 35 - 42c SKS chromoplastics (I think) and there is plenty of room when adjusted accordingly.

I was a little worried about the space to the rear of the BB, but on the Tricross there is plenty of clearance; unlike the Felt which I'm going to have go back to the 28c 4 Seasons as there is insufficient room for the 35c Marathon plus tyre and 'guards.