Stay off the roads; let crews work and emergency services flow

Snow in a Celica? That sounds fun.

Not snow-related, but one time, we had to rush from New York to D.C. in a friend's Mercury Tracer. The speedometer topped out at 85mph, and below that was the automatic transmission indicator: P, R, N, D1, D2.

We were going "R".

Your point was that "cars can't go much faster than bikes in the snow anyway". It's wrong.

Boston has a few: Comm. Ave (until Packard's Corner), Beacon Street, Blue Hill Ave, Hyde Park Ave, parts of Morrissey Blvd., Washington Street (from Forest Hills south).

In fact, it's kind of true by definition, isn't it? If I judged the conditions to be safe, then I should truthfully say I was driving judiciously. My judgement would be *wrong*, since I hit someone. But that's not injudicious.

Still, I'd love to hear your courtroom expertise: Let's say I hit someone, you're their lawyer, and I testify (wrongly, but honestly) on cross that I believe I was driving safely. How does that help your negligence case more than if I say I was driving unsafely, or that I don't know?

Now, on to your mechanical lesson: I'm aware that a 4WD doesn't stop any quicker than a 2WD. I'm also aware that 4WD and AWD have different connotations. Are you? Do you agree that 4WD would be better for traction-free conditions, such as ice driving, and do you know why? Would you say that in an AWD vehicle, you're in much more control during acceleration and turns, so you don't *have* to throw on the brakes? That you can stay in a lower gear, when in a 2WD vehicle you'd have to upshift to avoid spinning your wheels? That, when you combine a front/rear differential with electronic brake-based traction control, you end up automatically shifting your torque to the wheel with the most traction? That with both front and rear wheels under power, driving over patchy surfaces, you have a much, much greater chance of one wheel having some traction? Do you prefer a mechanical front/rear differential, or electronic? Do you think they should be neutral, or biased to the front or rear, and why?

You agree that having your wheels balanced under load will improve traction and steering control during acceleration, cornering, AND braking, yes? When did you last get a four-wheel balance under load? How does suspension design affect torque steer? How does unsprung weight affect stopping distance, and how much did it matter to you when you bought your wheels? (You did buy your own wheels, right?)

You're aware that there are now a zillion different types of tires, with varying rubber compounds, coatings, tread patterns, construction, etc., and you can find almost any trade-off you want between price, noise, vibration, top speed, cornering, rolling resistance, in dry conditions, wet, hydroplane, snow, ice. Right? And that they make a HELL of a difference in stopping distance? What type of snow tires do you use, and how many have you tried? What were their strengths and weaknesses on the skidpad? How comparable was the test vehicle to yours, and what surprised you when you actually drove them? C'mon, educate me.

Christ. And I'm a *software* guy.

Jay

P.S. How much of all this is nice on paper - and how much actually matters when you're on the road? I've already said that I check my own abilities on every road trip, and recalibrate my sense of what I can and can't do. You do that too, right?

Could you do it when you post here?

I put in many winters of commuting on a bicycle. It's really not that hard; you just have to remember never to lean. And the consequences of snow biking failure are lighter than the consequences of snow driving failure; falling over in the snow is less painful than crashing a car. And traffic jams? Not for you. So I say good call.

A few years ago, I put a cyclocross tire on the back of my bike. That thing would cut slush like nobody's business.

Hakkapullita (spelling?) makes studded tires for bikes - I've seen a cyclist navigate an ice field with them before. Impressive.