its snowing at my house! everyone called in this morning so i guess i have nothing to do today. btw, why is it that the slightest chance of ice or snow falls and texans go crazy and nobody shows up for work, or school?
Because we don't have the infrastructure to deal with ice. Not enough sand trucks, no blankets/etc in the cars, and not enough brains behind the steering wheels. I am NOT looking forward to the drive home, if there's the slightest bit of ice it will triple my commute time due to the idiots.
No work orders issued for me today so I guess I'll just stick around this area, no worries for me, I have FWD. I'll go check on my mom & see if see needs anything along with some of my other cousins around the golf corse. In a way I think it's kind of funny how some North Texans go into a general panic with this happens. Overstocking on food & supplies as if we are going to be snowed in for weeks. Better hurry up & eat all that food before it goes bad.
While there's no snow here on the southwest side of Dallas, there was ice forming on my truck while it was sitting in the school parking lot. Half of my class didn't show up. I was hoping the storm would be worse, with actually snow and truely freezing rain. Oh well, I still have the rest of the day to look forward to.
After growing up in Kansas and college in Boston I couldn't figure out the adverse reaction to snow/ice here in Texas. However, Tillman is right, it isn't as much of the drivers as it is the infrastructure. Also because of the changing climate around the freezing point here in North Texas there tends to be more ice. Boston and even Kansas would get little ice, but just snow a bunch. 5 inches of snow is better than 1/4 inch of ice. I'm comfortable zipping along at 50 on ice or packed snow, but I'm making a big deal to get home early because I refuse to get stuck in a 3-5 hour commute that has happened several times to me in Dallas. All it takes is a few bridges to freeze on 114/635 where cars have to inch across and then the entire metro clogs up. The one thing that can be blamed on inexperience is rednecks with trucks and dually's that think they're better off than cars on the slick. Those are 80% of what you see in the ditch and wrecks.
LOL! When it iced over at Northwood, those hills around the campus were a blast. Ask Craig Root about the donuts attempted on an iced-over Hopkins parking lot. Good times.
Snow is no excuse to not work over here, it will keep going without me. Unless of course the New York Stock Exchange gets snowed in and shut down but that has probably never happened.
Drove the 360 to work today to put the new P Zero Nero's to the test-they are supposed to be pretty good in this type weather. Stay tuned for the results....(I'll either be back here on the board or featured on the local news depending upon whether they pass the test!)
Classes were officially cancelled after the 10 o'clock class. I've been through some serious ice storms here (one about 3 years ago comes to mind). Northwood is crazy when weather like this hits. I love it!
I agree... Everyone freaks out over a little rain. If you have been listening to the news they are talking about all the closings. I say we should all just stay at work and then go home tomorrow. It's a chance for me to get caught up. Ferrarichat all night... or maybe some currency trading John? Jason
In all fairness, Westside is getting hit annoyingly well. They sent us home today, and the freezing rain was making for a miserable drive. I saw three separate multi-car messes just from downtown Ft. Worth to Grapevine. Lewisville is rain free but cold
I moved here from Chicago and its kind of funny to watch the media reaction which freaks people out at the very thought of snow. Rob and Tillman are correct we have plants in Georgia and when they get ice or snow they dont have the equipment to deal with it so the place just shots down.
Not snow, but when I worked on the AMEX in 1989 or 1990 we shut down one afternoon due to a major power failure. Great study in economics, while we were all on the street waiting to see if we had to go back in to work all the hot dog vendors doubled their prices for the large and captive audience. They took out pens and cross out the prices on their signs, writing in new prices as the crowds grew.
I just made it home. Drive wasn't too bad. Actually pretty quick, but that was more my rally racing between the cars going 30 mph (moving chicanes). I'm sure they were screaming "that maniac!". Hard rain (almost sleet) from Love Field to Southlake. Not much traffic on the roads now, but going slow. That's why right now it is pretty quick because you can still weave, before long you can't weave and will be going as slow as them. Only backup was 114 W right before 121, but that is always backed up there. Our driveway is iced over and that is only place I slid, so that might be good indication what is coming for the roads soon. I doubt there will be the 3-5 hour backups we had a couple years ago, but from here on out the commute will just be increasing for people.
Yes, my little Maserati will be visiting Jano very soon. I left work and at 4:15 (almost exactly!), on a bridge going over the Tollway, the SUV to my right slid - and her wheel hit my right front fender and smashed my spoiler to bits on the right, with a BIG crack in the middle. sigh. She then slid sideways right in FRONT of me. another sigh. I stopped. We managed to pull over and exchanged information. She was very apologetic and shaken - we were only going about 5 mph, but on ice. Anyhow, every bridge after that (about 3 of them) were all ice. And everyone was being careful and going slowly. Especially the one in front of the library here in Plano - there was an accident that took up the two right lanes (northbound on Custer), so the backup was growing as I came home. Fortunately, I go southbound on Custer, so I saw it but didn't have to sit there. I was being careful, but I still got hit. My poor little sweet car. I hope Jano can make it all better!!! I'll call him in the morning. The RX-7 is in the shop, or it would have been the one to get hit.
I've been on the road all day today. I was out in Bedford when this all started this AM, and while the infrastructure issues regarding cleaning ice and snow from DFW roads could be much improved, I'm certain the majority of MVA's are the result of driver error. Every highway i've been on today people drove at a particular speed then as they crossed an overpass, then mashed the brakes "because bridges freeze first". Clearly if there is ice this likely result in an MVA, and if there isn't ice on the bridge it will create a chain reaction / aftermath that will likely result in an MVA or multiple. Then you've got Pick Ups & SUV's that think they are somehow invicincible and they drive too fast and lose it and often take someone else out with them. People's seating position's don't exactly help them either. A disturbingly large percentage of the population do not sit the proper distance from the stearing wheel. Example, a large percentage of women and the elderly will sit practically against the steering wheel. If they lose the back end and actually understand how to correct it, they still have trouble because they are on top of the wheel and cannot correct the wheel properly at the correct speed. Not much will change via peoples driving habbits and abilities, so lets all just drive safe, take our time, and watch out for everyone else on the road.
It took Jennie 2 hours to get home leaving at 4. We work about the same distance away and take a similar route home. Me leaving at 2 = 35 minutes, Jennie leaving at 4 = 2 hours. Now my boss has proof why I wanted to work the rest of the day from home!
Guys, this is a rare opportunity to snap a few pics tomorrow in the daylight of your car in a true winter setting! Do it!
