My four-letter ‘S’ word is SNOW! It looks pretty from indoors but seriously, it makes driving conditions dangerous! Despite all the rain we’ve been having lately, eventually the temperatures will drop below zero. The colder temperatures wreak havoc which make the roads very slick and driving more dangerous. A word of caution is that we need to drive carefully, especially during snowy or icy days.
I found some tips on line to help get us through these dangerous driving conditions:
Drive Slowly. This is one of the most important rules of driving on slick roads. There’s no need to be a Formula-1 race car driver! I simply can not express this enough especially to my 18-year old son! So please slow down when it’s raining, snowing or below freezing temps!
Another good point is to always Check Your Vehicle – Ensure your headlights, windshield wipers, and turn signals are functioning properly.
Avoid Using Cruise Control when the roads are slick. This point was new to me and although this seems obvious I never really thought about it until now. We have more control of our vehicles when we are the sole drivers and not allowing the vehicle to take control when in inclement road conditions.
Maintain a Safe Following Distance: This tip I even remember during my first in-class driving lesson as a teenager -basically, if the person in front of you brakes suddenly, you will have time to slow down or brake quickly and avoid sliding, or worse colliding with the vehicle in front of you as well as preventing any vehicle behind you from hitting your vehicle when you leave at least a two-car distance;
A self-explanatory rule is to Never Accelerate Quickly – presuming this will cause slipping and sliding AND finally,
Make sure you put on Winter Tires – if you haven’t done so already, please book that appointment before that four-letter cuss word (SNOW) arrives, seriously!
Drive safe everyone and Happy Holidays!