How much snow does it take to snow you in?

[december]

Ya'll need to move down South. Here in Atlanta if we get even 1" of snow we get the whole day off! Woot! It's a great ol' big holiday! Then it all melts off and it's life as usual.

Down here, most cities and counties have little or no snow removal equipment. It's not cost effective to buy thousands of dollars worth of equipment that you plan to use 2-3 times in a 10 year period. We rarely get a real deep snow. For us, 4-6" is deep. Deeper than that and it's a blizzard.

The real issue for most of us Southerners is NOT that we can't drive in snow. It's that when we get snow, it comes with a 1-2" layer of black ice under it. Most of our snow events start with a huge media buildup for about 3-4 days, way before it gets really cold. Then the cold front moves in and the snow starts. Almost immediately everything comes to a screeching halt except the grocery stores. They will be open for the requisite milk-bread-firewood shoppers. Then we all stay home for a couple days while we wait for the snow to melt. After about 48 hours the temps are usually back up in the 60s and we're back in the saddle.

This. All it takes is a chance of snow or ice accumulation, and we stay home. No equipment to deal with snow or ice.

Of course, it has been 80 all this week, and we have to run the AC at night in order to sleep. The high tomorrow is 80-the high Friday is 49. Nothing like MS weather.

 

[sewer]

I live in northeast Ohio by Lake Erie and we get massive snow storms all the time and believe me I'm tired of it. So when someone just mentions the word snow that's enough for me!

 

[youngb]

I am from SW ontario, canada so we need lots of snow. One year it snowed we got about 3 feet of snow in 12 hours. DH and I were up at 4am to shovel out his car so he could get to work for 7 and i called a cab and went to work that way since I was to tired to shovel my car out too.

 

[DisneyNutMary]

In New York City, we don't get snowed in. Plows and salters start rolling at 3 inches on the ground, and for the most part, the constant traffic on the roads keeps them clear. Schools only close in severe weather- blizzards and nor'easters, other than that, most businesses are open as usual when it snows.

 

[The 4 "Quay"balleros]

I'm in South Jersey. We have very little snow usually I almost always made it to work. But now that my kids are the age where going out in the snow is a blast, I call out

 

[Kurby]

Canadian here

we don't seem to get as much snow as Buffalo - it dumps into the lake and where we are seems to be in a green belt. to the west and east get dumped on but we seem to get through winters pretty well.


BUT we still get our storms - the worst a few years back (maybe you all heard about it) our mayor then called in the army to help clear the roads and was totally lambasted for it. people have very very short memories. we had been hit for days with one storm after another and by the time he called there was about 3 feet of snow in front of our front window with the threat of more to come. i think thats why the decision to ask for help was made - turned out the storm passed to the south of us and we were fine but it was expected to dump another 2 feet of snow in 12 - 16 hours on top of the 3 we already had in the last few days.


even with all that our city was still up and running......... well not really but people were asked not told to stay home if they didn't have to work - most people took that as a blessing to stay home.

 

[minkydog]

Everyone has the same statement, "Snow is one thing, but there's nothing you can do on ice...." Wrong. Again, manual control of everything. Manual transmission and no ABS, you can drive on ice. It's the automatic transmission and ABS that gets you into trouble. Leave it for a computer to control it and it's a recipe for disaster. Understanding how a vehicle will react under physics and taking manual control of the vehicle and even ice can be navigated safely.

Well, I'm sure we can. It's just that everybody else on the road *can't.* You are more than welcome to open it up on some backwoods nowheresville Pennsylvania road but I defy you to bring it to I-285 during rush hour. But thanks for making us all feel better.

 

[crazelion]

This. All it takes is a chance of snow or ice accumulation, and we stay home. No equipment to deal with snow or ice.

Of course, it has been 80 all this week, and we have to run the AC at night in order to sleep. The high tomorrow is 80-the high Friday is 49. Nothing like MS weather.

That is so true tomorrow suppose be 75 degrees than suppose be 49 Friday. The kids is wanting to wear shorts to Thanksgiving dinner at my cousin house. It enough make people sick.

If say word snow Tennessee we close work and school. Yes that means the malls is close to.

We have so many hills it not pretty. I dare drive one hills with snow and ice on the roads it would be pretty.

 

[golfgal]

Everyone has the same statement, "Snow is one thing, but there's nothing you can do on ice...." Wrong. Again, manual control of everything. Manual transmission and no ABS, you can drive on ice. It's the automatic transmission and ABS that gets you into trouble. Leave it for a computer to control it and it's a recipe for disaster. Understanding how a vehicle will react under physics and taking manual control of the vehicle and even ice can be navigated safely.

BS--when a road is completely covered in ice there is NOTHING that helps. Yes, you can "drive" on it at maybe a mile an hour. We are not talking about scattered slippery spots, we are talking glare ice on every surface. Manual transmission nor regular brakes give you NO advantage on this kind of ice. Even our sanding trucks were going in the ditches the other day with the ice storm we got. They have regular brakes and are manual transmission as well-plus they are a heck of a lot heavier then your truck and it STILL doesn't help.

 

[elgerber]

BS--when a road is completely covered in ice there is NOTHING that helps. Yes, you can "drive" on it at maybe a mile an hour. We are not talking about scattered slippery spots, we are talking glare ice on every surface. Manual transmission nor regular brakes give you NO advantage on this kind of ice. Even our sanding trucks were going in the ditches the other day with the ice storm we got. They have regular brakes and are manual transmission as well-plus they are a heck of a lot heavier then your truck and it STILL doesn't help.

Nor would any amount of manual control help all those people that were trying to get up the off ramps, and just slid back down sideways.

 

[Sarah_Rose]

Hehe, all the stories are reminding me of when I taught in England. In England (or at least where we lived), each individual school makes the call about snow days. Well, we had one inch of snow and the headmaster was having trouble getting in to the school. Nevermind the fact that almost all of the teachers had dragged themselves in and we had half of the students already waiting outside at the playground...

Well, we went outside and told the students that school was canceled, and then went back inside to find out how we were getting home. After a few minutes, a teacher noticed one student still standing outside in the playground. This kid, a 5th grader, had recently immigrated from Russia and spoke no English when he arrived. So the teacher had to go outside and try to explain to this little RUSSIAN boy, with limited English, that school was CANCELED because of ONE INCH of snow. The kid finally got the idea, but looked disgusted at the English.

 

[golfgal]

Hehe, all the stories are reminding me of when I taught in England. In England (or at least where we lived), each individual school makes the call about snow days. Well, we had one inch of snow and the headmaster was having trouble getting in to the school. Nevermind the fact that almost all of the teachers had dragged themselves in and we had half of the students already waiting outside at the playground...

Well, we went outside and told the students that school was canceled, and then went back inside to find out how we were getting home. After a few minutes, a teacher noticed one student still standing outside in the playground. This kid, a 5th grader, had recently immigrated from Russia and spoke no English when he arrived. So the teacher had to go outside and try to explain to this little RUSSIAN boy, with limited English, that school was CANCELED because of ONE INCH of snow. The kid finally got the idea, but looked disgusted at the English.

I have told this story before but my Dad moved to Missouri about 10 years ago after living in California for a few years. They got couple inches of snow and he didn't think anything of it having grown up in Northern MN. He tried to take the off ramp to get to work and a state patrolman stopped him to tell him the road was closed. My dad asked why and the patrolman asked him where he was from. When he told the cop he grew up in Northern MN the cop laughed and let him through.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I'm happy to be snowed in if I don't have to work.

If I have to work, it doesn't matter how much snow we get, I have to get there (a hospital). So there would be no limit whatsoever.

I have never missed a day of work because of snow in almost 3 decades of driving to hospitals in even the worst of what New England has to dish out. I have driven in some amazing storms, sometimes late at night when I was the only car on the highway in nearly white out conditions. Not fun. But it comes with the territory.

 

[minkydog]

I'm happy to be snowed in if I don't have to work.

If I have to work, it doesn't matter how much snow we get, I have to get there (a hospital). So there would be no limit whatsoever.

I have never missed a day of work because of snow in almost 3 decades of driving to hospitals in even the worst of what New England has to dish out. I have driven in some amazing storms, sometimes late at night when I was the only car on the highway in nearly white out conditions. Not fun. But it comes with the territory.

When I worked in the hospital there was an expectation that in the event of emergency the nurses *would* make a command appearance. If you thought you might have difficulty getting due to ice(or flood) then, by golly, you better leave early! I have gone in many times in the early afternoon so as to avoid a hair-raising drive on I-285 after dark. I kept a bag with a change of clothes, shampoo, and snacks ready to go at a moment's notice.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

My first winter with snow....

So I'm on lockdown with the first snowflake. I'll be bugging the husband for more help.


All my living in snow encounters were in Pennsylvania in Elementary school.

The last place I had snow/ice issues that impaired driving..was in Florida. 1989 snow/ice storm.Took all day to get from Daytona to the Georgia border. And my stepfather (at the time) in his lack of wisdom tried to insist that the white stuff on the trees and on the ground was just frost. He couldn't explain why frost was floating from the sky when we asked. Good times. Hope to never be stuck like that ever again!

 

[robinb]

The schools close down here in Madison when it snows over 18+ inches in one storm. Essentially, when the Metro buses stop running the schools close. My DD has only had maybe two snow days in the past 6 years. She had had a few *cold* days ... when the wind chill is below -35 degrees. Silly girl still thinks it's a snow day and plays in the snow !

I have been able to get my DD to school as long as it's open. Our snow plow drivers are great and all I usually need to do is shovel the end of my driveway and the "hump" of snow left by the city plow.

 

[Nicolepa]

I'm in Sammamish and we finally got out today. I tried yesterday but they just plowed our main road thru the neighborhood (IE packed the snow down so it turned to ice) and didn't sand so I turned around and went right back home. Today they had sanded but our neighborhood was still icy, once I got to the main road it was fine. My van probably wouldn't have gotten out of the neighborhood but my 4WD did just fine.

Here in Seattle if you don't start heading home as soon as you see the first snowflake you are in big trouble! (And I am not exaggerating.)

 

[skater]

About 1/2 inch . I'm the kind of person you don't want on the road in snow - white knuckles all the way . I stay in when it snows!

Seriously, sometimes its frustrating - its a handicap, but I'm really not safe on the roads - I'm just too scared.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

The schools close down here in Madison when it snows over 18+ inches in one storm. Essentially, when the Metro buses stop running the schools close. My DD has only had maybe two snow days in the past 6 years. She had had a few *cold* days ... when the wind chill is below -35 degrees. Silly girl still thinks it's a snow day and plays in the snow !

I have been able to get my DD to school as long as it's open. Our snow plow drivers are great and all I usually need to do is shovel the end of my driveway and the "hump" of snow left by the city plow.

Is that MINUS thirty five degrees?

 

[robinb]

Is that MINUS thirty five degrees?

Yes. Windchill. It's probably only -10 in real temperatures .

My DD does go out to play (in her matching ski bunny parka and snow pants) and insulated boots and waterproof Columbia gloves and a fluffy hat. She lasts about 20 minutes and comes in for a warm up (tea, cider, etc) and then she's out again. She's smart enough to come in before something freezes.