Weather

[KevinJS]

Meanwhile - back in eastern Canada ....

<img src="http://www.ipadforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=35393"/>

People say I'm crazy for going the long way to avoid congested roads. But on days like today
I think my head's on straight.

AA

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I agree completely, it's always the other idiots that cause problems. On my own, if I screw up, then I am the idiot. 8)

Sometimes, it only takes one idiot and none of us are going anywhere. I think I took this one last winter while I was waiting.

 

[Roy Rob]

Sometimes, it only takes one idiot and none of us are going anywhere. I think I took this one last winter while I was waiting.

<img src="http://www.ipadforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=35394"/>

I would bet good money Kevin, that the reason that rig got where it is was because of a four wheeler, who of course, is nowhere to be found after the mayhem they caused.

 

[KevinJS]

I would bet good money Kevin, that the reason that rig got where it is was because of a four wheeler, who of course, is nowhere to be found after the mayhem they caused.

That may be true, and sometimes that is the case, but as a trucker, I don't believe I have the right to assume that a person who is not qualified to do what I do has the responsibility to know how my vehicle is going to act or react. There's a reason I'm allowed to call myself a professional, and I see a lot that is totally unprofessional.

In this part of the world, there is a lot of tailgating of clearly terrified car drivers, and when they hit the brakes the tailgating truck is going into a skid, and probably off the road. Not saying that's what happened in this case. I wasn't there when it happened, so I don't know.

Sharing the road responsibly is the ideal, and there is bad in all groups of road users, as well as a lot of good.

 

[tlbaker]

Snow storm.

Sent from my WiFi Black 64GB iPad with Retina Display in NYC using iPF

 

[Roy Rob]

That may be true, and sometimes that is the case, but as a trucker, I don't believe I have the right to assume that a person who is not qualified to do what I do has the responsibility to know how my vehicle is going to act or react. There's a reason I'm allowed to call myself a professional, and I see a lot that is totally unprofessional.

In this part of the world, there is a lot of tailgating of clearly terrified car drivers, and when they hit the brakes the tailgating truck is going into a skid, and probably off the road. Not saying that's what happened in this case. I wasn't there when it happened, so I don't know.

Sharing the road responsibly is the ideal, and there is bad in all groups of road users, as well as a lot of good.

I read your reply several times before I had to assume that you are saying that unprofessional truck drivers are responsible for more accidents than car drivers that have no idea what it takes to control an articulated vehicle carrying 50,000lbs of cargo. In my neck of the woods Kevin, where idiots on four wheels outnumber the unfortunate untrained idiots on 18 wheels, there is no doubt in my mind that the "mysterious jackknifed tractor trailer" accident which shows up on the 6:00pm news, is NOT the fault of the truck driver. But......oh boy....maybe that is what you are saying too?

What the heck...back to shoveling snow...

 

[KevinJS]

I read your reply several times before I had to assume that you are saying that unprofessional truck drivers are responsible for more accidents than car drivers that have no idea what it takes to control an articulated vehicle carrying 50,000lbs of cargo. In my neck of the woods Kevin, where idiots on four wheels outnumber the unfortunate untrained idiots on 18 wheels, there is no doubt in my mind that the "mysterious jackknifed tractor trailer" accident which shows up on the 6:00pm news, is NOT the fault of the truck driver. But......oh boy....maybe that is what you are saying too?

What the heck...back to shoveling snow...

Simply saying that blame may be apportioned. Certainly, a four-wheeler driver may CAUSE an accident, but can they necessarily be BLAMED for it, when the trucker could have, by employing defensive driving, have avoided the accident.

For example, let's assume an ice-covered freeway. Traffic is moving at around 70 km/hr, and there is a junction 1 kilometre ahead. You are overtaking me, and think you may want to leave the freeway at that junction. Realizing that the freeway is icy, you pull in front of me to ensure that you are in the right hand lane as early as possible. The gap between our vehicles is now too small to be considered safe, so what should I do? At this point, I have no idea that you are intending to leave the freeway, and may slow down even more, and you have no idea what the safe stopping distance of my 63 tonne vehicle is, but you are not the professional, and you cannot, and should not, be expected to know.

Here, we can go one of two ways. Either I slow down to the point where I am maintaining a safe distance between us, actually anticipating the junction and the fact that you may want to slow down even more to use the exit lane, or I can reason that it was your fault that the gap is too small, and that you can take your chances.

I will slow down. You will slow down further, and, realizing that this is, in fact, your junction, you will indicate and pull over into the exit lane. At no time will you realize that I took evasive action, read your potential actions and was aware that you would slow down even before you knew that yourself. You should, in fact, never have realized that my truck existed once you had passed it.

The alternative is frightening. I decide not to employ defensive driving. I continue at my previous speed, and when you slow down for your junction, the gap closes. Now I'm driving dangerously close, and do not have full control of the situation. I blast the air horns, and start shouting at the useless four-wheeler who has caused this situation. It's anyone's guess how this situation plays out. You could end up dead, I could end up off the road while you carry on, shaking your head at the lunatic trucker. There are several possible outcomes, none of them good, and all I had to do was slow down and maintain my following distance.

 

[scifan57]

-15°C and clear, with a wind chill of -21°C.

 

[goofy8275]

Cold in the morning, warm in the afternoon.

From the iPad of Goofy8275, iPadForums.net user

 

[Richard Brown]

It has just been announced that anyone found driving, anywhere in the State of Massachusetts after 4:00 pm EST will be liable to 1 year in prison.

I've never heard of such severe legal restrictions being taken against motorists on this country. It makes sense where conditions demand.

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[Richard Brown]

If I recall correctly, which doesn't happen very often, Twerppoet had an app or some such thing which made a little time lapse movie......might be time to pm him?

The Archangel

Yes that's right, you memory serves you well Gabe . I too have the app, but it won't do the job. The app is still pretty rudimentary for some processes. I'm thinking of putting together a slide show on powerpoint, or similar app, with fades for transitions.

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[Hayles66]

Simply saying that blame may be apportioned. Certainly, a four-wheeler driver may CAUSE an accident, but can they necessarily be BLAMED for it, when the trucker could have, by employing defensive driving, have avoided the accident.

For example, let's assume an ice-covered freeway. Traffic is moving at around 70 km/hr, and there is a junction 1 kilometre ahead. You are overtaking me, and think you may want to leave the freeway at that junction. Realizing that the freeway is icy, you pull in front of me to ensure that you are in the right hand lane as early as possible. The gap between our vehicles is now too small to be considered safe, so what should I do? At this point, I have no idea that you are intending to leave the freeway, and may slow down even more, and you have no idea what the safe stopping distance of my 63 tonne vehicle is, but you are not the professional, and you cannot, and should not, be expected to know.

Here, we can go one of two ways. Either I slow down to the point where I am maintaining a safe distance between us, actually anticipating the junction and the fact that you may want to slow down even more to use the exit lane, or I can reason that it was your fault that the gap is too small, and that you can take your chances.

I will slow down. You will slow down further, and, realizing that this is, in fact, your junction, you will indicate and pull over into the exit lane. At no time will you realize that I took evasive action, read your potential actions and was aware that you would slow down even before you knew that yourself. You should, in fact, never have realized that my truck existed once you had passed it.

The alternative is frightening. I decide not to employ defensive driving. I continue at my previous speed, and when you slow down for your junction, the gap closes. Now I'm driving dangerously close, and do not have full control of the situation. I blast the air horns, and start shouting at the useless four-wheeler who has caused this situation. It's anyone's guess how this situation plays out. You could end up dead, I could end up off the road while you carry on, shaking your head at the lunatic trucker. There are several possible outcomes, none of them good, and all I had to do was slow down and maintain my following distance.

Wow, how profound and in this case totally true!! My dad always said that you have to watch what others do and predict their movements and make allowances for their future decisions. I have had only 1 or 2 accidents in my 46 years and both were my fault. In attention. Not to be repeated. Well said Kevin.

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[AdmiralAdama]

The calm ....




...... after the storm.

AA

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[Richard Brown]

The calm ....

<img src="http://www.ipadforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=35433"/>
<img src="http://www.ipadforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=35434"/>

...... after the storm.

AA

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Serene and beautiful, AA

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[scifan57]

-17°C and clear, with the temperature rising all day to a predicted high of -2°C at 11 PM.

 

[KevinJS]

Snowing well in Edmonton right now.