Can't believe the snow we've had today!

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#16 Post by **mangocrazy** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 8:13 pm

I was intending to go out tonight for a birthday meal, but in the end wound up cooking some fillet steak I'd thoughtfully purchased a few days ago. That, and a bottle of 1989 Bordeaux, has rendered the recent snow-dump rather irrelevant.

For tonight, at least. Tomorrow's another day...

D-Rider · #17 Post by **D-Rider** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 9:17 pm

Hardly any of the stuff here.

Guess we had 5mm the other day and maybe 8-10mm the night before last.

Seems it snowed a little while I was at work today as there was a covering on the drive when I got in tonight.
The drive is on a slope and it's a bit of a PITA having to keep clearing it - but last year I parked the car on the snow and it just slid back down again - just missing my son's car. After that I daren't leave it with any snow on it.

Although not much snow, it IS damned cold.

#18 Post by **Kwackerz** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 9:26 pm

http://www.blueworldgardener.co.uk/stor ... cts_id=851

150 quid of pure snow and ice melting fun...

hood and trolley can be seen here:
http://www.mowdirect.co.uk/acatalog/SHE ... _GUNS.html

Willopotomas · #19 Post by **Willopotomas** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 9:32 pm

Damn you Mr Kwakerz for putting ideas into my head!

Noeli0 · #20 Post by **Noeli0** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 9:33 pm

not much here either, 2cm on monday night and thats it. it's bitterly cold mind.

HowardQ · #21 Post by **HowardQ** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 10:06 pm

Can't get any pictures yet as my line is not really working due to the bad weather.
Nearly 30 hours in now, and more than a hundred lorries are still all stuck, with a few dozen cars!
They reckon it will take days to get them out.
The lorries in most places are 3 or 4 abreast trying to head east on a normal two lane road.
They can't go forward because of the road collapse on the A57 towards Worksop and can't go back for the snow and jacknifed lorries on an incline on the M1 side and nothing can get in to dig them out as they are completely filling the road.
Evidently no rescue services got in to them at all until the four or five special LandRovers from the Edale and Woodhead Mountain Rescue Teams got in after nearly 20 hours.
Is this really Britain and only a mile from the M1?
Nothin much on the news cos nothing can get in, although they did have a BBC crew there at tea time today.
Never mind it's still snowing!

#22 Post by **Kwackerz** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 11:02 pm

It's quite sad really. NW Germany used to have their fair share of hardcore snow, yet they seldom suffered.

It's downright embarrassing.

DavShill · #23 Post by **DavShill** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 10:49 am

They interviewed a lorry driver on Look North last night. He'd driven across Switzerland Austria Germany and Belgium with snow piled feet high at the road sides.....drove 20 minutes off the North Sea Ferry in Hull and got stuck because the Humber Bridge was closed and the M62/M18 was also closed. He was not happy.... he only wanted to be about 15 miles into Licolnshire !

furygan man · #24 Post by **furygan man** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 3:24 pm

Baildon pretty bad, Bradford was gridlock yesterday, had an easier day weather wise today, was heading to Bucks and had to turn back at Notts because the snow...so working at home!

back_marker · #25 Post by **back_marker** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 5:36 pm

Kwackerz wrote:It's quite sad really. NW Germany used to have their fair share of hardcore snow, yet they seldom suffered.

It's downright embarrassing.

Driving to Austria tomorrow night for a spot of skiing and the only part of the journey I'm concerned about is the 120 miles or so to get out of the country.

I think embarrassing is a very good way to describe it. Everyone seems convinced that the solution is to to just keep dumping salt by the ton but how often do you see them actually ploughing the road first to get rid of the snow like our Continental friends - Germany and possibly many others have strict restrictions on salt spreading on the roads and they seem to manage just fine.

Gio · #26 Post by **Gio** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 6:14 pm

I've just bought some snow chains, Surrey CC is getting parsimonious with salt/sand.

We had 4 inches in our drive this morning, so I went and had a laugh watching the local morons at the traffic lights. Where the hell did they learn to drive?

D-Rider · #27 Post by **D-Rider** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 7:59 pm

back_marker wrote:
I think embarrassing is a very good way to describe it. Everyone seems convinced that the solution is to to just keep dumping salt by the ton but how often do you see them actually ploughing the road first to get rid of the snow like our Continental friends - Germany and possibly many others have strict restrictions on salt spreading on the roads and they seem to manage just fine.

Indeed .... however they can introduce some pretty stupid countermeasures of their own.
At work today one of our German colleagues circulated the following information:

Dear All,

last week the adjustment of the StVO (Strassenverkehrsordnung / road traffic regulations) passed the last committee (Bundesrat) and is now valid.
There is a new obligation for car drivers.

Winter tires are obligatory now !!

Now the car needs to have winter tires when you drive during winter weather conditions as

clear ice
packed snow
snow slush
icy conditions

There is no defined time frame for winter tires.
The winter tires need the M+S symbol on the tire side.

Also the penalties were changed . They are doubled.
Driving in winter weather condition without winter tires cost 40 Euro (was 20Euro before). With obstruction of other drivers cost will be 80Euro (was 40Euro) + 1 point.

This obligation affects also motorbikes!

Do they even make proper winter tyres for motorcycles? - I've never heard of such things.

back_marker · #28 Post by **back_marker** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 8:25 pm

D-Rider wrote:
back_marker wrote:
I think embarrassing is a very good way to describe it. Everyone seems convinced that the solution is to to just keep dumping salt by the ton but how often do you see them actually ploughing the road first to get rid of the snow like our Continental friends - Germany and possibly many others have strict restrictions on salt spreading on the roads and they seem to manage just fine.
Indeed .... however they can introduce some pretty stupid countermeasures of their own.
At work today one of our German colleagues circulated the following information:

Dear All,

last week the adjustment of the StVO (Strassenverkehrsordnung / road traffic regulations) passed the last committee (Bundesrat) and is now valid.
There is a new obligation for car drivers.

Winter tires are obligatory now !!

Now the car needs to have winter tires when you drive during winter weather conditions as

clear ice
packed snow
snow slush
icy conditions

There is no defined time frame for winter tires.
The winter tires need the M+S symbol on the tire side.

Also the penalties were changed . They are doubled.
Driving in winter weather condition without winter tires cost 40 Euro (was 20Euro before). With obstruction of other drivers cost will be 80Euro (was 40Euro) + 1 point.

This obligation affects also motorbikes!
Do they even make proper winter tyres for motorcycles? - I've never heard of such things.

They are just following Austria where it has been mandatory for some time to have snow tyres fitted - this had meant that we have a nice 4x4 instead of a restricted minibus

Winter tyres tend to be very soft with an agressive tread pattern - maybe something along the lines of a race wet? To be honest in my several trips to snow bound Bavaria and other Alpine areas, I've never actually seen anyone riding a motorcycle. Can't think why - maybe they couldn't afford snow tyres.

Samray · #29 Post by **Samray** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 9:00 pm

BikerGran · #30 Post by **BikerGran** » Thu Dec 02, 2010 9:04 pm

My daughter and her partner have spent the last few winters in the Alps driving a Mercedes Sprinter without any problems, the only time they get nervous about driving in winter is in this country!