Traveling safely

[GratefulCitizen]

Originally Posted by Badger52

The thing about power to stabilize makes sense to me although to some it probably seems counter-intuitive.

Better to have the power unit pulling on the towed equipment than the towed equipment pushing around the power unit.
A pulled rope is more stable than a pushed rope.

That actually reminds me of an advanced safety addendum applicable to regular vehicles, heavy vehicles, or combination vehicles (towing).

What to do if you have a blowout.

If you have a sudden tire pressure loss (blowout), or any other sudden asymmetrical stability issue, don’t hit the brakes.
Apply moderate power and establish control over the vehicle, then gradually decelerate.

The relative sideways force vector becomes less significant when there’s a forward force vector.
The angle of deviation from centerline for the summed force vectors decreases.

This is direct from my training both as a package car driver and for my CDL.
They actually showed us an animation of the force vectors for such an incident.

Same rule applies whether it’s a front or rear tire.
Apply power, establish control, gradually decelerate.

[pcfixer]

Originally Posted by Badger52

Many thanks sir.
First post's cautions into an emailable PDF, for those who want to mentor the herd.
I just had this discussion with 2 oldest grand-daughters who have fled the nest but commute back for hearth & kin. Winter driving up here is a thing; fortunately they are sharp kids and not too proud to take advice.

Serious appreciation of the importance you give to loading & the weight/balance of the vehicle.

p.s. Question I couldn't answer was related to why some semi- drivers going 1 mph faster than the guy in front will still jump into left lane to take 10 miles (seemingly hours to car drivers) to pass their OTR colleague. For me it goes back to not being part of a 'convoy' as you say & best tactic is not to play in that game of backed up cars. I suspect most folks can't visualize the actual turbulence that is going on with such a klusterflop.

All very good tips that most OTR don't abide by. Me I stay away from passing, following all large trucks, including 4x4 that have a superiority complex.

[Golf1echo]

Apply moderate power and establish control over the vehicle, then gradually decelerate.

The relative sideways force vector becomes less significant when there’s a forward force vector.
The angle of deviation from centerline for the summed force vectors decreases.

GC great description! For what it’s worth the recovery I went through reminded me of Crabbing with the Parachute, your looking to do several things at once to get the direction you need...

[mark46th]

Everyone on the road should just get the Hell out of my way.

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by mark46th

Everyone on the road should just get the Hell out of my way.

[Old Dog New Trick]

Originally Posted by mark46th

Everyone on the road should just get the Hell out of my way.

That pretty much describes my driving… rain, snow, fog, freezing fog and ice on a bridge. Go straight like a bat out of hell… if something gets in your way merge over and pass, left - right it doesn’t matter. Brakes are over rated and the accelerator pedal is your friend. (and that’s just on my motorcycle, four wheels is even more terrifying for my passengers!)

[GratefulCitizen]

Just lost a friend to a highway accident.
Preliminary information indicates it was caused by black ice.

He was former fireman working as a flight medic making a long commute.
He knew safety, and had been driving these highways for decades.

Operating motor vehicles is among the most dangerous things we do.
It’s a mundane subject, but still very important.

Don’t be complacent nor let your loved ones become complacent.
Stay safe.

[Badger52]

Very sorry to hear about your friend. It is that time of year.

Good neighbors just lost someone close to the same likely cause. Crested a hill that brings them onto what's actually a saddle of a few miles but parallel to another ridgeline. Black ice and some vicious x-wiinds. Sad, 22 yo. Sometimes you don't get to hang around long enough to learn what you need to.

Y'all be careful.

[Golf1echo]

Sad to hear. Appreciated the tips and timely, thank you.

[Old Dog New Trick]

Sorry to hear about your loss.

Driving is a serious matter that people often take for granted or as the new generations think, a God given right, but give little actual thought to the absolute importance of not just operating a motor vehicle but controlling it at all times. Even during the boring parts.

As a life long motorcyclist with well over 200,000 miles (don’t know how many 4-wheel miles but probably closing in on a million) I can tell you the number of people operating a car with more than two distractions going on at the same time is close to if not actually eight in ten.

(Phone - talking, texting, reading) *
(Phone, while f*cking with radio!)
(Phone, while stuffing face with food)
(Phone, while putting makeup on)
(Phone, while yelling at uncontrollable children in the car)
(Phone, while reading some other printed material…)
(Phone, while doing any multiple of two above)
(Phone, while doing any multiple or three or more above simultaneously)
(Hands free phone, talking)
(Two hands on wheel, face up and forward, checks mirrors often, gets out of the way of others coming up from behind and returns to the right lane after passing, and does a full head check before changing lanes or pulling out from side roads… these are the rare breeds and usually much older.)

* it’s been proven time and again, operating a handheld phone while driving is equivalent to being legally drunk (>0.08 BAC) and it doesn’t matter what - talking, texting or listening… it’s the activity that is the distraction not the device, and some conversations are more distracting than others.

And then there are the thousands or more on any given day, hour, minute that are impaired by prescription and OTC medication or other controlled substances and alcohol driving around next to us just waiting to claim other innocent lives.

Be safe always, but I disagree with the experts that say drive defensively… driving offensively has served me well. Be the action, not the reaction unless that’s all you have left.

Sorry for the long rant, just triggered me that we live in a society where giving someone the keys to a 4,000# missile and a “drivers license” for a taking a test so easy that a fifth grader could pass and zero hardline enforcement afterwards for bad behavior is something so absolutely absurd.

Guns - Dangerous (no body needs one, nobody!) Just ask the ACLU!
Cars - Not dangerous at all (everyone should have at least one on their sixteenth birthday and for life thereafter; and the number of DUI/DWI a person can rack up before killing anyone should be held as a personal benchmark for our judicial system to promote.) But, let’s not pass hardline laws about other distracting activities because that would infringe on someone’s God given rights to operating a motor vehicle on public roads.

Rant over!

[adal]

Originally Posted by GratefulCitizen

Just lost a friend to a highway accident.
Preliminary information indicates it was caused by black ice.

He was former fireman working as a flight medic making a long commute.
He knew safety, and had been driving these highways for decades.

Operating motor vehicles is among the most dangerous things we do.
It’s a mundane subject, but still very important.

Don’t be complacent nor let your loved ones become complacent.
Stay safe.

He was a good dude. The local HEMS community is feeling his passing.

Sucks.

[GratefulCitizen]

Originally Posted by adal

He was a good dude. The local HEMS community is feeling his passing.

Sucks.

Our kids grew up together.
Our sons are still good friends.

He and I worked together at the dam and spent many night shifts discussing life issues.
He was also working in Kayenta at the same time I was working out there.

We grew tight when I helped him get through difficult times during and after his divorce.
Many years later, he was instrumental in helping me get through my split with my wife.

Wouldn’t have made it without him.
He was the best.

There’s a celebration of life for him at the Elks Lodge here in Page at 11:00am on December 22.

[adal]

Originally Posted by GratefulCitizen

Our kids grew up together.
Our sons are still good friends.

He and I worked together at the dam and spent many night shifts discussing life issues.
He was also working in Kayenta at the same time I was working out there.

We grew tight when I helped him get through difficult times during and after his divorce.
Many years later, he was instrumental in helping me get through my split with my wife.

Wouldn’t have made it without him.
He was the best.

There’s a celebration of life for him at the Elks Lodge here in Page at 11:00am on December 22.

Didn't realize you two were that close. Super sucks.

I watched him grow as a medic and was one of his many preceptors that made contact with him over the years. Always enjoyed his perspective on things.

Saw the celebration of life posting. Will try to make it. Still on shift then.

[GratefulCitizen]

Found a nice reference chart when it comes to tires/loading.
Appropriate air pressure is dependent upon loading and tire size.

A higher load-rated tire doesn’t directly carry more weight, it’s just capable of handling a higher air pressure.
The tire doesn’t carry the vehicle, the air does.

https://tirepressure.com/tire-sizes

[Old Dog New Trick]

Originally Posted by GratefulCitizen

Found a nice reference chart when it comes to tires/loading.
Appropriate air pressure is dependent upon loading and tire size.

A higher load-rated tire doesn’t directly carry more weight, it’s just capable of handling a higher air pressure.
The tire doesn’t carry the vehicle, the air does.

https://tirepressure.com/tire-sizes

That’s a nice chart but I disagree with the statement in yellow above. Tire carcass and materials do matter. Number of sidewall layers and plying dissipate heat better and are more puncture proof than lesser quality tires. An LT (Light Truck) is far different than a no letter or P (Passenger) class tires of the same or equivalent size.

There are different E rated tires and an LT with 8 or 10 ply will carry 500 or more pounds than an E rated 3 to 6 ply tire. Even if both are rated to 80PSI.

YMMV