Grrrr! Muppet drivers in snow!

[Norm]

Well, they say they do it themselves in house. I don't like the way you say 'pay'! Are we talking serious money here (he asks naively)?

Asterix... erm... it was a gag. Cat scan and Labrador report... geddit geddit

 

[asterix]

Well thanks a lot pal..

Now you tell me.. ..after I have just fixed up a new overdraft facility..

 

[Norm]

Well thanks a lot pal..

Now you tell me.. ..after I have just fixed up a new overdraft facility..

Don't cancel the facility yet, any trip to the vets can require significant liquid funds being available.

And don't blame me for the gag. You should know to watch for stuff that Archie-Tect posts.

 

[fimm]

If I remember correctly, snow chains aren't allowed in the uk

Where do you get that from? I'm pretty sure that is not correct. Snow chains etc ofter come up on the climbing/mountaineering forum I use sometimes and I've not heard that before. A mate of my boyfriend has them (doesn't mean it isn't illegal, for course).

My boyfriend grew up in Austria - he is always ranting about how rubbish the British are in snow...

 

[Over The Hill]

most 'fog lights' on cars now are actually what used to be driving lights, use them with / without, full beams on little country lanes to throw a bit more light at the edges of the road to help you find your way.

They are different in that a fog light spreads a very wide beam around in all directions. Driving lights teded to be more concentrated on the road ahead.
The difference on the car is that a driving light would go off when you went onto dipped beam whereas a fog light stays on all the time.

Neither light is "dipped" as in they both shine lights directly at an oncoming driver (usually me). The driving light will dazzle oncoming drivers just like a main beam.
Fog lights are designed only to be used where visibility is reduced by fog so that the fog stops the light dazzling the oncoming driver. If you use a fog light when there is no fog you will dazzle the oncoming driver.

I am often dazzled by oncoming fog/driving lights. The big issue I then have is that I am less able to see cyclists and peds who may be in the road.
I feel it is my duty to discourage such dangerous driving so feel the only way I can do this is to put on my main beams (where it is safe an will not dazzle other drivers). If we all do this they will get the message. If I do it alone they get annoyed and put on their main beam. (there is a good point where you can get your beam on before they have time to react back). If we all do it they will get the message and perhaps notice they are dazzling me.

So for the sake of us cyclists I hope you all do the same!

 

[Globalti]

Fog lights irritate the hell out of me; I often flash oncoming drivers giving them increasingly urgent flashes as they approach. Mrs Gti shouts at me when I do it but I enjoy annoying the stupid barstewards as much as they annoy me. Bad driving, I know.

 

[domd1979]

Fog lights wind me up no end.... Mustard mit I tend to go for some of the aforementioned full beam / flashing (lights) tactics if there's no other drivers about it will affect. Also find sometimes oncoming fog lights make me forget to dip from full beam. If fog lights behind me and no one behind them, I usually decide its not safe to travel at the speed limit. I think fog light snipers should be employed to shoot out the fog lights on offending motor vehicles.

 

[asterix]

My old car had ergonomic problems, it was very easy to accidentally switch on the spots and not see the panel light. I used to wonder why people were flashing til I twigged what was happening. It was such a crap car when it could so easily have been a good one.

I never bothered to use the blasted things when it was foggy, just slowed down!

 

[Archie_tect]

Don't cancel the facility yet, any trip to the vets can require significant liquid funds being available.

And don't blame me for the gag. You should know to watch for stuff that Archie-Tect posts.

 

[XmisterIS]

Absolute chav f*ckwit seen in the snow tonight, trying to get up the hill at the end of my road.

I heard about 10 minutes of revving and skidding before I left the house to walk to the supermarket - when I got out on the road I saw the aforementioned chimpanzee trying to get up the hill (in his "kitted" hatchback with blacked out windows and music going boom-boom-boom) by taking a "run-up" and charging at the thing with his foot on the floor ... only to run out of momentum half way up and come gently sliding back down with his wheels spinning like a pair of good'uns.

I walked over and knocked on his driver's window. He didn't hear - music too loud. So I pounded on his driver's window. He wound it down, scowled at me and shouted, "wot?!".

"You need to put it in second gear and release the clutch gently".
"y'wot?"
"can you turn the music down a little? You may be able to hear me then"
"y'wot?"
"PUT IT IN SECOND GEAR!!!"
"y'wot? Iz you takin' the piss? fack orf!"

Then more revving as he winds the window up and tries to get up the hill again by dumping the clutch and spinning the wheels ...

I don't believe I have ever met anyone quite so stupid.

 

[Ticktockmy]

I have two words ... snow chains! Whip 'em out, stick 'em on, no more dithering in the left-hand lane with the wheels spinning!

I dont see many peeps with chains these days, I think a lot of younger drivers dont even know about them.

Can be dangerous things, many years ago I was driving a Landrover fitted with them, along the road from Aviemore to Glenmore, when it shed one of the front ones and the back wheel picked it up and threw it into the windscreen of a car which was following to close. the car left the road and crashed into the trees.
Thankfully the people in the car where not hurt but badly shaken. and the car was not too badly damaged. mind the driver was very rude to me.
More so when he realied that the LR belonged to HMG..

 

[Black Sheep]

If we all do this they will get the message. If I do it alone they get annoyed and put on their main beam. (there is a good point where you can get your beam on before they have time to react back). If we all do it they will get the message and perhaps notice they are dazzling me.

my uncle's landrover has a roll bar with four lights on, someone later regretted not dipping.

So for the sake of us cyclists I hope you all do the same!

I generally assume they're knobs, treat them as such and expect them to do a stupid manouver.

I think fog light snipers should be employed to shoot out the fog lights on offending motor vehicles.

i agree with you on that, same for really loud thumpy stereos, a 12 bore shotgun to take out the speakers, just might accidently take out most of the car in the process.


what really gets me however is people who drive round with just the fog / driving lights on

i've nearly pulled out infront of a few cars because I couldn't see a black sports car at night as it's lights were hidden by the crash barrier / hedge grown on the traffic island at the rounabout.

 

[rualexander]

If I remember correctly, snow chains aren't allowed in the uk - however, snow socks are

Snow chains are perfectly legal in the UK and would transform all the chaos if people carried them in their boot throughout the winter and put them on when needed. You can buy them from Halfords etc.

I lived in New Zealand for a few years a decade ago, they never spread salt on the roads in winter but they did spread plain grit/gravel or they closed the road until conditions improved, if there was snow you put your chains on and carried on.

 

[Black Sheep]

I might be mistaking the legislation with studded tyres.

could be wrong, could be that both snow chains and studded tyres are legal.

 

[Night Train]

The only problem with snow chains is that they need to be put on and removed on snow. That would means stopping a tthe end of the minor road to remove them before pulling out onto the cleared and gritted main road. If they are not removed then they cause damage to the road and also will wear out causing them to be 'thrown' from the wheel.

Snow socks are better as they can be used in mixed conditions up to 30mph.

I've never needed either.
I do carry an electric winch and a shovel. The shovel gets used if conditions get really bad but the winch has yet to be needed.