Opinion on snow/ice this year.

Alan b.

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

biking is great craic in the snow especially when you dont have snow tyres haha

dont bother with snow tyres on me car never mind the bike.
i'll be using the pit bike to tip about the place when im not in dublin this year.

you dont need to be anywhere near gifted to drive in the snow or ice. just let some air out of your tyres and drive with care, use the hand brake, use the full witdh of the road that you can, drive on fresh snow rather then in the tracks made by the 200 sheep driving infront of you in the one lane etc etc. theres even less other people on the road to get in the way.

Icyseanfitz

hondasam wrote: »

we could hardly justify having machines for every county in Ireland, we do not get snow like other countries. It would be a waste of money.
Would you expect these machines to clear every road or just the main roads?
All the grit in the world would be no use last year.

:rolleyes: how? of course it would have helped thats what its used for for feck sake, well after the last year or two i think its perfectly justifiable to have a few plough's around in every county, as for gritting use tractors and machinery already available, also wouldnt hurt to start teaching people how to drive in those conditions, as for which roads to to maintain, most important first should be the rule, but that shouldnt mean less important roads are completely about forgotten altogether like last year

Icyseanfitz

robbie7730 wrote: »

Im sure they have their problems, and survived. We also survived. The icy conditions last year were exceptional here, for here. We are not in Russia, or Andora. No problems to the gifted ice drivers and cyclists of course, but the majority had difficulties for weeks because of it.

I remember snow so heavy last year falling on the M3 that visibility was a few meters, and we couldnt see the edges of the road. 100 miles in that would of took about 5 or 6 hours for a mortal driver like myself. Maybe i should of pretended it was russia, and i might of been able to see further, and drive faster.

that would be a bad idea

Icyseanfitz

Alan b. wrote: »

dont bother with snow tyres on me car never mind the bike.
i'll be using the pit bike to tip about the place when im not in dublin this year.

if it gets really bad this year again i might try and find some tyre chains would be brilliant haha probably get arrested for using them though

zenno

just treat it the same as alcohol, if you have to much snow don't drive.

Bruthal

Alan b. wrote: »

dont bother with snow tyres on me car never mind the bike.
i'll be using the pit bike to tip about the place when im not in dublin this year.

you dont need to be anywhere near gifted to drive in the snow or ice. just let some air out of your tyres and drive with care, use the hand brake, use the full witdh of the road that you can, drive on fresh snow rather then in the tracks made by the 200 sheep driving infront of you in the one lane etc etc. theres even less other people on the road to get in the way.

Well i use the word gifted in irony, but anyway...

hondasam

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

:rolleyes: how? of course it would have helped thats what its used for for feck sake, well after the last year or two i think its perfectly justifiable to have a few plough's around in every county, as for gritting use tractors and machinery already available, also wouldnt hurt to start teaching people how to drive in those conditions, as for which roads to to maintain, most important first should be the rule, but that shouldnt mean less important roads are completely about forgotten altogether like last year

If temperatures drop too low grit does not work.
For people living in the country who are ten miles from the nearest town, what do they do?
Clearing the main road is great but who will be able to get access to them.
It's not about people's driving,it's about the driving conditions.

vampire of kilmainham

there wont be any snow and ice this year

Alan b.

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

if it gets really bad this year again i might try and find some tyre chains would be brilliant haha probably get arrested for using them though

to be fair, the chances of getting stopped in conditions that would be bad enough for you to want to use them are small.

but i wouldnt use them for the simple fack they make ****e of your wheels.

i couldnt be arsed stopping every few 100 yards to take em off and put em on.

vampire of kilmainham wrote: »

there wont be any snow and ice this year

snow cover has extended further south sooner this year then last.

Icyseanfitz

dont drive if you dont have to then, and if you do have to drive it might be worth investing is some snow tyres just to be safe,

of course peoples driving effects whether they will stay on the road or not, you cant drive like its a nice mild day out, you have to drive differently in snow than you normally would, low revs, lightly use the controls, keep space between cars in front of you, and concentration helps

Dudess

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

ive been skiing in many countries around the world, trust me some people would laugh at the "super snow" winter we had

Delighted for them but it's still absolute bollocks to call it a bit of snow.

Icyseanfitz

Alan b. wrote: »

to be fair, the chances of getting stopped in conditions that would be bad enough for you to want to use them are small.

but i wouldnt use them for the simple fack they make ****e of your wheels.

i couldnt be arsed stopping every few 100 yards to take em off and put em on.

it would be handy to have them if you lived up a big hill in the middle of nowhere though studded tyres would be the job

Bruthal

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

of course peoples driving effects whether they will stay on the road or not, you cant drive like its a nice mild day out, you have to drive differently in snow than you normally would, low revs, lightly use the controls, keep space between cars in front of you, and concentration helps

What will i do if i come to a bend in the road? Turn the steering wheel i suppose?

Alan b.

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

it would be handy to have them if you lived up a big hill in the middle of nowhere though studded tyres would be the job

park at the bottom and walk up it lol.

hondasam

Dudess wrote: »

Delighted for them but it's still absolute bollocks to call it a bit of snow.

:D:D:D:D

I am in bits laughing at that Dudess.

we will save this thread for December when the weather is horrendous again and see if these jokers have any problems:p

hondasam

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

dont drive if you dont have to then, and if you do have to drive it might be worth investing is some snow tyres just to be safe,

of course peoples driving effects whether they will stay on the road or not, you cant drive like its a nice mild day out, you have to drive differently in snow than you normally would, low revs, lightly use the controls, keep space between cars in front of you, and concentration helps

Hey you talking to me? I'm not bothering with winter tyres.
you should keep space between the cars in front of you on a fine sunny day as well and you should always concentrate when driving.

Frank Black

hondasam wrote: »

If temperatures drop too low grit does not work.
For people living in the country who are ten miles from the nearest town, what do they do?
Clearing the main road is great but who will be able to get access to them.
It's not about people's driving,it's about the driving conditions.

Whether grit 'works' or not has got nothing to do with temperature - I presume you're thinking of salt, the effectiveness of which is temperature dependent. Grit is an abrasive substance that provides more friction between tyre and road.

Most of the problems in the cities last year were caused by people who are unable to drive in snow conditions trying to anyway and causing gridlock.

hondasam

black francis wrote: »

Whether grit 'works' or not has got nothing to do with temperature - I presume you're thinking of salt, the effectiveness of which is temperature dependent. Grit is an abrasive substance that provides more friction between tyre and road.

Most of the problems in the cities last year were caused by people who are unable to drive in snow conditions trying to anyway and causing gridlock.

Is grit not made from salt?

Bruthal

black francis wrote: »

Whether grit 'works' or not has got nothing to do with temperature - I presume you're thinking of salt, the effectiveness of which is temperature dependent. Grit is an abrasive substance that provides more friction between tyre and road.

Most of the problems in the cities last year were caused by people who are unable to drive in snow conditions trying to anyway and causing gridlock.

So grid lock on a sunny day must be caused by people that are unable to drive in good weather, but try anyway.

Frank Black

hondasam wrote: »

Is grit not made from salt?

No.

Icyseanfitz

Dudess wrote: »

Delighted for them but it's still absolute bollocks to call it a bit of snow.

all perspective, irish people think thats a lot of snow because we dont know any better

Frank Black

robbie7730 wrote: »

So grid lock on a sunny day must be caused by people that are unable to drive in good weather, but try anyway.

Your 'logic' has defeated me.

Bruthal

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

all perspective, irish people think thats a lot of snow because we dont know any better

Is that not the whole point?

hondasam

black francis wrote: »

No.

http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=what%20is%20grit&source=web&cd=6&ved=0CEkQFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wolverhampton.gov.uk%2Ftransport_streets%2Fmaintenance%2Fgritting%2Fwhat.htm&ei=VFqzTvzwCILH8gPPy_X5BA&usg=AFQjCNGQX2a0r5wBLtfXdUnbjiBUepT3yg

Bruthal

black francis wrote: »

Your 'logic' has defeated me.

Your saying gridlock in the snow is caused by people that cant drive in snow (obviously your not one of them), but try anyway. I say its caused by the same (or close to it anyway) high volume of traffic, but now in treacherous conditions.

Alan b.

salt melts snow/ice
grit provides traction.

Icyseanfitz

hondasam wrote: »

Hey you talking to me? I'm not bothering with winter tyres.
you should keep space between the cars in front of you on a fine sunny day as well and you should always concentrate when driving.

why wouldnt you get winter tyres if you had a lot of driving in snow/ice conditions to do? as for car space, obviously you cant be bumper to bumper on a nice day but there should be a difference in how much space you leave on a nice day and a snow day, concentration is obviously a must if your behind a big lump of metal but again you should be concentrating more than normal on a snow day

Icyseanfitz

robbie7730 wrote: »

Is that not the whole point?

yeah but just because we dont know any better doesnt make it true

Alan b.

ya dont need snow tyres,
but they do help, and are a good investmant if this weather is to come back every winter for a few years on the trot.
grab a set of steel wheels and put snow tyres on them and tuck the alloys away for winter.
then swap over during the summer (or use them all year round as they are fantastic in wet/rain conditions we get here too)

hondasam

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

why wouldnt you get winter tyres if you had a lot of driving in snow/ice conditions to do? as for car space, obviously you cant be bumper to bumper on a nice day but there should be a difference in how much space you leave on a nice day and a snow day, concentration is obviously a must if your behind a big lump of metal but again you should be concentrating more than normal on a snow day

Don't see the point, I have no problem driving in the snow but no matter how careful I am it will not stop someone else running into me.
tbh you should be concentrating the same snow or sun and same for distance.

Icyseanfitz

Alan b. wrote: »

ya dont need snow tyres,
but they do help, and are a good investmant if this weather is to come back every winter for a few years on the trot.
grab a set of steel wheels and put snow tyres on them and tuck the alloys away for winter.
then swap over during the summer (or use them all year round as they are fantastic in wet/rain conditions we get here too)

if i was doing 100k a day to work id buy them, weather is unpredictable so i might need them at some point.

Icyseanfitz

hondasam wrote: »

Don't see the point, I have no problem driving in the snow but no matter how careful I am it will not stop someone else running into me.
tbh you should be concentrating the same snow or sun and same for distance.

if i concentrated as much as i do when im driving in snow id loose the plot and start walking

Alan b.

i know of people that have had the same set for the last few years as they only fit them come the end of november when it snows and take em off as soon as it clears.

if it was up to me i'd be going mil-spec.

hondasam

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

if i concentrated as much as i do when im driving in snow id loose the plot and start walking

It can be nerve wrecking which is why I can't understand why ye are insisting it was just a little flurry of snow. It lasted for six weeks.
Of course your county might not have had it as bad, Connaught had it bad.

Icyseanfitz

hondasam wrote: »

It can be nerve wrecking which is why I can't understand why ye are insisting it was just a little flurry of snow. It lasted for six weeks.
Of course your county might not have had it as bad, Connaught had it bad.

nah kerry had it pretty bad tbh, nearly all our roads where unusable, the reason im saying it wasnt much snow is because it wasnt, it was just the lack of maintenance on the roads which made them so bad, down here anyway it did, gritting pretty much didnt happen until the end, its far too fcuking late to be debating whats snow and whats not feck it

Frank Black

hondasam wrote: »

http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=what%20is%20grit&source=web&cd=6&ved=0CEkQFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wolverhampton.gov.uk%2Ftransport_streets%2Fmaintenance%2Fgritting%2Fwhat.htm&ei=VFqzTvzwCILH8gPPy_X5BA&usg=AFQjCNGQX2a0r5wBLtfXdUnbjiBUepT3yg

I stand correctred.

Crazy Horse 6

recyclebin wrote: »

What if there is no snow?? Where will i get my white powder fix from??

Gerry Ryan's old RTE locker?

Reamer Fanny

Fbjm wrote: »

Are you looking forward to the snow this year AH? Or are you dreading it?

Personally I used to love it, but last year kind of ruined it for me. I live on a hill, and struggling to school every day trying not to fall was not fun. I'd imagine getting to college this year is going to be a lot worse; I hear maynooth completely freezes over in winter! :pac:

So what say you AH? Will you love or hate the snow this year?

What ever you do don't eat the yellow snow

AeoNGriM

recyclebin wrote: »

What if there is no snow?? Where will i get my white powder fix from??

Eamonn Dunphy?

:pac:

Dudess

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

Dudess wrote: »

Delighted for them but it's still absolute bollocks to call it a bit of snow.

all perspective, irish people think thats a lot of snow because we dont know any better

There were some parts of the country where people were wading through snow up to their waists. Doesn't matter that it's worse in other countries - it was still severe. Obtuse to say it wasn't.

seamus

The only reason any Irish people hate the snow is because we're really crap at preparing for anything.

Hopefully most of us have learned our lesson from last year and there won't be any fighting through the snow to try and find the last shovel in Woodies or the last bag of dishwasher salt in Tesco.

Any weather conditions are fine if you've had the cop on to prepare in advance.

Cunning Stunt

seamus wrote: »

The only reason any Irish people hate the snow is because we're really crap at preparing for anything.

Any weather conditions are fine if you've had the cop on to prepare in advance.

..and that goes for the county councils aswell. Maybe they will invest in a few more snow ploughs / salting trucks this year :rolleyes:

I personally hope Ireland doesnt get as much snow as last year. My parents are out in the sticks and they had no heating and no running water all over Christmas - had to open up an old well which thankfully wasn't frozen. Having to flush the toilet using a bucket of water was not ideal...and when the water came back there were burst pipes all over the place, most of course located in awkward places behind the walls :mad:

Dudess

seamus wrote: »

The only reason any Irish people hate the snow is because we're really crap at preparing for anything.

Hopefully most of us have learned our lesson from last year and there won't be any fighting through the snow to try and find the last shovel in Woodies or the last bag of dishwasher salt in Tesco.

Any weather conditions are fine if you've had the cop on to prepare in advance.

Not true. "Any"? Like Siberia? Yeah, "fine" I'm sure...

Also, bit much to be speaking for any Irish people, Seamus. I hate severe snow for reasons more than not being prepared.
Also, a good bit of notice is required to be sufficiently prepared. It was unexpected here, despite some geniuses claiming we should be on a par with the Alaskans. It's not difficult to grasp the above, but shur what the heck - any excuse for a bit of auld "We Irish are useless" rubbish, including blatant lying that it was "a bit of" snow. Some people need to brush up on their maths.

Dudess

Cunning Stunt wrote: »

seamus wrote: »

The only reason any Irish people hate the snow is because we're really crap at preparing for anything.

Any weather conditions are fine if you've had the cop on to prepare in advance.

..and that goes for the county councils aswell. Maybe they will invest in a few more snow ploughs / salting trucks this year :rolleyes:

I personally hope Ireland doesnt get as much snow as last year. My parents are out in the sticks and they had no heating and no running water all over Christmas - had to open up an old well which thankfully wasn't frozen. Having to flush the toilet using a bucket of water was not ideal...and when the water came back there were burst pipes all over the place, most of course located in awkward places behind the walls :mad:

Ah now, don't be blaming the primary factor - the snow. It was your parents' fault for not being prepared.
Shur that kind of snow is great fun - and it's only a light dusting.

seamus

We had a heavy snowfall 10 months previous - heavy enough to cause chaos. So we really had no excuse for not being prepared or claiming that it was "unexpected". Snowfall was expected. When snowfall is expected you should be prepared to have to dig yourself out, make your way to work in the snow, or if you're a good distance out you should be prepared to be snowed in.

As I said last year, we had about ten years where there was very light snowfall, if even, during winter. That was the freak occurence, not the norm. The kind of snowfall we saw last year is not unknown in Ireland, it's what should be expected. When I was a kid it snowed every winter. At least heavily enough to make it impossible to go to school.

Dudess

When I was a kid the snow was nowhere near as severe as the last two years, bar winter 81/82 and January 87, thus making severe snow here unexpected. Now if it was Finland, yeah, folks should be prepared, but blaming so much of the difficulties on people themselves rather than the conditions is a good example of the blaming fetish some folks seem to have.
Looking forward to the gems that will be thrown at people who weren't prepared for the floods in Dublin. And even if they were, it wouldn't have been "grand".

Icyseanfitz

dudess the problem is the only thing we can do when it comes to weather is prepare, its not like we can turn around and kill the weather or anything , we have had heavy snowfall (in irish terms anyway) for the last two years, we should be prepared for this year, as for the dublin flooding, well that was a freak occurrence, to get that much rain in so little time is near unheard of in this country

Mr Benevolent

Princess Peach wrote: »

Oh I can't wait! Snow is so pretty and I love snowmen and ear muffs and snow balls and taking walks and playing in the snow

GET HER!

Dudess

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

dudess the problem is the only thing we can do when it comes to weather is prepare, its not like we can turn around and kill the weather or anything , we have had heavy snowfall (in irish terms anyway) for the last two years, we should be prepared for this year, as for the dublin flooding, well that was a freak occurrence, to get that much rain in so little time is near unheard of in this country

The weather the last two winters was freak too. Definitely agree we need to prepare ourselves this year (although it's still difficult even with prep - totally untrue to say prep makes everything just dandy) but you can't blame people for not being prepared in 09, nor can you blame them for assuming it was a one-off and thus not being prepared in 2010. Last such mad freezing was 81/82 and that was a one-off.

Icyseanfitz

our problem in this country is that we are so used of mild weather that any bit of hard or extreme weather sends us into chaos, i think every country at our latitude should be somewhat prepared for heavy snow and rain, its no excuse to say it only happens every now and then so we wont bother preparing for it,

if we get a hard winter this year i think it should be a fair indicator that its getting colder and we just need to be ready for snow