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Old January 4th 05, 05:17 PM
Skip Elliott Bowman
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"N8N" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>
> wrote:
>
>> So Chris, explain to me why snow chains and spiked tires are illegal

> in
>> half the states already? Alaska State Troopers will fine you if you
>> are seen with glittering tires.

>
> Probably because they tear up the roads when not required, and they
> can't easily be dismounted like chains. That doesn't mean that they
> don't work.


Here in Oregon, aluminum studs are used instead of steel. They wear out
faster, but they don't rip up the roads nearly as bad.

The
> problem is, really, that most drivers of 4WD don't understand how their
> vehicles work and think that 4WD gives them some magical powers over
> the laws of physics. Newsflash - *all* that 4WD does is give you the
> ability to accelerate quicker and a little more dynamic stability.


One of the most pitiful and hilarious sites I see each winter is news
footage of a Jeep Wrangler stuck in a drift in the mountain. If ever there
was a vehicle that could handle driving in snow more efficiently...yet these
people just don't know how to handle any kind of vehicle in the snow.
Meanwhile, a guy in a 1972 Plymouth Fury station wagon, with no traction
devices, will pull up and ask if the stuck driver needs help...

It astounds me that so many otherwise-capable people are caught unawares
each winter by the snow, like they didn't see it coming.


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