Worst weather you've ever driven in.
- Thread starter Speak2Mountain
- Start date
Way back when I was about 9 or 10. I was in my uncle's '57 Dodge Coronet. We were in central South Dakota in the spring visiting a nearby Sioux Indian burial ground. The sky turned very dark and my uncle told my brothers and I to hop in the car quick. He started driving like a man possessed to get back to the farm house. It began to rain hard and the unpaved road turned into a slippery clay gumbo mess. The car was sliding all over but he kept it going straight. I watched from the back window fascinated by something I'd never seen before. A dark green howling twister blew up right behind and it seemed to be chasing us. After about a mile and an eternity we slid up to the house and my uncle threw open the storm doors to the cellar. Everybody scampered in and hunkered down next to a wall.
The noise got louder until the house began to shake. Some of my aunt's pickled veggie jars fell off the shelves. After maybe 15 seconds the noise subsided and uncle let us out to survey the area. The tornado had veered off just shy of the house and went through an adjacent corn field. It dug a trench before it skipped off to where ever those demons go.
I still remember the sound.
The noise got louder until the house began to shake. Some of my aunt's pickled veggie jars fell off the shelves. After maybe 15 seconds the noise subsided and uncle let us out to survey the area. The tornado had veered off just shy of the house and went through an adjacent corn field. It dug a trench before it skipped off to where ever those demons go.
I still remember the sound.
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
Originally Posted by Leo99
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
Originally Posted by Bud_One
As a southerner that had never seen snow over 1" in depth .
Driving through Michigan in a Mercedes Sprinter van , around Coloma, Michigan on 94 heading West - January 2017 at night with all the snow storms blowing in from Lake Michgan, making it next to impossible to see the road much less the 18 wheelers in front of us.
Had never driven in anything like that ever , saw many cars in ditches .
The lake effect snow bands are truly, truly very, very dangerous at times....
Snowfall rates 3-5 inches an hour can and do happen.. with literally zero visibility... And they have thunder and lightning at times... That's how unstable the atmosphere is at times in those events. Literally driving through a thunderstorm that it's snowing in.
I drove through a severe snow squall in Essex county with snowfall rate at 3-4 inches an hour.... Visibility got down to near zero... Only time ever ever have gotten spooked bad driving in snow. I have driven in snow many many times. I actually enjoy driving in the snow. But that time it was really quite spooky. Heaviest snowfall rate I had driven in prior may have been almost 2 inches per hour.. and that was not all that bad to me.
As a southerner that had never seen snow over 1" in depth .
Driving through Michigan in a Mercedes Sprinter van , around Coloma, Michigan on 94 heading West - January 2017 at night with all the snow storms blowing in from Lake Michgan, making it next to impossible to see the road much less the 18 wheelers in front of us.
Had never driven in anything like that ever , saw many cars in ditches .
The lake effect snow bands are truly, truly very, very dangerous at times....
Snowfall rates 3-5 inches an hour can and do happen.. with literally zero visibility... And they have thunder and lightning at times... That's how unstable the atmosphere is at times in those events. Literally driving through a thunderstorm that it's snowing in.
I drove through a severe snow squall in Essex county with snowfall rate at 3-4 inches an hour.... Visibility got down to near zero... Only time ever ever have gotten spooked bad driving in snow. I have driven in snow many many times. I actually enjoy driving in the snow. But that time it was really quite spooky. Heaviest snowfall rate I had driven in prior may have been almost 2 inches per hour.. and that was not all that bad to me.
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2009
- Messages
- 7,268
Well in texas i frequently go 50-60mph in torrential downpours thanks to rainX
Lots of heavy blizzards. Can't think of one that stands out.
Same. Many, many blizzards with no visibility. One time I drove walking speed and corrected my direction when I felt the tires leaving the roadway.
On the railway a heavy storm will wash the sub-grade out from under the track. Sometimes the sub-grade will get water saturated, fail, leaving the track dangling in the air.
One dark and stormy night..... I was driving an 8,500 foot empty coal train and came across water running over the track. I stopped, got permission from the RTC to back up
and got out of there. Less than 30 minutes later a 400 section of track washed away 150 feet down into the river.
Edit; For that, I got a $50 Esso gift card.
One dark and stormy night..... I was driving an 8,500 foot empty coal train and came across water running over the track. I stopped, got permission from the RTC to back up
and got out of there. Less than 30 minutes later a 400 section of track washed away 150 feet down into the river.
Edit; For that, I got a $50 Esso gift card.
Last edited:
A couple years back a friend and I was going to take a daycation from the Chicago suburbs to Badlands National Park in January. We were trying to beat a winter storm that was coming down from North MN but ended up getting caught in the worst of it halfway through MN on I-90 at midnight, almost a ft of snow within a few hours and going sideways (I think it was 30-45mph winds). We ended up being able to exit to a gas station parking lot and decided to just turn around and go back home. That's the only time I've turn around form driving conditions.
Also got stuck in the middle of a hailstorm on I-80 in Nebraska coming home from Wyoming. There were mammatus clouds but no tornadoes and the winds did a lot of damage to nearby towns from what I heard on the news.
Also got stuck in the middle of a hailstorm on I-80 in Nebraska coming home from Wyoming. There were mammatus clouds but no tornadoes and the winds did a lot of damage to nearby towns from what I heard on the news.
Back a couple years ago a building had a breakdown call and sent a tech out to Scranton, PA. Halfway between Philly and Scranton his van broke down on the side of I-476, so naturally me and a coworker was sent on the call. Weather was nice and clear, little bit chilly the further North we went, but otherwise clear. The drive back though was not pleasant. We left Scranton around 10PM and 20 miles down the road it came the worst whiteout I've been in. The roads quickly got covered and couldn't even see the lines, I couldn't even see rear lights on any vehicle. Hazzards on the entire time, it was a white knuckled drive for about 15 miles for sure. I was driving an E350 with a work body, so it was a tank, but my coworker was driving a Transit Connect that wasn't as stable. Luckily it was just rain in Philly at our hotel. Both of us shortly quit that part of the company after that trip...
Valentines Day 2015 we had some nasty white out conditions here. I was going to pick up my now wife for dinner and had to take a detour because of a 30 some pile up on the highway. Police were running the intersections in town because it was so difficult to see the lights. Certainly not the worse snow I've been in but at least I could see all those times as well.
Once I got to the next county it was literally sunny with a light wind. No snow whatsoever.
Once I got to the next county it was literally sunny with a light wind. No snow whatsoever.
Originally Posted by bbhero
Originally Posted by Leo99
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
We've been very happily married for 17 years.
Originally Posted by Leo99
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
We've been very happily married for 17 years.
You win
Blowing whiteout on US-40 Rabbit Ears Pass.
Originally Posted by Passport1
Way back when I was about 9 or 10. I was in my uncle's '57 Dodge Coronet. We were in central South Dakota in the spring visiting a nearby Sioux Indian burial ground. The sky turned very dark and my uncle told my brothers and I to hop in the car quick. He started driving like a man possessed to get back to the farm house. It began to rain hard and the unpaved road turned into a slippery clay gumbo mess. The car was sliding all over but he kept it going straight. I watched from the back window fascinated by something I'd never seen before. A dark green howling twister blew up right behind and it seemed to be chasing us. After about a mile and an eternity we slid up to the house and my uncle threw open the storm doors to the cellar. Everybody scampered in and hunkered down next to a wall.
The noise got louder until the house began to shake. Some of my aunt's pickled veggie jars fell off the shelves. After maybe 15 seconds the noise subsided and uncle let us out to survey the area. The tornado had veered off just shy of the house and went through an adjacent corn field. It dug a trench before it skipped off to where ever those demons go.
I still remember the sound.
Winning post!
Way back when I was about 9 or 10. I was in my uncle's '57 Dodge Coronet. We were in central South Dakota in the spring visiting a nearby Sioux Indian burial ground. The sky turned very dark and my uncle told my brothers and I to hop in the car quick. He started driving like a man possessed to get back to the farm house. It began to rain hard and the unpaved road turned into a slippery clay gumbo mess. The car was sliding all over but he kept it going straight. I watched from the back window fascinated by something I'd never seen before. A dark green howling twister blew up right behind and it seemed to be chasing us. After about a mile and an eternity we slid up to the house and my uncle threw open the storm doors to the cellar. Everybody scampered in and hunkered down next to a wall.
The noise got louder until the house began to shake. Some of my aunt's pickled veggie jars fell off the shelves. After maybe 15 seconds the noise subsided and uncle let us out to survey the area. The tornado had veered off just shy of the house and went through an adjacent corn field. It dug a trench before it skipped off to where ever those demons go.
I still remember the sound.
Winning post!
Before I had my DVL, I helped my dad with amateur radio stuff around town. We helped a local ambulance company build a communications van from a mid-70s Chevy box van. I loved the project, and 14 yo me loved flipping on the code 3 lights when no one was looking.
One winter evening, there was some sort of meeting with the responders of a plane crash in Iowa, the one that cartwheeled down the runway after it lost hydraulics. A lot of those responders were there.
The meeting was about 60 miles away, there was a very heavy snow event, and the ham radio club thought it'd be fun to take the van we were working on. The owner of the ambulance company drove.
I remember the speedo hovering at no less than 75 mph, and creeping up towards 90, as I *stood*, stabilizing myself against a shelf as we barreled down the 2 lane farm road. I remember being both terrified yet sort of serene, knowing that the driver should have had enough experience to not kill us all.
One winter evening, there was some sort of meeting with the responders of a plane crash in Iowa, the one that cartwheeled down the runway after it lost hydraulics. A lot of those responders were there.
The meeting was about 60 miles away, there was a very heavy snow event, and the ham radio club thought it'd be fun to take the van we were working on. The owner of the ambulance company drove.
I remember the speedo hovering at no less than 75 mph, and creeping up towards 90, as I *stood*, stabilizing myself against a shelf as we barreled down the 2 lane farm road. I remember being both terrified yet sort of serene, knowing that the driver should have had enough experience to not kill us all.
Last edited:
not weather per se but i rode up to port clinton to fish one friday evening.
ran into the mayfly hatch.
so bad i slowed to 15mph.
the streets were being cleared by snowplows.
found out what a gl1500(goldwing) acts like on ice.
yes smashed mayflies are that slick on a bike.
ran into the mayfly hatch.
so bad i slowed to 15mph.
the streets were being cleared by snowplows.
found out what a gl1500(goldwing) acts like on ice.
yes smashed mayflies are that slick on a bike.
Originally Posted by Leo99
Originally Posted by bbhero
Originally Posted by Leo99
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
We've been very happily married for 17 years.
Like I said... True dedication to the cause
Originally Posted by bbhero
Originally Posted by Leo99
Went on a first date with a lovely lady. Gave her a kiss goodnight and drove about 35 minutes home. When I got home around midnight, she left a message to call her. When I called her she invited me to spend the night at her house. I drove 45 minutes to her house in the thickest fog I've ever seen. Visibility was like 50 to 100 yards at some points. The drive was well worth it!
That's called... "True dedication to the cause"
We've been very happily married for 17 years.
Like I said... True dedication to the cause
