Slick roads, ice, snow and old-fashioned winters

By Rennie Phillips

A few days ago we had a storm blow through this area in Missouri, and we ended up with some slick roads. It was noot as bad as they were forecasting though. Our local news channel had us getting up to a half inch of freezing rain. Instead we got a little freezing rain, and it was kind of scattered as well.

It was not bad in most places. The ground was warm enough to help keep it from getting real bad. I think the only places where it was really slick was on bridges and overpasses, where there were a number of accidents.

We have lived in a number of places since Marge and I were married. For a few years we lived in Oklahoma, where it got slick with ice but really not a lot of snow. It never seemed like the roads in Oklahoma were that bad. But we were younger, which I think makes winter seem more fun. I enjoy a little winter now, but a little will do me.

We also lived in Kentucky, where it got slick from ice, but there seemed like there was quite a bit of snow. There was enough snow in Kentucky to do some sledding. I could have been seriously injured sledding down a hill one time. There happened to be a piece of rebar sticking up through the snow, which the boys and I didn't see. I definitely had a guardian angel watching out over me that day.

Here in Missouri it seems we get a little snow, but more often its seems to be freezing rain and ice, which I don't like. It's hard to deal with on the sidewalks and roads, and even on the ground where we live. Probably 10 years ago or so we had a storm blow through with rain, snow and freezing rain. A lot of the buildings in our area lost their roofs because of the weight. We had built a machine shed with a tin roof, and there was a good five or six inches of ice on it's roof. It was just unreal. I had overbuilt the shed, so it made it through the storm. I tend to overbuild whatever I do, which in this case was a good habit.

Contrary to what many believe, a four-wheel drive helps on ice, but not much. When the roads are icy they are flat slick, and a four-wheeler isn't a whole lot better then a two-wheel drive. Four-wheel drive makes a lot of difference on snow, but not ice. One thing about a four-wheel drive: When you get one stuck, you are stuck.

Back in Nebraska we might have gotten sleet, but hardly ever freezing rain. We did get a lot of snow. Growing up, Dad never had a decent four-wheel drive. He did have an old International four-wheel drive when I was in high school, but it was hard to start even when it was warm. It rode like a lumber wagon with no springs. As tough as that old pickup was it's probably still running somewhere. One time a pot-belly cattle truck got stuck up at Grandpa Piihl's place. Dad hooked up the old International to the truck, put her in granny low and just crawled out with the big semi. Most of those there couldn't believe it.

The wind would blow from the north, so the snow would drift and fill in all the east-west roads. Dad couldn't drive in the road, so he'd drive through the pastures, sticking to the places with little, if any, snow. We lived two miles off the main road, so we probably drove four miles getting to it. Some of the drifts could be as deep as eight feet. Eventually the county would send out a road grader to clear the roads.

The main roads would be snow covered and slick from packed snow. Back then, many people would put studded snow tires on their vehicles in the winter. Dad did. There would be little metal studs all around the tire to dig into the ice and provide traction. Nebraska had certain months of the year where you could run studded tires. The rest of the time you had to run regular snow tires. I remember Dad wanted me to remove the studs from a set of studded tires so he could go ahead and run them and wear them out. Actually, it wasn't that hard getting them out.

There were a few times when Mom and Dad had to get to the road and town for some reason. The roads would be full of snow, and even up in the hills and pastures there would be snow. So Dad would pretty much drag the car up to the road with a tractor. Dad never had a cab on his tractors, so you know it was cold. I can't remember if he left the tractor up by the road, but he probably did. Those old tractors were six-volt outfits, and they didn't want to start when it was cold out. Eventually everyone switched to eight-volt batteries, which made a world of difference.

If all else failed, one could rely on old-fashioned horse power. Many a time we'd saddle up a horse and checked the cattle on them. Some of the bigger outfits used teams of horses to feed cattle during the winter. Most would use a six-horse team. I can barely remember Dad having a team of work horses. The only memory I have is standing on the hay sled holding the reins.

Those were the good-old days, or so they say. It was a slower time where not getting to town for milk and bread was no big deal.

Each season is different. Enjoy the winter while it's here.

But be careful out there. Just remember, spring is coming with warmer weather.