MN winter digout 2010

[Ajax]

@18” of snow, one collapsed Metrodome, and 1000s of people calling tow trucks to get them out of the snow. Screw that. Get out your shovel and start digging.
Here’s pics of my Saturday spent digging for roughly 8 hours:

Walkway to the front of my bldg.

Path to the steps from the sidewalk (this is normally a 3 car length driveway loop)

Driveway to my garage. Just big enough for the caretaker’s buick to fit.

Handkerchief is actually frozen to my hair in this pic- That’s ice, not snow. This was after the morning shoveling.

Here’s my ice beard. Mustache freezes first, then the rest of the beard starts developing little ice droplets.

Next morning, I had to dig my car out. I helped about 6 people unstuck their cars over the weekend, including one girl who could not quite figure out how to get her wheels straight- I catually had her roll down the window and turned the wheel for her.

After getting this far, the guy in front of me needed a longer jumper cable. The neat little bag for my cables was so frozen that the clear cellophane front practically shattered- the zipper is now essentially pointless.

Getting the car out wasn’t really that hard. Mainly because I’m not an idiot like so many other people out there on the roads. It was much colder Sunday morning, so I donned some better head protection.

I like how my eyebrows look like extra mustaches- Extra creepy.

[Dattebayo]

I like how my eyebrows look like extra mustaches- Extra creepy.

That would only be creepy if you could eat with your eyeballs.

[Bubba1]

I think it was ABC news who ran a pretty cool video this morning taken from inside the Metrodome when the roof caved in....

[breadbox]

ajax: "Mr. Plow, That's my name. That name again is Mr. Plow."

[alms24sebring]

yeah take that Brett Favre.

Thats the problem with snow, the more of it, the more shovelin time. I say screw that... it'll melt (hint: I'm lazy). The 36 inches we got last year in DC was crazy and ALOT of shoveling, but hoping for round 2. But in the meantime, its only been raining for 2 days

[Ajax]

ajax: "Mr. Plow, That's my name. That name again is Mr. Plow."

MNDOT shut down the plows on Saturday- white-out conditions with no visibility. I'm dreading parking on the street tonight- I can't imagine the plows really got things cleared anyway. What's strange though, is I kind of like shovelling.

I sympathize with you DC people- last year was brutal and you probably don't have near as many plows, etc as we do.

[alms24sebring]

^ yep, even the plows were getting stuck. It took 2 weeks in some areas for some backroads to be plowed. Not to mention VDOT has done some STUPID things in the passed couple years.

Last year I think, the area was warned about an ice storm. VDOT decided not to set salt because they thought it was ganna be rain only, even though the weather channels predicted ice. It hit right at rush hour and there were so many accidents that the roads literally stopped in all directions. It took hours and hours for people to get 20 miles, some people had to abandoned their cars. It was so bad and they got in alot of trouble. Luckily I wasn't in all of that.

Just last week we were expected to get freezing temps. VDOT put down the WRONG chemical (liquid magnesium), which apperently made the roads even slicker, causing about a dozon more accidents.

I want it again !!

[Dattebayo]

I sympathize with you DC people- last year was brutal and you probably don't have near as many plows, etc as we do.

It's not the number of plows, really, but the KIND of plows we have. We only have stuff meant for less than a foot. We also have plow operators who don't understand that plowing is an activity that needs to occur under 20 MPH. A lot of the trucks were down for maintenance because of all the stupid as$holes who drove them.

Also, VA is incredibly stupid. The north and south parts really and honestly need to be separate states.

[alms24sebring]

^QFT

I might have to agree that the north and south are COMPLETELY different worlds.

Anybody that can drive a truck has a winter job that pays very well I might add

[OriginalWheelman]

Wait, is this supposed to be a lot of snow? :P

J/K I know it can be a pain for people who aren't used to it, but that's normal stuff here. I always get a good lol from people when they are "OMG HOW DO I HANDLE THIS!" I was talking online to a kid I know in MN and he was going out and shoveling every few hours. That will kill you. Best thing you can do is wait until it stops and shovel once.

[Dattebayo]

I was talking online to a kid I know in MN and he was going out and shoveling every few hours. That will kill you. Best thing you can do is wait until it stops and shovel once.

Not so true. The only thing that saves us poor southern bastards from icy walks is shoveling and salting every few hours. Also, some people have to get places even in bad weather.

[IanS]

I was talking online to a kid I know in MN and he was going out and shoveling every few hours. That will kill you. Best thing you can do is wait until it stops and shovel once.

No.

If you have ever tried shoveling 20" of snow, you would understand.

Seriously though, who needs a shovel. Thats why I bought a truck. All I did was get in, start her up, and drive backwards. The plowed up bank was higher than the rear bumper.

[troskinatior]

That doesnt seem like that much. Didnt the tristate get like 2 feet like 4 diffrent times last year? I thought MN got hammered with snow but I guess not.
And heres the vid if someone hasnt seen it
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_uscBJn0p0[/youtube]

[Rev_D21]

We have sold 8 of these Model 367 plow trucks out of our shop since last year. Almost $200k each, these are some serious snow trucks!

[IanS]

That doesnt seem like that much. Didnt the tristate get like 2 feet like 4 diffrent times last year? I thought MN got hammered with snow but I guess not.
And heres the vid if someone hasnt seen it

We get hammered a few times a year normally, but not like this. We usually get 8" to 10" at a time. This was between 18" and 23" depending on the area, in a twelve hour period. Add in the winds blowing up to 45 mph, and the seriously sub freezing temps, and you have a nasty storm. Its rare for the city center to take such a hit in such a short time. It was the 5th biggest snow storm in the cities history.

The Metrodome is very old as stadiums go. Snow normally slides off the slick teflon roof, but when the snow was coming down so fast, it apparently didn't work as planned.

If you want to see real snowfall, look at the UP of Michigan. I love UP winters.

[OriginalWheelman]

I was talking online to a kid I know in MN and he was going out and shoveling every few hours. That will kill you. Best thing you can do is wait until it stops and shovel once.

No.

If you have ever tried shoveling 20" of snow, you would understand.

Seriously though, who needs a shovel. Thats why I bought a truck. All I did was get in, start her up, and drive backwards. The plowed up bank was higher than the rear bumper.

I have shoveled 20" of snow, on more than 1 occasion. I live in Buffalo and it snows here constantly. It's less work to shovel 20" of snow than to shovel 5" of snow 4 times. The type of snow you guys are talking about happens at least 3 times a year here.

[Eikon]

There is a big difference between snow in MN and snow in upstate NY. I know this because I lived in Western Wisconsin for years and recently moved to NE Ohio.
The snowstorms in the midwest drop thick, heavy, wet snow that weighs a freaking TON and is really hard to shovel and move.
The lake effect snow off lake Erie is light and wispy and easy to shovel.

We currently have 20"+ of snow that has fallen since monday morning and we're supposed to get another 6" or more by tomorrow morning. I would say it's equivalent to about 10" of MN or WI snowstorm snow.

just saying...

[troskinatior]

I thought the west had really light powdery snow, isnt that why everybody wants to ski/snowboard there other then the awesomeness of the mountins

[Eikon]

I thought the west had really light powdery snow, isnt that why everybody wants to ski/snowboard there other then the awesomeness of the mountins

Yeah... West.. like California, Utah, Colorado.

We're talking about the middle of the country (WI, MN, IL, IA, etc..)

[troskinatior]

Oh never mind then, I missed midwest part

[skydragoness]

Pfffff. You're in MN, I thought your state is capable of handling that and much more.

Last winter when we got 20-29" ( lots of higher snow drifts, etc) in the Philly/Baltimore/D.C. area and it pretty much crippled everything. Not enough plow trucks. I really don't want to think about last winter anymore. :/

[Speedy7_7]

Were good now, I guess a couple of neighborhood streets didn't get plowed at all until today but all the major roads are just salt and tar.... again! I hate salt..... and tar.

[OriginalWheelman]

There is a big difference between snow in MN and snow in upstate NY. I know this because I lived in Western Wisconsin for years and recently moved to NE Ohio.
The snowstorms in the midwest drop thick, heavy, wet snow that weighs a freaking TON and is really hard to shovel and move.
The lake effect snow off lake Erie is light and wispy and easy to shovel.

We currently have 20"+ of snow that has fallen since monday morning and we're supposed to get another 6" or more by tomorrow morning. I would say it's equivalent to about 10" of MN or WI snowstorm snow.

just saying...

NE Ohio is NOT Western NY. Being on the leeward of the great lakes (not under them) we get TONS of snow of both kinds. Every time one of these storms comes across the lakes they get stronger and dump it all on us. Storms gain momentum over water, and dump off on landfall. Western New York gets the worst of it being at the foot of the Appalachian Plateau. Storms frequently sit over Buffalo for days. We get constant lake effect, which is the light snow you are talking about but like I said snow like the MN storm happens about 3 times a year. We has snow like that last week, and we will probably get it again as this storm moves over us.

[Eikon]

You W. New Yorkers get so defensive about your snow. I never said NE Ohio gets as much lake effect snow as Buffalo, just that we do get it. We are in the last of a 3-4 day stretch right now that will total about 26". So I've had enough experience with the lake effect stuff to say that it is not like the big storms that hit the midwest. In the midwest the snow falls fast and heavy and is really hard for road crews to stay ahead of. The lake effect stuff piles up higher, but takes days to pile up, so it can be cleared and managed more easily. Most of the snow totals for the year along the southeastern and eastern shores of lake Erie are from lake effect snow. Buffalo averages 93", Cleveland 56", my town is a little over 60", MPLS is about 50". What I'm saying is that on those few occasions when big storms roll through the midwest, they are more difficult to deal with than what you are used to in Buffalo. Sure, you get more of it, but it's not as bad as you think.
What you really have going for you is the warmer weather.. I sure don't miss the week long bouts with high temps below zero. Being a little further south, further from the central canadian sheild that generates the rediculously cold arctic thrusts, and having the lakes around to moderate things makes for a much more pleasant winter!

[Ajax]

I was never bragging about how hardcore the snow was; although this is definitely the worst I've seen since I've lived here for almost 10 years (raised in TX, grew up in Chicago).
However, I might add that I was shovelling all this with a portable trunk snow shovel- @8" wide.

[Eikon]

no it wasn't you. Wheelman and I took it off on a "who's snow is worse" tangent. Actually it was pretty much me. lol

[MinisterofDOOM]

I sympathize with you DC people- last year was brutal and you probably don't have near as many plows, etc as we do.

The city I work in actually can't afford to salt or sand their roads this year, and their plow budget is not where it should be either. So far, the 3 minor snowstorms we've had this year have left the roads in Ogden worse than I've seen elsewhere in the state under even the worst blizzard conditions. I've been driving a huge variety of cars (gutless front drivers, heavy rear-drivers, 2wd trucks, and more) for 10 years now, and on surfaces including solid-ice freeways, and I've NEVER felt more nervous than on those 3 trips. As with most things, I guess, it takes the absence of proper road care in the winter to drive home just how big a difference it makes.

[IanS]

You W. New Yorkers get so defensive about everything

Fixed that for you>

[Jesda]

Its not that bad here in the winter, but summer can be brutal. I still play outside whether its 100F or 10F. I'm considering studded bike tires, but the cars still have all seasons.

I've also learned over the years that Ford > * when it comes to electronic traction control.