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03-23-2013, 08:13 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Workhorse Chassis Owner
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Parker, CO
Posts: 185
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not sure how the roads are south in the springs but here in the Parker area, the roads are downright icy--had to go out twice today, once in the Chevy & then in the Jeep... didn't enjoy either trip--I wouldn't want to do it in my coach
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2011 Ford F250 Lariat C/C 6.7 PSD-Curt 20k Lb Hitch
2013 Infinity 3860MS 5'er
2009 Jeep Wrangler Sahara/U.S. Navy 1978-1986
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03-23-2013, 08:30 PM
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#16
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Palm Coast Florida
Posts: 12,995
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This has to be a white knucked drive if I ever heard one. And cleaning the rig after this trip....yikes.
Spring Break...how old are you? Oh that's right Colorado is as wacky as Cali. Toke up and go for it.
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03-23-2013, 08:46 PM
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#17
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Fulltime, USA
Posts: 16,706
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I dont go where it is cold or hot. But if it dumps on Southern AZ, I will not drive on it. I did enough of that in cars in MN.
Nope! No snow. No salt. Not for my baby!
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03-23-2013, 08:46 PM
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#18
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Senior Member
Country Coach Owners Club Solo Rvers Club iRV2 No Limits Club
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Vancouver, WA
Posts: 37,725
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Quote:
Originally Posted by doublechevy
I drove my motor home a 40' DP with a 22' enclosed trailer in tow, car inside of trailer In the PA. mountains 6" snow covered road still snowing. No problems or issues whatsoever But then again I am a very confident driver. Even called 911 to alert State Police that there was a semi jacknifed and blocking two of the travel lanes on I 81
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We didn't have an enclosed trailer on but had one of the cars. No problem at all, even watching cars and trucks slide off the road in front of us. In some cases the people were still climbing out of their stuck vehicles. Do I like doing it? NO, but it can be done.
__________________
2009 45' Magna 630 w/Cummins ISX 650 HP/1950 Lbs Ft, HWH Active Air
Charter Good Sam Lifetime Member, FMCA,
RV'ing since 1957, NRA Benefactor Life, towing '21 Jeep JLU Rubicon Ecodiesel
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03-23-2013, 09:41 PM
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#19
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Kansas City
Posts: 257
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Got caught in snow this Thursday returning from a spring break trip. I won't be taking another trip like that in march. The wipers were horrible icing up couldn't see. The roads were bad, couldn't pass or change lanes for fear you'd catch a rut. If you have time wait the storm out driving in it plain sucks, these arnt SUV's.
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2013 Thor ACE 29.2
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03-23-2013, 11:10 PM
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#20
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Bainbridge Island, Wa
Posts: 557
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We accidently drove our Kountry Star and toad over the pass last weekend in the snow. There was no warning about snow on the pass road although it was snowing. When we realized there was SNOW on the road, we pulled right and drove about 20 mph. When we started down the other side, we drove in the ruts left by a Dutch Star and a 18 wheeler. We drove 20 mph until the pavement was wet and no slush.
Drive slow. We did pass a sleek german sports coupe facing backwards and in the ditch.
It was white knuckles and certainly wouldnt do it on purpose.
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03-24-2013, 01:49 AM
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#21
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Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 21
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driving in the snow
I have a 2011 Bounder 33U towing a Jeep Wrangler.
March 8, on the return trip from our maiden voyage, drove up from Sedona through Flagstaff and East. Just as I got on the highway, it started snowing fairly hard. Within a half hour, we had passed 3 cars off in the ditches with the drivers climbing out. Not exactly fun! I wouldn't intentionally drive in that kind of weather, but the coach was very stable and I just took it slow and easy. Never felt at all like I didn't have good control. I am from Chicago area, and we don't let weather bother us too much, but we don't have mountains to contend with ( or even hills ).
If you are worried, don't do it. It's not worth it.
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03-24-2013, 10:06 AM
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#22
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Winnipeg Manitoba Canada
Posts: 165
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Was planning on traveling south this week to southern Missouri to get in some golf (nice idea considering we still have 4 ft of snow on the ground up here) but after seeing I 70 between Kansa City and St. Louis, we're staying put. Hear another storm is going to be pushing through. After a lifetime of driving on snow and ice (car/4x4/Class A) I will avoid it, (esp. with the Class A) when ever I can. Not saying it can't or shouldn't be done but part of the travelling is to get away from the stresses of life. If the knuckles start turning white, it's time to get off the road. Travel safe.
__________________
Stephen and Barb
Sasha and Bear 1999 Dolphin 5371
F53 with 96 Grand Cherokee toad
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03-24-2013, 10:24 AM
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#23
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Wyoming
Posts: 733
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If I were going to drive a MH in snowy conditions I would want tire chains. Like many of the posts driving a MH in those conditions is a lot different than driving a small car. In a small car if you start to skid you just turn into the skid. In a large vehicle like a MH or bus you may not be able to turn the steering wheel enough to control the skid. I was transporting a load of prisoners in a tandem Crown bus and went into a skid on just wet pavement. All turned out OK but I can say I learned enough in those few moments that got my attention for a life time driving a bus or MH in slippery conditions. Just a second of not paying attention can turn into a real bad experience. The main lesson I learned is drive slow and don't become over confident whatever you are driving. When other cars and trucks are whizzing by don't get sucked in driving over your ability. JMHO
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03-24-2013, 10:47 AM
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#24
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Senior Member
Newmar Owners Club Freightliner Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Weston, Fl.
Posts: 916
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cspringsrv
We have a 2009 Itasca 35J that we would like to get on the road for spring break. The weather in Colordo is pretty bad until Tuesday, and that would not give us enought time for the trip to Flagstaff/Phoenix areas. I live in Colorado Springs, and store our RV in Pueblo. I would like to drive to Pueblo (60 miles) and bring the RV home to un-winterize, load, and get on the road tomorrow. Quite a bit on snow on the roads today, and wondering if I would be crazy to try to pick it up and get on the road. How does a 35 foot RV do in snow? How would driving Raton Pass be if snowy? I have no problem driving my 4 wheel drive Pathfinder, and did drive from Boulder last night. We also live on a pretty steep (sledding hill grade) road, so how does an RV do getting going from stopped on dry snow pack? Thanks for any input
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I don't think the REWARD is worth the RISK in this case. Play it safe and leave it parked until conditions are better and you feel like you can drive safely. IMHO.
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2003 Newmar Kountry Star 3905, Freightliner XC chassis with CAT 330. Winnie the black lab, pretty Airbus captain wife, retired airline pilot with 11 grandkids. UH-1 pilot (Huey) U.S. Army 1967-1983. RVN 68-69. Northern Idaho my summer home.
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03-24-2013, 11:59 AM
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#25
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Member
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 57
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Thanks for all the input. We considered all of it, and went to a comedy (Kathleen Madigan) show last night instead of packing. Driving to the show on the interstate, the roads were dry and great. Beautiful sunny day today and only maybe a trace of snow predicted until tomorrow, so might get on the road early in the morning. Figure the traffic today will clear most of the salt and chemicals, so tomorrow should be smooth sailing. I think we will just pick up the RV with a couple of cases of gallon water jugs, and un-winterize once in AZ
Thanks again for the input.
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03-24-2013, 12:29 PM
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#26
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Senior Member
Workhorse Chassis Owner
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Palisade CO
Posts: 3,588
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Due to family emergencies I have driven in snowy weather twice.
The roads were pretty clear but the snow coming down and hitting the windshield iced the wipers up and lifted them off the windshield.
I had the defrosters and heater going full blast with the two overhead fans blowing right on the windshield and still could not keep the wipers clear.
In both cases I was finally able to find a wide spot to pull over and clear them. I was on two lane roads so that wasn't easy.
After the last trip I told my wife that I would not drive in those conditions ever again. It's not worth our lives.
__________________
Clay WA5NMR - Ex Snowbird - 1 year, Ex Full timer for 11 years - 2004 Winnebago Sightseer 35N Workhorse chassis. Honda Accord toad.
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03-24-2013, 01:21 PM
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#27
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 154
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My advice is slightly different:
1-For sure, don't do it if you don't feel comfortable.
2-On the other hand, if you are going to travel a lot in your RV, it is almost inevitable there are going to be times that you hit inclement weather including snow or ice.
3-If you are fortunate to be on a relaxed schedule and can just wait the storm out, great. If not, you need to learn how to drive your rig in those conditions.
4-Driving from Csprings to Pueblo and back would have been a great learning opportunity as it is relatively flat but with a few small hills to get the feel on grades.
5-If your rig is a diesel pusher it will do pretty good as far as drive traction because of all the weight over the rear axle, just like an old VW bug.
6-Stopping traction is pretty good too as long as you remember you are stopping a lot of weight. All you need to do is go a LOT slower and start stopping sooner.
7-I have mixed feelings about chains. You have to know how to put them on correctly or they can severely damage your coach, and they are a pain to install especially in the middle of a snow storm. However, the traction and stopping power they provided is undisputed.
8-Another option is to adjust your tire pressure. I have an onboard air compressor that allows me to inflate any of my tires up to 115 psi. Last weekend I came back to Denver from a trip to Moab. I have a 34' DP and I was towing a 7,000 lb trailer/rock crawler combo. When we came over Vail Pass and the tunnel the commercial vehicle chain law was in effect. I didn't have chains but I had to get home for work on Monday. I aired down my rear tires from 100 psi to 80 psi. The roads were snow packed with black ice in places and 30-40 mph winds. With the tires aired down I never spun a wheel and there was a LOT of stop & go both on uphill grades as well as the downhill side. For those that don't know this stretch of I-70, were talking long 6% to 7% grades. I never went over 25 mph going uphill as I only wanted to maintain momentum. Going downhill I did no more than 10 mph most of the way and on the black ice even less. There were places cars were sliding off the road trying to stop and I never slid once.
9-This wasn't my idea of a good time but honestly, I never once felt like I was on the verge of being out of control. You just have to be willing to accept that going 3-4 mph in places with a big stopping distance in front of you is perfectly OK, don't get in a hurry.
10-Once we got down near Idaho Springs it turned to slush and wet roads so I stopped and aired back up to 100 psi. My total distance driven at very slow speed was about 30 miles so there was no concern about damaging the tires under those conditions. Just remember to air back up any time conditions improve enough to allow you to go above 30 mph for an extended period.
11-I could have stopped and waited for the weather to improve, but I went over the pass at about Noon. A few hours later the conditions were even worse and accidents closed the highway for hours. Friends of ours coming back from the same trip in 4x4's didn't get home until 5am Monday due to the closures.
12-As far as the windshield icing up, I used to have that problem too. The DP's just don't get enough heat to the cab defroster for the severe conditions. I installed a curtain that goes from ceiling to floor right behind the driver/passengers seats. I also have a small ceramic disc heater that works off of the inverter when driving. I can close the curtain, turn the ceramic heater on, crank up the dash defroster to full and use the overhead defroster fans. It will melt the ice on the windshield in the worst conditions. They key is the curtain and the supplemental heater, otherwise you will never develop enough heat to keep the windshield clear.
I do most of my traveling to race tracks for 3 day weekends and I have to be back Sunday night. Living in Colorado it's tough to do that and not eventually have to drive in bad weather. So for me, if the conditions are really, really bad I will stop. But the rest of the time, I just drive super slow, leaves tons of distance to stop and air down the rear tires. Its not for everyone, don't do it if you're not comfortable, but don't be afraid to start learning how to handle it if you get caught in a situation where stopping isn't an option.
__________________
2013 Thor Palazzo 33.2
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03-24-2013, 01:39 PM
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#28
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Community Administrator
Fleetwood Owners Club Workhorse Chassis Owner
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Marquette, Michigan "Da UP" & Lehigh Acres Florida
Posts: 21,870
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Here's a link to "the rest of the story".
http://www.irv2.com/forums/f258/anot...ice-84566.html
Quote:
Originally Posted by woodburner
Feeling comfortable driving a car or 4 wheel drive SUV is one thing; the dynamics change considerably when the vehicle is a 35ft. sail that is not meant for driving in the snow.
I sure wouldn't do it.

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__________________
John & Cathy R.
06 Pace Arrow 38L Workhorse W24
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