Joe,
My Dad found that keeping the snow off our 200 yard long gravel driveway
just ended up making it into a big mud river when the snow thawed. The snow
banks would channel the water down the driveway and wash away truck loads of
gravel. He left the tractor in the barn one year as an experiment and just
drove through the snow, packing a trail with the Jeeps all winter for Mom's
Rabbit. In the spring the packed ruts were the last to melt and the
driveway didn't wash away. More than 25 Michigan winters later he still
doesn't use the tractor to push snow, and hasn't had to add any new gravel
to the driveway. No point fighting Mother Nature, when it'll all melt
sooner or later anyway.
Speaking of your four season LSR, Dad taught me a BIG lesson in rolling
resistance one winter when I came up from Virginia to visit. I had my Jeep
Wagoneer, with the big 360 V8 and 10.50-15 mud tires, and he had his little
256 six cylinder J10 with some skinny Tiempo all weather radials. We
must've been coming home from Grandma's or something, early in the morning
after a heavy snowfall. The road along the hay fields had drifted over to a
depth of about two fee, and if anyone else had been down the road that
morning there was no sign of it. Being the young stud I was, I figured I'd
show Dad what a real Jeep could do, and pulled out to try to pass him...and
tried, and tried, and tried somemore. I just couldn't get anywhere unless I
was following along in his skinny ruts. Meanwhile he's cutting along
through two feet of powdery snow like it was a summer day. Dad never
mentioned seeing or hearing me try to pass him, but I know he saw me... and
he was smiling!
How does 4X4 stuff relate to LSR? Well...I suppose it shows that a narrow
tire is desireable on surfaces where flotation isn't necessary. My
experience with Jeeps on Carolina beach sand has also taught me that
completely bald 235-70's will get you through the sand faster than brand new
265-75's that are constantly trying to dig their own graves. I mention this
just in case any of John's new East Coast LSR venues are "Nostalga meets."
Too bad my own Onslow Beach isn't like Daytona Beach. The five plus miles
of uninhabited beach sure looks inviting, but even at 30 MPH the roller
coaster like ride along the south strand at low tide is enough to make you
vomit.
Chuck "Procrastination IS hereditary?" Rothfuss
ECTA #9 for 2000
Pole Cat Hollow, NC (Ain't been no barefoot mailbox checkin' round here lately!)
At 10:52 PM 1/26/2000 +0000, Joe Timney wrote:
One foot of snow doesn't sound like much... until you have to shovel
>it.
>
>joe ( cold and sore)
|