Snow Joke...

My office move is complete and not only was today my first drive to my new Station, this was my first time driving in snow.

It was NOT nice.

This morning wasn't too bad. There was a light covering on paths but the newly gritted roads were fine for driving on.  I got to work at 7.30 with no trouble at all. 

However, by 9am, the snow had mounted.  By 12 o'clock the snow was probably about 15cm deep and a message from HQ was sent to say that all none operational staff were being sent home.  This was it- my first drive in snow.  It. Was. Horrible. 

My route home contains hills- fairly steep hills at that, and of course if I could get up them- I also had to get back down.  The roads through Walsall centre were fairly okay, it was only once I reached the main crossroads that it all started to get interesting.  Although painfully snow, I got through the town centre and up the first hill without any trouble.  I was feeling quite proud of myself so far in fact- pulling off in second gear, taking the down slope in first and the journey was going fairly smoothly though I was panicking behind the wheel.  However, I wasn't even half way home and this three mile stretch had taken me about 35 minutes.  My normal commuting times is 25-30 minutes! The roads after the first hill had gotten progressively worse in that time, and when I finally reached hill challenge two I could feel Franko's tyres slipping slightly.  I stayed calm, reduced speed and brought him some pretty awsome (if I do say so myself) clutch skills to control it going up the hill.  Hill three, was lurking about 10 minutes round the bend an I started to see my first people skidding around and cars stopping at the side of the road.  I navigated the down slope of hill three pretty perfectly, passing a number of people struggling to get up on the other side.  The next hour, involved painfully slow, ankle aching clutch use as poor little Franko drove along at 15mph maximum.  Hill four was all downhill and here I felt my ABS kick in.  Skidding just feels awful- you feel the car being pulled in opposite directions but it's good how much of your driving instinct kicks in and you just do what you need to whilst bearing in mind all the advice and tips for winter driving.  The last hour was the worst.  The roads were just treacherous and I was getting really hungry and thirsty. People were skidding, sliding and I felt like little Franko was struggling to keep in an adequate gear for the inclines and grip. Aside from the odd Wanker, most drivers were sensible and took it pretty easy.

The snowier side roads close to home were actually moderately better and provided some welcome grip from the slush I'd been sliding in for two hours.  I pulled in and covered up Franko in his snow blanket. He did pretty well considering he's just a little 1.2. :-)  I'm considering investing in some Snow Socks for him.

I have rarely been so relieved to just get back home in the warmth. It took just over two hours.  I'm proud of myself for managing to get home safely though I have to admit to feeling incredibly anxious the whole time.

Stay safe out there folks! Where's my cuppa....