Heading home from A-basin Saturday I got some good evidence that front wheel drive and all-season tires just doesn't cut it for Colorado skiing.
Getting near the top of Loveland Pass, we came upon a couple cars stopped and spinning their tires.
What was remarkable about these conditions is the snow was all windblown. There was no new snow in 24 hours and only an inch in 48 hours. With blue skies all day, you'd think the road would be clear enough for just about any vehicle, with maybe some packed snow at the top of the pass the worst of it.
The wind blew 4-6" on top of packed snow/ice and it was REALLY slick on the last steep pitch to the top. Even with three people pushing, the red car couldn't make any forward progress. The silver front wheel drive Volvo couldn't go either. He finally got turned around and headed back down the pass adding an hour or so to his drive!
So, I decided to give my new snow tires a test and see if I could pull the little red car to the top. I really didn't have much confidence given how slick it was, but thought it was worth a try.
It turned out to be surprisingly easy. One little red car with California plates delivered to the top of Loveland pass by studded Nokian Hakkapeliitta 7's and a V8 Toyota 4x4 in 4-low:
It wasn't just those cars having trouble. Looking back down, it was such a sh*t show I could have spent the rest of the afternoon pulling cars up. After seeing a gas tanker coming up (with chains I hope) and trying to pass all the stuck cars in the other lane , we decided to report the mess to CSP and head home.
From the CDOT app, it looked like Loveland Pass closed for a while to clean up the mess then they sent hazmat through the tunnel at the top of the hour the rest of the night because of the poor conditions on the pass. Again, this is on a day with no new snow!
Moral of the story is get some snow tires if you drive a 2WD vehicle skiing in Colorado. Even on a nice day for driving, you may truly need them.
Getting near the top of Loveland Pass, we came upon a couple cars stopped and spinning their tires.
What was remarkable about these conditions is the snow was all windblown. There was no new snow in 24 hours and only an inch in 48 hours. With blue skies all day, you'd think the road would be clear enough for just about any vehicle, with maybe some packed snow at the top of the pass the worst of it.
The wind blew 4-6" on top of packed snow/ice and it was REALLY slick on the last steep pitch to the top. Even with three people pushing, the red car couldn't make any forward progress. The silver front wheel drive Volvo couldn't go either. He finally got turned around and headed back down the pass adding an hour or so to his drive!
So, I decided to give my new snow tires a test and see if I could pull the little red car to the top. I really didn't have much confidence given how slick it was, but thought it was worth a try.
It turned out to be surprisingly easy. One little red car with California plates delivered to the top of Loveland pass by studded Nokian Hakkapeliitta 7's and a V8 Toyota 4x4 in 4-low:
It wasn't just those cars having trouble. Looking back down, it was such a sh*t show I could have spent the rest of the afternoon pulling cars up. After seeing a gas tanker coming up (with chains I hope) and trying to pass all the stuck cars in the other lane , we decided to report the mess to CSP and head home.
From the CDOT app, it looked like Loveland Pass closed for a while to clean up the mess then they sent hazmat through the tunnel at the top of the hour the rest of the night because of the poor conditions on the pass. Again, this is on a day with no new snow!
Moral of the story is get some snow tires if you drive a 2WD vehicle skiing in Colorado. Even on a nice day for driving, you may truly need them.
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