Defensive snow driving schools? (legal, safety, move)

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Unless you have anti-lock brakes then you DON'T want to tap them. I think some of the driving schools will take you out in the winter to learn to drive in snow.

I do have anti-lock brakes, but I am not aware of that actually being different in cars that don't. Isn't it typical that cars will have anti-lock brakes nowadays, anyway?

Regardless, you sure as heck don't want to slam them and if you are already down in 2nd or 3rd instead of D4, you probably won't be going fast enough that there's any risk of your brakes locking on you...

See Paragraph #3:

How to steer a car on ice

[srsmn]

And step #5 on this one, too:

How to Drive in the Snow | eHow.com

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by srsmn

I do have anti-lock brakes, but I am not aware of that actually being different in cars that don't. Isn't it typical that cars will have anti-lock brakes nowadays, anyway?

Regardless, you sure as heck don't want to slam them and if you are already down in 2nd or 3rd instead of D4, you probably won't be going fast enough that there's any risk of your brakes locking on you...

See Paragraph #3:

How to steer a car on ice

Originally Posted by srsmn

And step #5 on this one, too:

How to Drive in the Snow | eHow.com

Those are fine and dandy but if you tap your brakes with anti-lock breaks the anti-lock feature does not work. Apply slow, even pressure with anti-lock breaks, DO NOT TAP your brakes if you have anti-lock breaks--which is quite different than slamming on your brakes.

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Those are fine and dandy but if you tap your brakes with anti-lock breaks the anti-lock feature does not work. Apply slow, even pressure with anti-lock breaks, DO NOT TAP your brakes if you have anti-lock breaks--which is quite different than slamming on your brakes.

Sorry, Golfgal, but I am a bit confused: what do you mean the anti-lock brakes "don't work"? Do you mean that you'll lock up if you tap your brakes? Because that has never happened to me...

The reason you want to tap instead of apply pressure or-- worse-- slam your brakes is because if you catch on ice, you need traction. The physics of braking (essentially) is to decrease traction until your car can't move forward anymore. It is fine to decrease your traction and roll to your stop on asphalt. On ice, though, you're at the mercy of the ice: you'll glide and spin. So, the reason to tap your brakes is to control as best you can the amount of traction your tires have on the ice, because if you lose that traction too quickly, you'll spin.

Again, this is just how I have learned it. And I do find that cars are much easier to stop on ice when you tap instead of brake regularly. So, the OP has both of our advice...he or she can take it or leave it

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by srsmn

Again, this is just how I have learned it. And I do find that cars are much easier to stop on ice when you tap instead of brake regularly. So, the OP has both of our advice...he or she can take it or leave it

You can also stop your car on ice quite handily by hitting something else, and I've done this on two occasions, but I really don't recommend it.

I miss my Supra.

[StilltheSame]

I moved from Florida last summer. I moved close to work and all my activites - so I didnt have a long commute - and drove slowly and took my time - thats all you will need to do. Thats all - take your time and dont rush. You will be fine.

[mmhl]

You should not pump or tap your brakes if you have anti-lock brakes (which almost everyone does now). The whole purpose of them is to provide a pulsing action to help you gain traction, and if you are pumping your brakes they won't kick in. You should push steadily on the brakes until you feel the pulsing kick in. Anti-lock brakes are far superior to a person's manual tapping of the brakes. Pumping the brakes is an old school/pre- anti-lock brakes technique.

I've also just had to drive into a snowbank to avoid a crash, not my favorite method, but rather have that than a pile-up!

[gophersbaby]

It's just snow. After your first winter here it will be like riding a bike.

[eastside38]

There is a program for teen drivers called Street Survival put on by Tire Rack and BMW. They have a summer and winter program and it's basically a day of driving throughout a road course and classroom discussion at DCTC in Rosemount. A pizza lunch is provided.

Both times I went, every student left with a smile on their faces. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that the classroom instruction is not a recitation of boring facts that takes forever. The teaching is very high quality, and the classroom instruction is interspersed within the driving sessions. I still remember lots of info from the classroom session after about two years.

The second is that you're paired with a driving expert (most likely a member of the local BMW chapter that does lots of amateur road race driving in Brainerd and other places). Some may scoff at the word "amateur," but these guys have a lot of money to blow on souped up cars and race them at the limit, so they have no trouble relating experiences on the track to everyday defensive and emergency driving scenarios. They'll even take you out on the track in their own cars (very fun as I once had an instructor from Fargo with a brand new Porsche) and demonstrate the day's techniques to you.

I don't remember how much it costs but it's not too expensive considering how much you learn and trust me it does make you a safer driver, especially around snow.

Street Survival - Teaching Your Teen Driver to Survive From Behind the Wheel

[ColdRedRain]

Screw technique and buy some tire chains and good snow tires. Put them on your tires if it's icy outside.