Advice for Down-South Driver (Milwaukee, Green Bay: rental car, rental, hotel)

[803andy]

Hello,

I will be renting a car from Grand Rapids, MI and will be traveling through Wisconsin, etc next week (12/07).

I'll be making stops close to Milwaukee, Green Bay, St. Paul, MN and then down to Oklahoma and Texas and then back to Michigan.

I would appreciate any driving advice as I'm from the south and have only driven in the snow a few times. I've driven though Colorado & Illinois shortly after a snowfall, but not during one.

Will snow tires be an issue in warmer states like Texas?

Thanks,

[43north87west]

Originally Posted by 803andy

Hello,

I will be renting a car from Grand Rapids, MI and will be traveling through Wisconsin, etc next week (12/07).

I'll be making stops close to Milwaukee, Green Bay, St. Paul, MN and then down to Oklahoma and Texas and then back to Michigan.

I would appreciate any driving advice as I'm from the south and have only driven in the snow a few times. I've driven though Colorado & Illinois shortly after a snowfall, but not during one.

Will snow tires be an issue in warmer states like Texas?

Thanks,

I'll try to hit on some things I think are important. I've driven in snow for my whole driving lifetime, so I'm at least a little qualified to make a couple of recommendations. However, I'm not a full time driver or anything like that. I'm sure you will get plentiful advice on top of my humble recommendations.

Snow tires aren't an issue. Rental cars tend to be four door sedans with all season tires, and as newer cars, the tires are usually in good shape, so I wouldn't be too concerned. In the Midwest, snow isn't as bad as black ice. You can't see it, you don't know it's there, and it's first announcement is usually at the point when you realize that you have no traction.

Although it's not likely that you will run into an appreciable snowfall while you are traveling, whether you run into ice or snow, use caution. The worst things you can do, are to drive 30mph faster or slower than other traffic, or fail to make smooth transitions from gas to brake, left to right, etc. Keep it steady and smooth and you will probably do fine.

A few tips if you have the options: Get a car with anti lock brakes. They remove the guesswork from braking in snow and ice, as long as you keep steady pressure on the brake and let the system do what it does. Another tip is, most rental cars (four door sedans) are front wheel drive. Keep the gas tank more than 1/2 full, and keep your luggage over the rear axle (forward in the trunk) for even weight distribution. If you hit a big snowfall, see if you can experiment with the car in an open parking lot, even just a little bit.

Finally, and most importantly, relax and drive with traffic, increase following distance, etc. As dumb as most of us think that the "basics" can be at times, they work.

Again, most of this is only valid if you run into a big snowstorm or ice storm. You probably won't.

[Hntr]

We had a few flurries here today, nothing measurable, yet at one stop sign in town it was icy, extremely icy for the last two or three car lengths. If I had been going another couple of miles faster, I would have slid right into the intersection. This is doing twenty five mph or less. Test your brakes well before you intend to stop and give yourself a little extra stopping distance anytime you are in snowy conditions,

It was that dry powerdy snow. I used my leaf blower to clean my driveway, shows you how dry it was.

[diddynas]

Not sure if you're still planning on driving through Wisconsin this week, but look out. Big storm is coming, much of the state is predicted to get between 6-12 inches, with some areas seeing as much as 10-14 between Tuesday and Wednesday. Be careful everyone!

[susancruzs]

I'm wondering about this poster, as the first major storm of the season is this week and pretty much hitting areas mentioned in the post, hopefully all is well.

[davit]

Conditions vary. Conditions change.

Always expect each new road, curve, intersection, to be treacherous.

My dad taught me to test conditions when starting out on a drive by hitting the brakes, accelerating hard to see how the vehicle responds. (Don't do this in traffic )

If you're traveling today and tomorrow, it wouldn't hurt to try praying.

[Hntr]

Originally Posted by davit

Conditions vary. Conditions change.

Always expect each new road, curve, intersection, to be treacherous.

My dad taught me to test conditions when starting out on a drive by hitting the brakes, accelerating hard to see how the vehicle responds. (Don't do this in traffic )

If you're traveling today and tomorrow, it wouldn't hurt to try praying.

[ndheah]

Rent an SUV.
Today, we got 14 inches of snow in Appleton. My wifes Jeep Commander had no issues getting around. My 'lil Pontiac G5 on the other hand, couldn't make it out of the drive way until they plowed.

[803andy]

Thanks for all of the concern and tips. I made it back ever since the 14th. Sorry about the delay. However, its good to see people can care about someone they never met.

However, I do have a story to tell, my trip was a bit crazy.

1st Day: I drove from Grand Rapids, MI to Fond Du Lac, WI:
When my plane first touched down, I was amazed by all the snow on the ground, but quickly realized the streets were fine, just snow on the side. It begin snowing on my way to WI, but nothing heavy, no problems. Being from SC I was very cautious at first but quickly got use to it, as it didn't really affect the roads. I naively took this light snow as the worst and thought I was home free. (boy was I in for a lesson)

2nd Day: Drove from Fond Du Lac, WI to Baldwin, WI
Few inches of snow, got a crash course from the Hotel admin, about what to wipe off my car. It begin snowing harder, but not that much of a problem. One section of a highway was closed in Green Bay so I had to take a brief detour. Still no problems really.

3rd Day: Drove from Baldwin, WI to St. Paul, MN to Bethany, MO
Snow was everywhere in the morning. The Hotel worker had to dig out the area behind my car so I could back up. Ended up getting stuck briefly by not following the beaten path, which I could not see. A truck-driver helped me out, (the key is to reverse, while someone push you backwards) [tip for any other new-to-snow drivers like me]. The roads were a bit icy in Western WI and throughout Minn., but the plow guys were running heavy, so everything was doable,,,,,,,, until I got to Iowa. Iowa was the worst. It wasn't snowing, but the wind was blowing awful and the loose snow and a deep fog, made visibility nearly impossible. My best bet was to follow a more experienced and faster driver's tail-lights as far away back as possible.

Then about halfway between the MN,IA state line and Des Moines it got crazy, the road was pure ice. I learned that the interstate was closed the previous day and was just opened a few hours before I came through and boy did I see why. Mostly everyone was driving about 30/40mph just for safety. For every mile there were about 20 - 30 unoccupied/abandoned vehicles which skidded off the road. Tractor trailers were flipped over and all. It really seemed like the rapture had occurred, just car after empty car, truck after empty truck, UPS, fedex, etc...., all types. They were everywhere, in the median, on the side, on the side and up a hill . The plowtrucks weren't running so the roads was iced for the most part and the interstate would randomly become one lane b/c of two much snow in the road. I slid once or twice and got off the interstate, but got back on after I was told just and hour or so south things were warmer. This was true and everything after this was cool after this.

A few things I would like to recommend for inexperienced snow-drivers making similar trips:
Ice-Scraper
Snow-Shovel**
Flairs**
Pocket-Knife**
Lighter**
Canned Food/Water**
Wear multiple or thicker socks
Always follow the beaten path when exiting somewhere, no matter how low the snow looks for a shorter path.

**You can buy these items and return them if you don't unwrap them.

All in all the trip was a good learning experience for a determined entrepreneur trying to make some money. The people of WI & MN were very friendly and I plan to come back to vacation one day.

Thanks again for all the tips.

Edit: Please excuse the typos.

[susancruzs]

Thanks for posting and letting us know how you did! I'd say for your first experience square in the middle of the season's first winter storm you did good! Most people I know in the midwest if they are driving any distance, layer their clothes, have water/snacks, blanket(s), a shovel, flashlights, etc.!

Interstates are just plain tricky in winter weather. My sister and I went to Iowa last weekend, roads were dry from Wisc. to Iowa. Sunday when we wanted to go on to Des Moines, there were snow squalls and cars off I-80. Monday when we drove back home quite a few cars were still there waiting to be towed. Winter in the midwest.