Saturday morning I woke up to a snow covered earth. It finally hit--and hard in the valley! It didn't stop until about 2 pm!
My family has a lot of birthdays in December, and my cousins Mellissa and Catherine's fall one week after another. Mellissa called me Thursday and invited me up to Bountiful for a birthday party. Silly me, I though it would be a small family event and I was excited to go. I forget my Uncle's side of the family from Peru all live in their neighborhood! I was a little overwhelmed meeting everyone--and as customary in their culture they kiss on the cheek when saying hello--I have never been kissed by so many strangers in my life! It was fun to see them all gathered together and to spend time talking to my aunt. Our extended family is so spread out that we never have spent a lot of time together so it is nice being close to her now. We ate Peruvian food--a new experience for me that definitely cleared my sinuses! It was great though.
The snow had stopped when I drove up to Bountiful, but had started again when it was time to leave. I thought I would be fine on the roads I know to drive slow, but once I hit North Salt Lake driving back to my neck of the woods, the roads were pure ice even on the freeway. I was driving VERY slow (30 on the freeway!) and trying to keep my distance. I hit a patch of ice and started fishtailing, in an effort to not spin out I overcorrected and started spinning toward the cement barriers dividing the highway. I was braced to hit the wall and thought for sure I had wrecked my car, but slammed on my breaks and missed it by about an ich. In slamming on my breaks I spun around in circles and ended facing oncoming traffic in the emergency lane. I sat there for a few minutes in order to gain my composure and figure out how to turn around and get home, praying with gratitude the whole time! I did make it home ok after holding to the steering wheel so tight I had white knuckles!
2 comments:
Yikes. I'm glad you're ok.
My advice is take your car out to an empty parking lot right after the next time it snows and practice doing donuts and maneuvers that will make your car break lose a little bit (safely don't do it right next to a light post and end up wrapped around it) so that you can get a feel for snow driving,.. all the most seasoned snow drivers do it every year to refresh in their minds how their car responds in the snow and to remember the best ways to correct and the amount of correction you need to regain control.
It really helps but doesn't prevent all unforeseeable situations of course,.. but it definitely helps to practice. Take your boy toy with you if you are nervous pulling a donut in your car. He may not be as much of a wimp which will hopefully give you some confidence,.. ;)
Kelly!! That is soo scary. I don't think that I would be able to drive the rest of the way home!!! I am glad that you are ok! Be careful up there!! Love ya
Post a Comment