My car was in 4WD because it had started freezing puddles the night before. My truck (OK- SUV technically) usually does pretty well anyway in that sort of condition but i really didn't want to end up in a ditch. As I'm driving to work, a car in front of me pulls over and lets me pass. I was confused because we were only going about 20 mph and i was in no way on their bumper. There was a good half a block between us. I was stopping just find at stop signs- granted I'm way better at braking sooner in the last couple years than i used to be. Then i pull into the hospital parking lot. I fishtail and correct.
I should probably add in here that I had the good fortune of learning how to drive in an area known for it's snowfall. Upstate NY. My parents wanted to make sure I knew what to do in snow and ice and my dad took me to the high school parking lot once and as a terrified new driver (BTW, he had a habit of scaring the piss out of me when i learned how to drive that year- ask me sometime about learning stick on a hill off of the main drag of Erie BLVD. I STILL hold that against him) told me to gun it across the parking lot. WHAT?!? i reluctantly did, then he yelled "SLAM ON THE BRAKES!" never has my heart beat so far out of my chest before that. That day i learned to purposely fishtail, correct a fishtail and even do donuts. Granted he wanted me to do them around a lamp-post and I dementedly refused.
That year, I learned that i disliked driving minivans and rear-wheel drive vehicles in the snow/ice. I learned to make sure your windshield fluid is rated for the cold temperatures- of it'll freeze on your windshield and let me tell you... that is a mess. I learned to keep a shovel and a winter safety kit in the trunk and much much more.
back to the original story...
I correct my fishtail in the hospital parking lot, and park. Then i go to get out of the car. I was lucky to have found a spot where i could be a full door length away from the car next to me, grabbed my messenger bag and stepped down from my car. That's when it happened. I seriously didn't even have time to think the words "oh shit"- all of the sudden I was flat on my ass and under my car. I tried to get up and failed. I literally had to pull myself out from under the car by the door and the floor to the car (the running board was icky with dirt/mud/ice and who knows what else). my entire right leg, hip and arm were wet. Luckily i was actually wearing and had my coat zipped up so no mud on my shirt. and my jeans were dark enough that if there was it didn't show. I'm pretty sure it was fresh enough ice there wasn't any/much dirt though. I'm also pretty sure that if I hadn't been working out all that much lately that fall woulda hurt a hell of a lot more. But i went down pretty smoothly. no tweeking of knees or anything and literally just slid under the car (thank god for 8" clearance). Once i got to a standing position, i had my next challenge... getting to the front of the hospital. Have you ever tried to stand on a sheet of ice with sneakers? It's practically impossible to walk. You have to use baby steps- still not all that efficient- or just skate. well... it's hard to skate on uneven ground so babysteps it was. luckily the walk-way was covered in dirt so it wasn't so bad but it was interesting. Once i get upstairs i realize i don't have my keys. I had them getting out of the car- but they weren't in my pockets or my hand. i got security to open the door and then my right had woman (who is leaving me for the big-bad world unfortunately) volunteered to go to my car and look. Luckily they had landed in my seat as I
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| This is what my cleats look like but there are a bunch of different ones out there. |
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