Early one bright Sunday morning last year we were on the way in our motorhome to meet up with some friends in Derbyshire for a walk. It had layed down about 6" of snow in the night. The main roads were fairly clear but the satnav decided to take us a little short cut whilst I wasn't paying attention ........we found ourselves going down a gently sloping road which was gradually narrowing. I considered turning back but didn't think that we would make it back up the slope let alone completing a 3 point turn in the snow banks at the sides of the road, so we continued. We were managing ok on the flat but I could see a slight right hander coming up with what looked like the beginnings of a hill ?. The road had seen a few cars (probably Landrovers) and was a mixture of hoar frost and packed snow. With grim determination I started to pick up some speed, gripping the wheel like it was my last tenner. As we rounded the bend the full enormity of it hit me....... a steep hill a good mile long! I gunned the engine on the Trannie in second gear, every now and then a driving wheel would spin out and I'd have to ease off the throttle to regain grip all the while loosing speed bit by bit. Eventually we ground to a halt. The wife said "I wouldn't have come this way" (with her usual knack of stating the bl**ding obvious)!
We were stopped a quarter the way up a steep hill on a narrow raod with snow and embankments on either side. At the bottom was the left hander and a river ?
I remember thinking that we had two hopes of getting out of the situation....... (No hope and Bob Hope).
Then I remembered my Snow Socks and praying that I hadn't taken them out during my last payload trim, I found them in the locker......... but would they work? I'd never used them but the Swedish girl on utube seemed to like them so I gave it a go. The hill was that steep I had to get the missus on the footbrake as she was beginning to slide backwards on the handbrake (the river awaited). I stretched the snow socks over each wheel and politely (I didn't want to scare her) asked the missus to ler her roll back half a turn.......
Back inside and I was looking at steep snow and ice for a good three quarters of a mile and I was thinking about Bob Hope. I set off on full left hand lock (to give us a chance in hell) and was amazed to find that they gripped the surface like it was a dry road! Only once did I get a wheel spin when we hit some black ice. To look at, the socks aren't much. Just a kind of woven textile with elastic trim to hold it on....... bit like a knitted spare wheel cover. They are so easy to put on and take off, take up little space and wiegh next to nothing. I've also bought a pair for the car and wouldn't leave home without them if there was any chance of snow.
As it turned out we only lost about 10 minutes and arrived in time to meet our friends.
Would I do it again? Yes but I'd put my socks on first!
We were stopped a quarter the way up a steep hill on a narrow raod with snow and embankments on either side. At the bottom was the left hander and a river ?
I remember thinking that we had two hopes of getting out of the situation....... (No hope and Bob Hope).
Then I remembered my Snow Socks and praying that I hadn't taken them out during my last payload trim, I found them in the locker......... but would they work? I'd never used them but the Swedish girl on utube seemed to like them so I gave it a go. The hill was that steep I had to get the missus on the footbrake as she was beginning to slide backwards on the handbrake (the river awaited). I stretched the snow socks over each wheel and politely (I didn't want to scare her) asked the missus to ler her roll back half a turn.......
Back inside and I was looking at steep snow and ice for a good three quarters of a mile and I was thinking about Bob Hope. I set off on full left hand lock (to give us a chance in hell) and was amazed to find that they gripped the surface like it was a dry road! Only once did I get a wheel spin when we hit some black ice. To look at, the socks aren't much. Just a kind of woven textile with elastic trim to hold it on....... bit like a knitted spare wheel cover. They are so easy to put on and take off, take up little space and wiegh next to nothing. I've also bought a pair for the car and wouldn't leave home without them if there was any chance of snow.
As it turned out we only lost about 10 minutes and arrived in time to meet our friends.
Would I do it again? Yes but I'd put my socks on first!
