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Kansas City
Must be snowing 3 inches an hour.
No problem getting to work. It was only just starting. Got there 6:30 AM.
By 9:00AM it was ridiculous. Had to dig the car out just to leave the parking lot.
The '89 wagon trundled along until I had to pull into deep snow to avoid being hit by a road hog 4x4. Seriously. This guy was out for blood.
Managed to get out of that.
Trundled along some more and, typically, was doing okay until I had to stop for someone else.
Could not get going again. Paid some guys in a Jeep Cherokee to help me get the wagon onto a side street and they gave me a ride back to work.
It's a long walk but that's the only way I will get home today. It could take several hours.
Wish me luck and if I never post again send someone to search for my carcass somewhere along Blue River Road.
--
'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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Last Friday it was 80 degrees in the PM.
Today, it's snowing again.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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It sounds like we are getting more snow next week. I guess we don't know when it's going to end.
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Best things to have in the trunk for winter is nice big snow shovel and about 100lbs of sand in a tub, the sand adds weight for traction and if needed you can throw some down for extra traction as well. another great thing to have are some snow tires, in the summer people basically throw them away.
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In the winter with a threat of heavy snow I always carry shovel. But not just any shovel, it is a sturdy one with steel blade capable of chopping ice if need be. No aluminum crap for me.
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Since the wagon has a near perfect 50/50 weight distribution, drop the sand in the rear seat floorboards if you rarely carry passengers.
I would add that a blanket is just as essential...you never know when you might not get dug out...and it has other uses.
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posted by
someone claiming to be JohnD
on
Sat Mar 2 09:13 CST 2013 [ RELATED]
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I'm in a 7-series wagon, but with the G80, I've been able to get around up here in the WV mountains just fine..
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posted by
someone claiming to be GP
on
Tue Feb 26 09:42 CST 2013 [ RELATED]
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Had to pay the guys in the Jeep? Just out of curiosity, what's the going rate these days for behaving like a decent human being?
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I don't know. Whatever you are willing to pay, I guess. But they asked for twenty bucks to first got me unstuck and into the other lane which had been sort of cleared but the wagon immediately fishtailed to the right and I was stuck again.
Then they helped me get it off the thorough fare which was the best thing we could have done under the circumstances. Many people found that their cars had been towed when they went back to get them the next day. My car was left undisturbed on the side street.
And, they got me back to work for another ten.
They may have been mercenary, but it was worth it to me. I would have paid a lot more at the tow lot.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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I guess a mecenary, a monetarist or a monopolist that can exist momentarily on a day like that!
Who says todays kids are not smart...well, it was the "M" section of the dictionary that fell or got opened on some school day that it did not snow for sure!
Feels good to have a day off, like in the old school days huh!
Trouble is, you still have to make or buy your lunch. (:(
Phil
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The real trouble is I have to either use a vacation day, make up the time or forfeit a day's pay.
They gave us a freebie last week. I got paid for the eight hours that I didn't work on Friday. I worked half a day on Saturday to make up for the other half of Thursday. I expect I'll make up the time this week, too.
This Friday is the quarterly lunch so that's one meal on the house. The price you pay is listening to the company prez talk about how good or bad the various departments have done in the last three months. But he's usually pretty entertaining. And the fifteen minutes it takes is on company time.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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I have to say I was only teasing about lunch. That sounds like a decent company to work for.
I learned almost too late to watch what the front end is doing as I was not in management. At least they are willing to parade around in front of you and look you in the eye. Just watch out if one of their arms comes up around on top of your shoulder. It might be a distraction for a weenie without it being lunchtime.
I was lucky twice. One I got “some” retirement money from even though they tried their best to slough their responsibility by subdividing portions of the company and selling them overseas and in the states some 15 years after I left. It was that “Fleecing of America” maneuver of the late eighties and through the nineties!
The next place I quit before they sold out to a “getter” chemical company in France. We made specialized “clean” valves for the electronic chip making industry along with vacuum jacketed transfer lines for cryogenic gases and fuels.
They had profit sharing plan there and two years later I only $300 in my account. I found out from efforts of exploration in “trash bin” paperwork, the owner was renting most of the special equipment we used through a lease from his own sons!
That extra profit sharing money was going to their college education. I was lucky back then as those shredder companies were not as popular as they are today!
I liked the Navy but would only do it again as a Warrant Officer. Middle management!
Same goes for the streets. I want to be high on the fence but not at the top. You can fall from it for not having place to grip and run along! I learned that from the fourth monkey you do not see with the other three. I picture or color him in my book “looking beyond the horizon.”
I am sure times have changed with all the number crunching going on so,
Please, have some snow cream, for me too! (:)~:
Phil
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Got another 10" of snow overnight.
My employer issued a email to all employees at our location saying if you don't have a 4WD vehicle with high ground clearance please don't take the chance trying to get to work.
I was only too happy to comply.
Now I'm just sitting at home drinking coffee and hoping we don't lose power. My lilac looks like it is bowing to royalty.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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The city has done a tolerable job clearing the main roads.
Today it is nice and sunny and that seems to have helped.
My neighbor drove me to where I left the Wagon and we got it out in like two minutes.
In the meantime I had cleared the driveway.
I feel so much better now.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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A company called Onspot (http://www.onspot.com/) makes drop down chains for trucks - most fire apparatus have them.
They now make systems for pickups - They might fit 240!
--
'96 855R,'64 PV544 driver, '67 P1800 basket case, '72 Yamaha Rd400, '68 Honda 350-4, '12 XC70, the first 5 are mine, heh, heh, 525,000 miles put on 10 bricks James A Sousa
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Hi Bulletproof,
Ok, that sounds pretty bad...
Please brundle up from head to toe.
Waterproof your shoe with plastic bags.
Take one shot of Vodka along with a crunchy pickle (Ukraine style).
Good luck!!!
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I made it home but I didn't have to walk. I would still be out there if I had.
Fortunately one of my co-workers who drives a Jeep gave me a ride.
Thanks for your thoughts.
I think I'll have that shot of Vodka anyway.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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I see by the 'ON-LINE' indicator that you survived.
You know, I have some 4WD drive vehicles and I never overstep when everyone is driving in nasty stuff. Just stay in line and put along like everyone else. Whay is that such a hard concept to grasp?
Like you, No newspaper, no coffee, no cell phone. Eyes forward and drive.
They want to take guns from my hands but Driving a 2 ton chunk of metal with your eyes on your Cell phone is barely a ticketed offense.
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'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwrd, two motorcycles, '85 Pickup: The '89 Volvo is the newest vehicle I own. it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me http://home.lyse.net/brox/TonyPage4.html http://cleanflametrap.com/tony/
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Hi Bulletproof,
Well done my friend... Now, you may need to watch out for a pothole/sink hole/crater.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/02/sinkhole_on_parkway_is_4_feet.html
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I take you dont have snow tires on the old brick then?
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I do not have snow tires. It is something I have said I would do but then last winter was so mild I became complacent. Technically, we are in a drought and have been for a while. Today made up for some of that.
Two years ago we had a pretty good all day snow and prior to that I had put new all seasons on the wagon. I was surprised at how well it did in the conditions. Some stretches were clear. Others, not so much. But the wagon just kept moving along as I feel it would have today had I not come to a complete stop.
Right now my priority is rescuing the car. It's not on the thorough fare and it's not blocking the side street where I left it but I still worry it may be towed.
What I really kick myself in the butt over is the fact that if I had just waited I probably would have been okay. The snow let up for a while, although it's starting again, and they actually did a fairly decent job of clearing the main roads.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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Just go dig it out the first chance you get. Don't wait for someone to pile more snow around it. Get that thing home!
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It's my highest priority at the moment.
I feel like I have abandoned my child in the wilderness.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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I'll answer for bulletproof--considering that some winters KC doesn't see any snow--and when it does snow there's a good chance the temp could go to 50-60 degrees the next day--makes snow tires more of a nuisance than a necessity. -- Dave
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I'm certainly not denying the presence of snow in Kansas--but we were talking about Kansas City. In fact that always amazed me about KC winter weather. We rarely had snow but you needn't go far to the west to be in the land of 5 foot snow drifts. I lived there 1967-70. -- Dave
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I feel for Kansas City drivers--they do get snow--but not enough to really learn to drive in it---and when I went to the Art Institute there in the late 60's the city's snow removal equipment was a joke. I remember one particularly bad sequence of weather--some snow on the ground--warmed up and rained--got REAL cold overnight leaving inches of ice on the roads--then it snowed heavily on top of the ice. I could get around in my split windshield VW Bus but had to thread my way around all the stuck cars--especially on the cross town hilly streets. Good Luck KC -- Dave
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Most of them can't drive properly even in good weather.
I swear, I am invited to become involved in someone else's collision at least twice a week.
But when I drive, I drive. And that is all. No distractions. Just drive the car, pay attention and keep my wits about me.
I used to drive pre '68 VW busses almost exclusively. They may not be fast but they always get you there.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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Do you guys still have it?
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I had 7 Type II's but I haven't owned one for many years. Two of them were not splits.
Couple of Bugs in there too. And a '67 Type III Fastback.
I still have a few spare parts.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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We've had three -- the first was a 1963 commercial model (ex-Chicken Delight delivery truck) had no side windows - had clamshell doors on BOTH sides--rear area was strictly bare bones--all metal--no seats, carpeting-=-that made it easier to scrub it and hose out all the accumulated chicken grease. My used car dealer dad bought it at a dealer only auction as transportation home--paid $20 (that was 1968). We took that one to KC and camped in Colorado (over Longs Pass--around 15,000 ft elevation--guess the motor might have been making 20hp there)--many hours in 1st gear. Sold it in KC--after painting it with safety yellow lacquer bought at the Bendix plant surplus store --5 gallons--$5.
The second - a 1964 - also had the commercial running gear (larger transfer cases, shafts, etc.) and it also had the clamshell doors on BOTH sides and no rear interior but it did have side windows. I rebuilt everything mechanical--my wife did all the carpentry inside to make it a camper. We spent three months all over New England. Both split window vans could carry more than their own weight.
The third was a curved windshield 1971. My dad had taken it in trade and I intended to do something with it. Drove it home--parked it in the backyard--and there it sat--became my 8 year old daughter's "playhouse". Now its a storage shed. The motor went to a Formula V racer. The tranny to someone building a hot rod beetle. It has factory cabinets and fold out bed--no "pop top". -- Dave
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Thanks guys for sharing your stories. I just love them so much, I wish I could get one someday... Ok, Maybe three. Just wishful thinking.
1. 21 window bus with red bottom & white top, factory spec.
2. 15 window bus with dark grey with darker grey pin stripe, heavily modified for fun.
3. Not choosy, I will take anything for a daily driver. :)
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I need one too.
In my first band one of the member's dad had a 21 window bus, that became our tour bus. Back then it all fit. After all it was just small Fender amps and such.
A trumpet player from Maryland who I lived with in an old farm house in Western MA, had a '67 white Westphalia Camper that roamed the hills of the rural Berkshires. I always rode with him.
Then I rebuilt a '64 Kombi window van that traversed the same snow covered mountains loaded to the gills with a Hammond Porta-B and Leslie and the rest of the gear. I had a small catalytic heater on the floor to augment the meager heat output. Always got me home. Loved it!
In January a 21 window bus (red bottom, white top Baklava) went for $162K!!!! And, Hemmings reported that it had "flaws".
I'm hoping one will turn up (that I can afford) while my daughter is still attending college in Socal.
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God, I wish I had kept the ones I owned. And I really wish I'd bought that '67 single cab drop gate I had a chance to buy in like 1985.
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'80 DL 2 door, '89 DL Wagon
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ok... I will be happy with just one, no windows fine, any color...
fyi.
http://baltimore.craigslist.org/cto/3681662883.html
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