I鈥檇 put on tire chains before, and I might have set a speed record for attaching them had I been in my own driveway. But, somewhere on the side of a snowy mountain pass in the tiny alpine country of Andorra, all that muscle memory evaporated. We鈥檇 bought the correct chains for our vehicle down in town, but now they didn鈥檛 seem to fit around the tire on my rental car. Temperatures were plunging.

While I Googled tire chain tutorials, my partner smacked the frozen chains against the ground, hoping to gain a little elasticity. After an hour of struggling, a friend with four-wheel-drive vehicle showed up, and we opted to leave our rental ride on a snowy shoulder.

As we rolled back to town, I assessed my abysmal performance with the car. I am not a bad winter driver鈥擨 live and work in the mountains after all鈥攂ut driving a new car in dreadful conditions torpedoed my experience.

Driving a rental car鈥攐r any vehicle that’s not yours鈥攊n the snow is inherently uncomfortable. A lack of preparation can make things worse, quickly. Fortunately, there are a few simple ways to avoid the pitfalls I experienced on my doomed Andorran adventure.

Set Yourself Up for Storm Driving Success听

If you鈥檙e traveling to a snowy area, or a place where you could run into winter weather, your preparation must start well before you get the keys. Most rental car agencies offer four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive options (even internationally), but these vehicles get booked fast. If you’re traveling in winter, secure your rental car with enough lead time.

Check if your rental company offers a cold-weather package. These packages sometimes include comforts like ski racks, heated seats and steering wheels, and also remote start capabilities, so the car can begin defrosting before you enter the driver鈥檚 seat.

Rental car agencies that operate in snowy regions of the United States typically offer all-weather and snow tire options, but check with an agent to confirm your rental is equipped with the proper winter rubber. Remember that all-weather tires are generally suitable for a wide range of conditions, but winter tires are specifically designed specifically for snowy and icy driving conditions.

You should also assess your driving routes prior to your trip. Say your next trip is to the desert, but is there a mountain pass between the airport and your sunny oasis. Knowing exactly where inclement weather may occur, or pinch points can happen, will help you be better prepared when unexpected weather rolls in.

Consider downloading driving map apps that integrate weather forecasts and extreme weather updates into their routes like Navver or DriveWeather so you can prepare for what鈥檚 ahead in real time.

These Tools Can Make or Break Your Trip

There are a few key pieces of equipment that can make or break your winter car rental experience. Here鈥檚 a few we can鈥檛 go without.

Ice Scraper

To keep your windows and mirrors clear, make sure you have an ice scraper that鈥檚 up for the job. Again, this item is an easy add, but an even easier one to forget. Most rental car agencies will provide a scraper for free upon request, but you might want to consider bringing a small one of your own, just in case.

Check out the Hopkins SubZero 80037, which is equally good for scraping ice as it is for shoveling and sweeping snow.

Windshield Wiper Fluid

Underrated and understated, wiper fluid can be the difference between seeing the road and staring through an iced-over windshield. Reduced visibility is a major cause of winter accidents, so keeping your visual pathways clear is a huge safety boost. Wiper fluid has a lower freezing point than water and will prevent your wipers from icing up, but that stuff can go fast鈥攅specially in the heart of the storm. Make sure you鈥檝e got an extra container of wiper fluid in the car anytime you head into the mountains. Remember that wiper fluids come at different temperature ratings鈥攇et one that will freeze well below zero.

An Emergency Kit

You never want to expect the worst, but you do want to plan for it. Having a properly stocked emergency kit is a big plus for driving your rental car in the snow. What should you bring? For starters, add a flashlight, first aid supplies, a phone charger, a blanket, water, and a non-perishable snack or two. If you鈥檙e forced to pull over and spend the night in your vehicle, it鈥檚 important to stay warm and fueled up, all while keeping your devices charged for potential emergency contact.

We recommend the Haiphaik Emergency Roadside Kit.

Tire Chains鈥擸es or No? Well, it Depends.

While tire chains are commonly used in snowy regions around the world, rental car agencies don’t always provide them. In the U.S., agencies typically dissuade renters from using them on their vehicles, and some, like Hertz and Enterprise, prohibit their use entirely. The agencies maintain that their cars are fully equipped and winter ready.

Other agencies, such as SIXT, Avis, and Europcar, will offer the option to rent tire chains or a tire sock, which provides extra traction. Some others permit chains, but do not provide them. Make sure to check with your rental agency before booking, as these policies often change.

We recommend the SCC Auto-Track.

Check Your Car Before You Go

An individual rental car might see hundreds of drivers each year, and each one treats the vehicle a little differently. Before you roll out of the rental lot, make sure to go through a quick safety checklist.

First, clear all snow and ice from the car. This might sound like overkill, but as the car heats up and snow starts to slide, roof snow can fall onto windshields and obscure vision at intersections or when pressing on the brakes.

Next, check the tire pressure and tread. We mentioned that most rental car fleets have winter tires, but if those tires are noticeably under-inflated, they provide less traction in icy and snowy driving conditions. You should also take a second to check the wiper fluid, as that鈥檚 going to be the difference between an iced over windshield and unobstructed vision on the road.

Lastly, take a look at the wipers themselves. If they鈥檙e caked in ice or wearing thin, that鈥檚 going to affect performance and, ultimately, your view while you drive through that next storm. Again, rental agencies should be replacing these, but sometimes things slip through the cracks, and winter travel is one game that rarely offers do-overs.

Snow Driving Tips

Know Your Comfort Level

Ok, it鈥檚 time for a serious self-awareness test: How comfortable are you driving in the snow on a scale from one to ten? If that number is low, it might be wise to simply wait out a storm or leave for your destination a little earlier.

If you rank a little higher on the scale, think about other drivers on the road. Are you driving at night? Are you in a place where people are also accustomed to driving in snow? Are you driving highways or side streets? Is the area you鈥檙e traveling through equipped for plowing and snow removal? Driving in a snowstorm in New York City is a very different experience than a snowstorm in Dallas, for example.

Low Gears Are Your Friend

A little manual control goes a long way when the mercury dips, so don鈥檛 be afraid to shift into lower gear to get a bit more grip on the road. This is especially helpful while heading downhill when a rash application of the brakes could send you sliding.

Avoid Cruise Control

Driving at high speed in inclement weather is obviously not a great call, but believe it or not, cruise control can also cause unforeseen headaches on highways and interstates. This automatic setting doesn鈥檛 account for changing road conditions and can actually cause loss of traction on slippery surfaces. It may be a temporary inconvenience for road warriors, but stormy weather calls for an active foot on the gas and brake and those hands on the 10s and 2s.

Understand the Challenge

Winter driving comes with challenges, but a little snow in the forecast shouldn鈥檛 reroute your entire itinerary. Like most driving, the more road time you log in adverse conditions, the more accustomed you will become to slippery roads and windblown highways. A new-to-you car can throw a bit of a wrench in that equation, but following these easy steps and being flexible with travel plans can go a long way in making your winter rental woes a thing of the past.

The post Driving a Rental Car in the Snow Is a Recipe for Disaster. Here鈥檚 How to Stay Safe. appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

For years, Bill Masters privately used a term for motorists who got stuck in bewildering fashion on mountain passes in Colorado鈥檚 San Miguel County. Masters, who is the county sheriff, called them 鈥渁ss clowns.鈥�

This summer, Masters felt justified taking the term public. In mid-August, a group of drivers ventured up the closed Black Bear Pass, an expert-level jeep trail between Telluride and Silverton. The top of the pass was covered in snow, so they dug through the drifts to clear the road.

When news of their exploits spread on off-road social media platforms, more ventured up the sketchy trail. Eventually, someone鈥檚 Toyota 4Runner skittered off the roadway and became utterly stuck.

鈥淪ome people have it together and know what they are doing, but some who venture up there are complete ass clowns,鈥� the San Miguel Sheriff’s Office on August 14. Susan Lily, spokeswoman for the office, said the rescue mission was costly and never should have happened. She said the sheer frustration over the situation led to the derogatory language being used in an official capacity.

鈥淚 have, quite frankly, not been comfortable with putting it in a quote on behalf of the Sheriff’s Office,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut in this particular instance, it seemed appropriate to use it. Plain and simple, it wasn’t safe to be up there, which is why the pass was closed.鈥�

So far, 2023 has been a banner year for, um, ass clowns on Colorado鈥檚 high passes鈥攑hotos of stuck vehicles have spread across social media, and incidents of stranded cars have been covered by local news outlets. A representative from the Colorado Department of Transportation said that the agency does not keep statistics on these rescues, since many occur on land managed by the Forest Service or the听Bureau of Land Management.

鈥淭here are definitely more people out on the landscape recreating,鈥� said Chad Schneckenburger, regional trails program manager for the NFS. 鈥淎nd for better or for worse, people don鈥檛 always inform themselves before they go out and recreate.鈥�

Other sources told me that there has been an increase of stranded drivers on off-road passes. Charlie Stubblefield, owner of a towing company called Mountain Recovery, which does vehicle recovery across four mountain counties in Northern Colorado, told me that business is booming. 鈥淭he increase has gone up exponentially,鈥� Stubblefield said. He said that his company retrieves vehicles from off-road passes nearly every day, and business spikes during the summer. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy鈥攚e鈥檝e all recognized an uptick,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e just seeing more and more stupid people with stuck vehicles in places they shouldn鈥檛 be, and it鈥檚 wasting our resources for real emergency rescues.鈥�

A few notable examples come to mind. There was the guy who drove a brand new GMC truck to 14,295-foot Mount Lincoln in August. That same day, a red truck went off the trail on Mosquito Pass between Fairplay and Leadville and rolled down a steep slope. Also in August, a woman who had apparently eaten psychedelic mushrooms drove her Ford Mustang up a high-clearance jeep road outside of Vail.

GPS, Hubris, and Bad Decisions

There are plenty of explanations for why off-road drivers are getting into trouble more frequently, and sources I spoke to blamed it on everything from GPS systems gone awry to good old-fashioned bravado鈥攖he instinct to just go for it. Others overestimate their ability to navigate a vehicle in the mountains. Representatives from towing companies say they have seen it all.

Wayne Barger, owner of Animas Towing & Recovery in Southwest Colorado, this summer rescued a Penske truck moving furniture over Ophir Pass鈥攁 high alpine route between the towns of Silverton and Ophir.

鈥淚 asked the guy, 鈥楢t what point in your mind would you think this is an OK road to drive your box truck?鈥欌�� he said. The driver, apparently, responded that his trusty Garmin told him to take that route. He wasn鈥檛 the first truck driver to get stuck this way. In 2020, a 30-foot box truck also got stuck on the same pass while following a GPS route. In 2021, a Greyhound bus got stuck on a mountain road above the Glenwood Canyon stretch of Interstate 70, which was closed due to fire, flooding, and mudslide. A Greyhound spokesperson blamed a 鈥渞erouting鈥� problem.

But GPS isn鈥檛 always to blame. I contacted Brian Burke, a professor of psychology at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado, about this trend, and he cited a bias called the 鈥淒unning鈥揔ruger effect.鈥� The psychological phenomenon is when people who are non-experts in a skillset are significantly worse at estimating their true ability in that very activity. For instance: people who are not especially skilled at driving on challenging roadways are often unable to accurately judge just how bad they are at it.

Burke also said the uptick in stuck vehicles may be tied to a different听psychological dynamic found in all pursuits: people鈥檚 need for attention on social media.

鈥淣arcissism, like the Dunning-Kruger effect, can lead to unwarranted overconfidence in one鈥檚 driving abilities as people attempt to pack their personal websites with beautiful and adventurous nature photos,鈥� he said.

Stubblefield chalks it up to an even more basic human foible: a lack of preparedness and knowledge. 鈥淧eople are completely misinformed or uninformed, and they鈥檙e just going for it, letting it rip,鈥� he said.

Ophir Pass is CLOSED due to a delivery truck that is stuck and completely blocking traffic. Tow services in route. Unknown length of closure, avoid the area.

— San Miguel Sheriff (@SheriffAlert)

Who comes to the rescue depends on the location of the clown car in question. Throughout Colorado mountain towns, there are local towing companies that have become experts in mountain recovery. These rescues can be time-consuming, dangerous and expensive. That GMC driver who became marooned on Mount Lincoln had to pay Mountain Recovery $3,500 to tow his truck from the hiking trail. The company had to dispatch a听Bobcat tractor up the trail to free the truck.

Not everybody charges for a rescue. Since 2014, Colorado 4×4 Rescue and Recovery, a nonprofit, has removed vehicles for free. In the past three years, the group has responded to 300 calls annually across the state, said Jeff Tyson, director of dispatch.

鈥淲e don’t charge because we want people to feel comfortable calling us, rather than not being able to afford a $5,000 bill and just abandoning the vehicle,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat puts the cost and strain on these agencies to recover vehicles and takes resources away from actual emergencies.鈥�

An Expensive Mistake

The Forest Service recognizes the free-for-all nature of rescues is not sustainable and is working to set up a license system for operators who are qualified to conduct rescues in central Colorado. While $150 is the maximum citation the Forest Service can issue for illegal off-road travel, going through a licensed towing company will bring a sizable charge that can run as high as $5,000. That cost, Stubblefield said, could be a huge deterrent.

鈥淭he Forest Service realizes their fines are not big enough; they are meaningless,鈥� Stubblefield said. 鈥淪o they want to create a system in which they can direct vehicle owners to professional companies like ours. We have a lot of teeth when it comes to our recovery, recouping costs and holding parties accountable. And we get jobs done with minimal impact to the environment.鈥�

Schneckenburger says Colorado is not the only state experiencing an uptick in off-road recovery. He cites a combination of increased traffic post-pandemic, social media exposure, and the reality that there are just some bad eggs in all user groups. The Forest Service works with all recreation groups to discuss best practices for hiking, biking and driving, Schneckenburger said, but oftentimes it鈥檚 the people not involved in these groups causing trouble.

鈥淗ow do we reach those people?鈥� he said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no silver bullet, of course.鈥�

Of course, there is an element of personal responsibility going into the backcountry, no matter if you are hiking or driving. Know where you鈥檙e going; know the regulations; and be prepared. There are also backcountry driving training courses, and plenty of maps and proper GPS resources.

If all else fails, perhaps there鈥檚 nothing wrong with a little public shaming (though, let鈥檚 acknowledge we could all find ourselves in this situation one day; so it鈥檚 important to show some grace, too). In fact, Mountain Recovery just signed a contract with the Weather Channel for a forthcoming television series that will follow his teams on these sometimes-ridiculous missions. The show is set to air in 2025鈥攕o viewers will have to wait until then to see more errant drivers stuck on passes and trails.

鈥淵ou can鈥檛 take your Honda Civic up a jeep trail,鈥� Stubblefield said. 鈥淚t doesn’t work that way.鈥�听

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