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Picking the ski vehicle
I've got a great vehicle for getting to the slopes; I just have to
figure out which one it is. Since before the dawn of time, my ski conveyance has been an old Civic Si with a roof rack and a good set of snow tires. With the exception of the low ground clearance (4"), it's been outstanding. The only failings have been once when the last five miles of road to the cabin had about eight inches of new, unplowed and drifted (with more coming down, at about 2 AM) leading discretion to trump valor (i.e. we grabbed a motel room), and several occasions when friends with pickemups (2wd) or SUVs (4x4) have done 180s or nearly gone in the ditch trying to keep up with me. I've been able to compare it back-to-back it with an Exploder of the same vintage, and ground clearance aside, the Civic tracks, stops and turns so much better in the snow that there's no comparison at all. But this summer has seen the addition of a nice late-model pickup (4-liter Ranger with the entry-level offroad package). It's got over twice the ground clearance of the Civic, plus 4wd, but it's got all-season tires, inferior handling (I'd even call it truck-like), and a lot more mass in motion. So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... bw |
bdubya wrote in message . ..
I've got a great vehicle for getting to the slopes; I just have to figure out which one it is. Since before the dawn of time, my ski conveyance has been an old Civic Si with a roof rack and a good set of snow tires. With the exception of the low ground clearance (4"), it's been outstanding. The only failings have been once when the last five miles of road to the cabin had about eight inches of new, unplowed and drifted (with more coming down, at about 2 AM) leading discretion to trump valor (i.e. we grabbed a motel room), and several occasions when friends with pickemups (2wd) or SUVs (4x4) have done 180s or nearly gone in the ditch trying to keep up with me. I've been able to compare it back-to-back it with an Exploder of the same vintage, and ground clearance aside, the Civic tracks, stops and turns so much better in the snow that there's no comparison at all. But this summer has seen the addition of a nice late-model pickup (4-liter Ranger with the entry-level offroad package). It's got over twice the ground clearance of the Civic, plus 4wd, but it's got all-season tires, inferior handling (I'd even call it truck-like), and a lot more mass in motion. So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... bw Before the dawn of time? I can remember before there ever was a Civic. Anyway, some dedicated snow tires would improve your go chances with the truck, and you could use that vehicle whenever you're heading out in the face of expected snowfalls. Otherwise, I'd opt for the comfort and handling of the Honda. |
"bdubya" wrote in message ... I've got a great vehicle for getting to the slopes; I just have to figure out which one it is. Since before the dawn of time, my ski conveyance has been an old Civic Si with a roof rack and a good set of snow tires. With snip or But this summer has seen the addition of a nice late-model pickup (4-liter Ranger with the entry-level offroad package). It's got over twice the ground clearance of the Civic, plus 4wd, but it's got all-season tires, inferior handling (I'd even call it truck-like), and snip IMHO, since you are really familiar with the civics handling I'd personally go with it and risk hitting the hotel if the snow is too deep, assuming the last 5 miles are a tiny portion of the trip. Truck is top heavy whch dosn't help the handling either. If the truck had great snows and you were familiar with taking it out of a skid, I might say different. I have driven a civic with Nokian snows, it handled great and would plow snow over the hood and up the windshield. I've also driven a similar class of 4x4 pickups with all season and with real snows. with the all season 4x4 the civic would probably win out except for busting thru snowbanks and maybe going uphill in deep snow. With REAL snows and weight in the back, the 4x4 would beat the civic except in emergency handling -though in certain ice situations the 4x4 will be better. My 2 cents F.plant |
bdubya wrote:
So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... Pickup - but only after throwing a yd^2 of sand in the bed. Thing tracks badly because it's nowhere near design weight. Add some overall weight to move compress the suspension and some rear weight to even out the traction and you're set, even without speciality tires. (Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) |
lal_truckee wrote:
(Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) Amen to that. I got to rescue some cute grrls on Loveland Pass last year. Had my towstrap in my Jeep, pulled them off the dge of the road and certain doom. Had I not been in a hurry to get home to go out with my fiance, I am sure I could have received lots of appreciation. I think they were boarder-grrls though... ;) -- Chester Bullock, Ethical, custom website hosting, design and programming Tenxible Solutions, http://www.tenxible.com Web Based Autoresponder and DRIP system, http://www.toolsre.com AIM: tenxible YahooIM: ccb247 |
"Chester Bullock" wrote in message ... lal_truckee wrote: (Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) Amen to that. I got to rescue some cute grrls on Loveland Pass last year. Had my towstrap in my Jeep, pulled them off the dge of the road and certain doom. Had I not been in a hurry to get home to go out with my fiance, I am sure I could have received lots of appreciation. I think they were boarder-grrls though... ;) Thank your luck stars that you had something to do then. Your dick would have most likely fallen off by now otherwise. |
On Thu, 9 Oct 2003 10:33:11 CST, lal_truckee
wrote: bdubya wrote: So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... Pickup - but only after throwing a yd^2 of sand in the bed. Thing tracks badly because it's nowhere near design weight. Add some overall weight to move compress the suspension and some rear weight to even out the traction and you're set, even without speciality tires. (Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) I travel with a grrl (a certified two-planker!) so there's no special benefit to rescuing grrls vs. anybody else who's stuck (I already have the recovery strap). Weighting the rear would help, of course, but I'd like to do it with something more useful than the sand (if I can't yank'em outta the ditch, I doubt the sand will help much). Hmmm....mebbe if I weight the rear end down with a used-but-functional snowmobobble? Then I'm REALLY set. What's a used sled go for these days? bw |
In , bdubya typed:
On Thu, 9 Oct 2003 10:33:11 CST, lal_truckee wrote: bdubya wrote: So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... Pickup - but only after throwing a yd^2 of sand in the bed. Thing tracks badly because it's nowhere near design weight. Add some overall weight to move compress the suspension and some rear weight to even out the traction and you're set, even without speciality tires. (Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) I travel with a grrl (a certified two-planker!) so there's no special benefit to rescuing grrls vs. anybody else who's stuck (I already have the recovery strap). Weighting the rear would help, of course, but I'd like to do it with something more useful than the sand (if I can't yank'em outta the ditch, I doubt the sand will help much). Hmmm....mebbe if I weight the rear end down with a used-but-functional snowmobobble? Then I'm REALLY set. What's a used sled go for these days? bw Why not weigh it down with beer -- Chris *:-) Downhill Good, Uphill BAD! www.suffolkvikings.org.uk |
On Fri, 10 Oct 2003 10:30:06 CST, "MoonMan"
wrote: In , bdubya typed: On Thu, 9 Oct 2003 10:33:11 CST, lal_truckee wrote: bdubya wrote: So when heading north for a few days on the hills, which should I take? Or should I take one and my girlfriend takes the other, so as to cover all our bases? Decisions, decisions..... Pickup - but only after throwing a yd^2 of sand in the bed. Thing tracks badly because it's nowhere near design weight. Add some overall weight to move compress the suspension and some rear weight to even out the traction and you're set, even without speciality tires. (Throw a tow rope and a shovel in the bed, and you can use that sand to rescue cute grrls who are stuck in the snow.) I travel with a grrl (a certified two-planker!) so there's no special benefit to rescuing grrls vs. anybody else who's stuck (I already have the recovery strap). Weighting the rear would help, of course, but I'd like to do it with something more useful than the sand (if I can't yank'em outta the ditch, I doubt the sand will help much). Hmmm....mebbe if I weight the rear end down with a used-but-functional snowmobobble? Then I'm REALLY set. What's a used sled go for these days? bw Why not weigh it down with beer Good idea, but the beer rides in the cab, where it won't freeze and blow the caps off the bottles. I guess I could rig an exhaust bypass to heat the bed, though. Hmmm.... bw bw |
bdubya wrote in message . ..
Good idea, but the beer rides in the cab, where it won't freeze and blow the caps off the bottles. I guess I could rig an exhaust bypass to heat the bed, though. Hmmm.... A capper and one of those plug-in cooler/warmer devices would let you keep your skis out of the weather and your beer however you wanted it. |
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