Here comes the snow

Winter is coming and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it.

All you can do is prepare for what's ahead.

Hey Buffalo, did you get enough snow yesterday or you want some more?

These shots were on I 90 near Buffalo just a different storm.

 

I used to drive a truck through Buffalo to Syracuse every day and saw some pretty ominous lake effect snow events like they just had yesterday which stranded motorists for more than ten hours along Interstate 90.

 

One particular trip through that stretch I saw more cars and trucks in the ditch or stuck in snow drifts across the road than I saw actually driving, fortunately I had a heavy load and was driving a ten wheeler that could drive through almost anything.

 

The amazing thing about these Lake Effect snow storms is that thirty miles up-wind on the other side of the lake, it can be a bright sunny day although very very cold as in the scene below which dumped four feet of snow on Buffalo in just a few hours.

 

In this scene, a cold wind is at your back blowing directly over Lake Ontario towards Buffalo, first forming streamers of what looks like steam rising off the lake and quickly forming a thick cloud almost like a dense fog bank just hanging several hundred yards off shore. That "fog bank" is the origin of an intense lake effect snow band that paralyzed Buffalo for days about fifteen years ago. I took this shot on returning from Syracuse after spending about three hours getting past Buffalo Airport.

Be ready for whatever you may encounter in winter driving or better yet, stay home and keep warm and toasty.

That's what I plan to do.

Construction,Construction, Construction

Each night I drive my son to work at the Ford plant near Toronto so I spend some time every night on the QEW Highway.

For anyone that uses the QEW, they know construction is the norm through the Oakville stretch.
Recently the timing of my trips put me in the thick of the congestion to get through the area. Miles and miles just idling along with the thousands of other drivers wasting fuel and polluting the air.


Alas, a change of shift, my son goes in a bit earlier now so I leave a little earlier. Now I see the construction crews just arriving with their coffee in hand planning out their strategy for causing absolute traffic chaos  paralyzing the west end of the city.

Back Off - Keep your distance

Just a Reminder to leave lots of room between vehicles on the highway and other roadways.

Most of the accidents I see are because someone was too close to someone else or traveling too fast and did not have enough time to react to slowing or stopping traffic.

I have always recommended 2 to 3 seconds between vehicles to allow safe reaction time.
 

Extra distance should be added in poor weather conditions along with lower speeds in general to make it a little safer for everybody on the road.

Drive safe, make sure everyone gets there.

New Retro Look of the International Lonestar Trucks

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I just love the retro look of the new International Lonestar Trucks.

As it turns out, my former employer LMT Transportation Services called me to come take some photos of their new fleet of trucks including their Lonestar daycabs for their website.

I was their Safety and Compliance guy for some years but I still take care of their site.

They rounded off the fleet with International Prostars for Over The Road.

And they've still got a bunch of pretty trucks for the Machinery Moving Division like this Kenworth

and some shiny Peterbilts

 

Toronto G20 destruction, violence, tear gas

WOW! I  am sure glad I don't work there anymore.

The G20 anarchist protesters in Toronto are burning police cars in the streets and Riot police just watch.

Everybody has the right to free speech but these idiots should be rounded up carted away for a long time.

There goes tear gas

Toronto G20 activist violence

Why do they do it?

Just watching live news coverage in Toronto of violence breaking out.
They are talking about vandalism at Yonge St. and Dundas. Normally about the busiest pedestrian intersection in Canada.

About 18 years ago I managed a bar at the exact location.

There goes another police car on fire.

G20 protester violence, police cars burning in the street

I'm watching two police cars on fire in Toronto outside the security perimeter.

G - 20 Summit

The World Leaders are coming to Fortress Toronto for the G20 Summit this weekend.


















With security costing a BILLION DOLLARS, this should be the most secure area on the planet!















Various protesters and activists have vowed to disrupt the event, I'm glad I live at least 40 miles from the epicenter  

 Should be fun.

Forget the Gadgets While You're Driving

Forget all those fancy electronic gadgets while you are driving, they are dangerous.

Most jurisdictions have either banned or are considering a ban on the use of hand-held devices like cell phones.

Need I Say More

 

Drive Safe, Keep Everyone Alive!

More of that "Blue" stuff

 
Looks like another wave of that "blue" stuff going across the Midwest, maybe this one won't be so mean to Washington, but I think I might be manning MY shovel this time.

I'm finished with the cold this year, when the Bar B Q won't light because the propane is too cold, it's time for a little sunshine and longer days to warm things up a little.

Drive careful in that blue stuff, it can be hard to see sometimes.

http://ezee.ca for Road Safety Information

Headline News puts Baby Gabriel over Haiti?

Looking for news on Haiti, I came across Nancy Grace on HLN - What used to actually be a news channel "Headline News"

I find it hard to believe that Nancy Grace squawking away about some missing baby aparently kidnapped or something is more news worthy than the disaster unfolding in Haiti where THOUSANDS of people DIED - Good Call HLN.

Years ago, Headline News I received was a half hour rotation of actual news that seemed to be updated with real news through the night which is why I bought that cable package, I never watch HLN anymore with the garbage they spew out, last night and tonight are a good example with their LACK of coverage (My Cable Network anyway).

Cold front

Not quite the weather I expect to see in Sebastian Florida, the price of oranges may be going up soon.