SouthEast Ice storm- and I was in the middle of it all...

[Jason Palmer <jaspal1@yahoo.com>]

Man, I think I'll have to replace the leather sport steering wheel
after this journey.

I made it to Hurracane Mills (just miles from Bucksnort, Tennessee)
about 9pm Tuesday after driving from Dallas. The news was reporting
cold weather and wet air were in the mix, but I couldn't go on without
several hours sleep.
Up at 6am, ice everywhere. Trucks sliding sideways, cars in the
ditch... and that was just getting back on I40!
30mph until just outside Nashville... now I'm in the delayed rushhour.
Standstill.
Crawl thru Nashville, get moving a bit. 18degrees and sleet, rain and
ice covering eveything. Had to stop every 75 miles to de-ice the wipers.

Then the carnage began... SUV 180's, trailers sunk in ditches, one
Uhaul truck w/ Ponitac in transport spread over 100 feet, a Grand
Cherokee backed into a rock face, another towing a boat flipped- boat
up the hill, trailer over there and the truck flipped down there. Cars
getting stuck in the drainage ditches... just a mess.

My quattro wasn't the fastest car on the highway. I just imagined my
A4 with an Armco barrier in the passenger seat. Didn't make it
unscathed- curbed my 17" alloys @ 4mph and got a scratch. Hell.

Once the road opened up and the salt took effect, I was able to cruise
@ 80mph in the wet.
A bloke driving a pearl 100 was trying to keep up, but I was tired and
didn't want to play (sorry, if you're on the list).

I'm praying for better weather next week for the trip back.

btw- did anyone know the Bucksnort exit landmark is an 'Adult video
and mag' shop?

Jason Palmer
97 A4 1.8Tq mtm de-icing
88 GTi in the garage in Dallas
_________________________________________________________
DO YOU YAHOO!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com