It is happening again - Shawn's Sense with Shawn Loughlin

On Sunday, when the first snowfall of the year blanketed southern Ontario in a healthy coating of the white stuff, there were nearly 350 snow-related incident reports on highways in the Greater Toronto Area just in that one day. This isn’t an attempt to poke fun at our Toronto-area friends - you know, we’re not so different, us and them - but rather a chance to set the record straight.

 

It comes every year, especially here in Huron County, and yet we act surprised. We’re shocked by some of its attributes and, despite our age, we forget aspects of dealing with it.

 

Consider this a helpful guide to snow. And don’t you dare read this column once and get rid of it. Treat it like a calendar or a to-do list that you keep close, consulting it as necessary as the winter drags on and the snow falls.

 

1. It’s cold. By design, snow is cold. If it were warm, it would be rain. This one should be easy enough to remember, which is why we’re starting here. When you go outside in the snow, it will be cold; if it wasn’t the snow wouldn’t be there. Furthermore, because the cold nature of snow is a shared experience, everyone is cold, so there is no need to bring it to someone’s attention. They’re cold too.

 

2. It’s wet. Unless it’s way, way, way below zero, snow is often wet. When it lands on you or your car - something warmer than it - it will often melt to a certain degree, making cars wet and clothes soggy. This is also known to most people and news of wet mittens or a soaker doesn’t need to be shared in the way that old-time reporters would rush to phones to call in news to their copy desk in an effort to still make the evening edition. My sock’s wet, your sock’s wet - no new ground being broken here.

 

3. It’s slippery. Alright, this is a big one. When walking outdoors, driving on roads or moving in any way whatsoever in an area that doesn’t have a roof, you are likely to be faced with patches of snow or even ice that will be slippery. Think of seeing a hockey player or figure skater fall on the indoor ice of a hockey rink and slide around. That ice and the ice you see you on the sidewalk are one in the same. 

 

So, having said that, appropriate footwear should be deployed to give you the best chance you have at defeating the slippery menaces most commonly known as snow and ice. Also, other measures can be employed, such as maintaining three points of contact or really watching where you’re stepping. 

 

4. It’s more difficult to drive on than a bare, dry road on a sunny day. Another big one here that strikes at the heart of how I opened my column. Driving in snow and ice is more challenging than most other driving. As a result, snow tires and cautious, defensive driving should be considered if not mandatory, very strongly recommended. Turns, stops, lane changes, passing attempts and more are all complicated by the presence of snow and ice. 

 

We believe in you.

 

This is not meant to scare you. Of course it is a bit scary, but it happens every year. We know it’s coming, so we have the ability to prepare for it and come out the other side. 

 

With the basic knowledge that The Citizen has given you on snow and ice, you now have the tools to succeed in a snow-ravaged area. 

 

So, get out there. Practise. Do your own research. Sure, it’s cold - but how cold? Just how slippery is this patch of ice? Break the ice atop a puddle and then sit in it - become part of it. The closer we get to symbiosis with the cold of today the more we stand a chance at understanding tomorrow’s frigidity. Don’t fear the snow and ice, welcome it every year with the tools we have provided you.