2017 New Years Challenge

[Bob Carriere]

Yes there is a Santa Clause....

.......and the trucks did go out in Hammond.....

......................turned out to be the New Year s(tr)uck event.

Pictures to follow..... need time to sort them out.....

Of much more concern is Phil's little demise.......

......glad it was a near miss...... and that it will scare the sh*t out of you to be careful......... Margaret better take care of you and hid the keys to the barn!!!!

Cheers

PS ,,,,, my wife took about 400 pictures in quick burst.......phew!!

[Bob Carriere]

This one is dedicated to Phil.........

First of all basic facts...... Sunny and a pleasant -6 C....slight breeze...time noon when we started..... dark when it ended.

About 36 inches of snow on the ground some compasted and some ice crust about midway.

Walking you never sink to the bottom ( whcih by the way the ground is not yet fully frozen) but your tires will dig down to the wet turf then the bottom floats.
Yes a CMP can float on snow and loose all traction.

The day then turned to New Years Sucks......

The Hup would not fire up..... we tried and tried and towed it on the street where the pavement was bare for better traction.....cough and cough but wuld not start.....

Plan "B"....get the M 37 going..... and we did.

For the photos we went to the larger back field were no one in is right mind would drive....

NOTE....... when the photographer waves to stop.....don't
once you loose your momentum you are dead...

More to come

[Bob Carriere]

My truck was driven in low range and second gear to break the trail then 3 rd for more speed...... flat out in both gears. .... at times the truck decides which rut it wants to follow...... and do not leave your thumbs inside the steering wheel spokes....

Now I know what the shovel is for on a CMP.....

Amazing the amount of snow pushed by the front suspension.

[Bob Carriere]

Cavalry to the rescue.............

The Dodge seemed to have a slight advantage in the deep snow with the 9x16 bar thread compared to the wide 10:50x16.

It has all to do with momentum once you get rolling don't stop or turn too sharply or you are stuck.

All in all it was a fun day.

I also have a bunch of short videos that I need to learn how to stitch together for posting.... so more later.

[Bob Carriere]

It took me over half an hour to blow ( with the air compressor) the packed snow from underneath the truck. It seems that once the axles and brake drums get warm they collect snow which quickly freezes on the surface.

We push the Hup back in its coccoon for later consideration ...stored the Dodge and my cab 11 until the next escapade.....then generally cleaned up the snow until dark.

Looking forward to next year .... but I may cheat and install the spare set of 9x16 Michelin block threads....... and maybe like Bob B use chains on all four wheels....

Cheers

[RHClarke]

It was a great day in Hammond! Despite the HUP refusing to start, it all worked out in the end. The M37 ran like a dream in the deep snow - unlike driving in sand, I found that increasing the tire pressure (50 pounds) makes running in the snow easier.

Bob, please thank Joyce for taking these great photos! Let's plan a drive at -20, -30 and if possible -40oC.

[Wayne Hingley]

Nice photos guys! Its great to see the trucks (and Hammond pit crew) getting some laps around the field. Looks like fun!

[maple_leaf_eh]

Originally Posted by RHClarke

... The M37 ran like a dream in the deep snow - unlike driving in sand, I found that increasing the tire pressure (50 pounds) makes running in the snow easier.

...

The tire pressure trick is one thing I noticed on working half-tons on the Prairies. The smart farmers never put wide all-terrain tires on their farm trucks. One daily chore of every rancher is to count cattle. They choose high ground clearance springs and skinny conventional winter tires to get around the trails and in the pastures. There is less snow to push away, and it packs down firmer.

Edit - one other thing you will always find in a working truck is a centrefire rifle. One old timer I knew said he was checking cattle and suddenly they all crowded around, complaining about something. He stepped out with the rifle and spotted a black bear circling in the forest fringe. The game laws allow landowners (the key difference) to dispatch nuisance animals harassing livestock. I forget if he got off a shot, but he encouraged us to shoot any bears we saw on his pastures.