TAH-TAH FORD - Rackspace Hosting

BEHIND THE STEERING WHEEL
By Jeffrey B. Aronson
Oh the weather outside is frightful
But my Rover’s so delightful
When other cars won’t go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow
Oh, boy, it’s the beginning of December
and this island has received its first
substantial, it’s-going-to-stick snowstorm.
The snow fell so hard and thick that the ferry
service had to shut down when the radar
systems couldn’t penetrate the snowfall. Then
the winds picked up, the seas rose, and the
ferry cancelled out for another day.
Doom and gloom? Hardly! As a kid, I
would have grabbed my Flexible Flyer and
headed for a hill or slope. Now, I grab one of
the Series II-A’s and head for any unplowed
road or trail.
There’s something special about riding
around in the snow. You do need to be
careful that the several inches or feet of snow
don’t hide something substantial, like a ditch,
boulder or log, but all that does is force you
to slow down – never a bad idea. It is
comforting to remember that very cold air
holds little moisture; that means it will rarely
be bone-chilling cold when it is snowing
heavily outside. That’s even better news for
me; I never did get around to swapping out
the canvas top for the safari top on the QE I,
my ’66 II-A.
I bundled up and stepped outside into
the snowstorm. With the snow falling heavily
and steadily, the local snowplows had
remained in the garage pending a let up in the
storm. That meant that I had most of the local
roads to myself. Since I caretake some
summer properties here, it gave me a perfect
excuse to run through the 12- 15 inches of
snow that had fallen on unplowed trails in
different parts of the island. With the Rovers
North Mansfield heater in the car, and a nice
new Rovers North canvas top, I was fairly
snug and warm inside the car. The Lucas
wipers on a II-A operate with minds of their
own, totally unsynchronized. They also sweep
across a tiny part of the windshield at a
leisurely pace. Much snow can accumulate
before the wiper makes its next pass. Every so
often, you need to just stop and remove some
built up snow off the windshield.
Last September I purchased a set of B F
Goodrich All Terrain M+S tires and this storm
provided their first test in the snow. They have
aggressive treads which make them a bit
noisy on paved roads but helpful in mud and
snow. It was well worth the considerable cost;
the Rover pushed through the snow and drifts
nicely. When a steep incline or side angle
forced some slippage, shifting down into low
range did the trick.
After an hour or so, more trucks
appeared on the roads so I decided to do
something useful and secure more firewood.
As the snow fell, I loaded up the rear of the
88” with split logs. There’s no doubt that a
fully laden 88” has even better traction than
an unloaded one. It almost made me want to
leave the wood in the car!
Running in the snow is not that hard on
the Rover. You do have to be careful of hidden
obstacles, as you might during a water
crossing, but there’s nothing abrasive against
swivel balls or seals like when you’re running
through mud. You do have to make certain
that you don’t get a lot of ice packed around
the wheels or brakes, but it’s unlikely to
damage anything.
Driving around during the storm
reminded me of the numerous travels I’ve
made in my II-A during significant storms.
Flying into Boston from Nashville at midnight,
I discovered the reason for our flight’s long
delay; New England was buried in snow. I
quickly found that the snowplows had not yet
started their work. The snow came down so
thickly that it was difficult to see the highways
and roads. You could barely exceed 40 mph
for the trip; add an extra two hours for the
drive. The II-A never missed a beat.
On another morning, I left Gorham, NH
for a job in Augusta, ME. The normal 2 ½
hour drive stretched out as the roads proved
52