It's official - KC is getting a bad winter storm...

[scooperhsd]

I just saw Jim Cantore (from the Weather Channel) at what I would guess is the WW I Memorial park in KC MO ....

Well - we are about as prepared as we can be - plenty of food, generator is up by the house with the 3 propane tanks, the basement space heater (doesn't require power, just NG) has been on since November. Got the heating mats to melt on the driveway (just walking ones), plugging them in about an hour or 2. SNowblower is where I can get to it in the garage.

Anybody else that will be affected - take care of yourself.

[GiG]

That KC weather will probably be here around Tuesday.
We have only a light dusting so far, looks official to me - I think I may have looked at Weather Channel for maybe 10 minutes probably 20 years ago, guess I’m not on their list for the official notifications 

[old2soon]

     Our "news" station outa Springfield Mo. has had Dire weather warnings fer the last 3 or 4 days. Good to go on the food issue and beer and liquor issue. And as I've mentioned to some Friends weather gits delta sierra I No GO anywhere til it gits betta! Far Too many folks only Think or hope they know how to drive on slickery roads. According to the weather guessers I'm on the borderline of snow or ice accumulation or both!  As a former over the road 18 wheeler Driver I've already done my share of inclement weather driving. So I'll leave the cage in the driveway fer however long it takes. RIDE SAFE.

[Oss]

good luck out there.


My Valk is on the charger with an almost full tank of fresh gas. Although Gig says snow tires are good on Valks I will pass this year

Good idea to check on the snow blower shall do that later this week

[Jess from VA]

They're now saying 8-9 inches of fun stuff in NoVA starting midnight tonight.  (Ever notice how happy the weather broadcasters are when terrible weather is coming?)

I have a Toro snow blower but haven't used it in 5-7 years.  Winterized, no fuel, and in the back of the shed behind everything (where I would happily leave it forever).  The few dustings or an inch or two in those years I used my backpack blower for snow (powder better than wet); which is easier and quicker.

But given the forecast, I went out and drug everything out to get it out, fueled and running (fresh non ethanol, Seafoam and Stabil).  Of all my machines, this thing has always given me more trouble starting than anything else.  And sure enough, 50 pulls and a sore shoulder, and not even an attempt to start.  And it has no exposed air cleaner or carb to shoot starter fluid, without disassembly.

So I drag it out to the truck and run it over to my nearby Stihl dealer/lawnmower shop (where I bought it) to get help.  I walk in and there are 2 snow blowers ahead of me with the same problem... Get in line buddy.  And it's closing time.

Look, I bought it here, a lifetime customer, it has fresh fuel and plug, just get it started for me please.

OK, diddle diddle... your choke cable isn't hooked up and the primer bulb is shot.  He uses an air compressor to prime and it fires up 1st pull.  It's running great, smokey 2-stroke for awhile.  He sells me a new primer bulb for $10 (saying it's a 5 minute job) and I give him $20 (keep the change, and thank you).

Get it home, let it run for awhile again, then the 5 minute primer bulb job takes me an hour and a half (have to take all the body panels off to get it in there).  The choke cable is perplexing and can wait.  

So hopefully I'm all set.  Even have a big goofy snowmobile suit.  None of my neighbors (some old folks) have snow machines and I like to help them out too.  And the smallest kids' bus stop is right on my corner lot.

I'm kind of a disaster preparedness guy and always have enough food, drink and other to last weeks (or months).  

Let the fun begin.  

Please don't let the power go out. The big Honda whole-house (except 220) backfeed generator is ready but I don't want to use it either.  (It will run my gas furnace with 110 blower)

Go Lions, whip the Vikings!!

[old2soon]

      Jess daprez has a tracked snoblower that you keep next to a 110 volt outlet as that's the voltage for the starter. You MUST remember to cut it off near the outlet as it has no battery abosrd. And it's a walk behind. Do NOT take long at all to move a goodly amount of snow. The House he and BonBon hasd came with a rather steep driveway. The tracked snoblower made that job a mite easier. Cept fer the cold that is!  RIDE SAFE.

[f6john]

Well, finally. I’ve heard for a week+ about the coming blizzard ice storm treachery, got up this morning, nothing!!! Snow just showed up. Not sure how I feel about it. But at least it the anticipation is over.

I’m waiting on a call this morning from former neighbor who still owns the house across the street. I have a key to her house, and she just last week spent $15,000 for a new hvac system and it’s not working. I’m supposed to go over and let the hvac guys in when they show up. How embarrassing would that be?

[Rams]

I really do appreciate those who are sharing their news of the storm but, I'd asked each of you to please not share any of that white stuff south of the Ohio River.   I'm told they like it up there.  Do whatever you can, open or close barbed wire and yard gates, whatever.   

Learned long ago this is not an experience I look forward to.   Our forecast is for very cold and most likely icing.   While I do like icing on a cake, I don't like it on our roads.   Feel free to pass this along. 

Rams

[Jess from VA]

      Jess daprez has a tracked snoblower that you keep next to a 110 volt outlet as that's the voltage for the starter. You MUST remember to cut it off near the outlet as it has no battery abosrd. And it's a walk behind. Do NOT take long at all to move a goodly amount of snow. The House he and BonBon hasd came with a rather steep driveway. The tracked snoblower made that job a mite easier. Cept fer the cold that is!  RIDE SAFE.

Well you boys pack that monster up and bring it down here;  I'll buy lunch and the beer.    

It rarely snows enough here to justify owning a blower, and it wasn't until we got 4/5 feet of it over a decade ago that I got mine.  Just a small 5.5hp one (for my third acre).

You get enough snow to need it, and fire it up and go to work, and the neighbors come out and look at you wistfully.  I try to help all my neighbors (within reason).  

If that thing gives me any more trouble tomorrow morning, I may use it for shotgun practice.


During my morning walk in the mid 20s (bundled up good), I see this same little guy I've seen jogging for 2 years.  He's got to be pushing 80 and wearing the exact same thing as always, a pair of flimsy nylon shorts and a long sleeve safety orange T shirt.  We've waved, never talked.

Me:  Hey mister, do you own a pair of long pants (big smile)?

Him:  Nothing, just pushing along down the road.

[scooperhsd]

The starting issues is why I bought a snowblower that runs on electricity. I have enough LONG extension cord that it's really not a chore to get the drive way / front porch cleaned off in about 20-30 minutes. The chore is getting the extension cords back on their holders when I'm done....

[Rams]

The starting issues is why I bought a snowblower that runs on electricity. I have enough LONG extension cord that it's really not a chore to get the drive way / front porch cleaned off in about 20-30 minutes. The chore is getting the extension cords back on their holders when I'm done....

For situations like you're describing, my Kubota with FEL and blade does the trick.   Way more than most folks need and yes, my neighbors become very friendly when they need something...........


Rams

[f6john]

Already 4+” on the ground in 3 hours but it has finally slowed up a little but the word is this is supposed to be ongoing until tomorrow evening???  I live about 5 miles out of town off a county road  in a subdivision of close to 100 houses. But I have I suppose influential neighbors I suppose, a district judge, a former county magistrate, a KSP officer, a sheriffs dept officer, and a Lexington police officer. All the streets in the subdivision have just been plowed and salted!

[Rams]

Already 4+” on the ground in 3 hours but it has finally slowed up a little but the word is this is supposed to be ongoing until tomorrow evening???  I live about 5 miles out of town off a county road  in a subdivision of close to 100 houses. But I have I suppose influential neighbors I suppose, a district judge, a former county magistrate, a KSP officer, a sheriffs dept officer, and a Lexington police officer. All the streets in the subdivision have just been plowed and salted!

Interesting as that is, how's your driveway looking.   You've probably been out there keeping it cleaned off haven't ya? 

Rams

[f6john]

Already 4+” on the ground in 3 hours but it has finally slowed up a little but the word is this is supposed to be ongoing until tomorrow evening???  I live about 5 miles out of town off a county road  in a subdivision of close to 100 houses. But I have I suppose influential neighbors I suppose, a district judge, a former county magistrate, a KSP officer, a sheriffs dept officer, and a Lexington police officer. All the streets in the subdivision have just been plowed and salted!

Interesting as that is, how's your driveway looking.   You've probably been out there keeping it cleaned off haven't ya? 

Rams

Driveway looks great, looks like a Hallmark picture, all white and fluffy! I hate to make tracks in it.

 

[Rams]

Already 4+” on the ground in 3 hours but it has finally slowed up a little but the word is this is supposed to be ongoing until tomorrow evening???  I live about 5 miles out of town off a county road  in a subdivision of close to 100 houses. But I have I suppose influential neighbors I suppose, a district judge, a former county magistrate, a KSP officer, a sheriffs dept officer, and a Lexington police officer. All the streets in the subdivision have just been plowed and salted!

Interesting as that is, how's your driveway looking.   You've probably been out there keeping it cleaned off haven't ya? 

Rams

Driveway looks great, looks like a Hallmark picture, all white and fluffy! I hate to make tracks in it.

[scooperhsd]

We have 8-12 inches and it's still coming down.... supposed to stop overnight.....

[f6john]

And then came the freezing rain!

[Rams]

And then came the freezing rain!

John,
Realizing you're in a "situation", I'm looking for my snow shovel to come assist.   Should be there ASAP.   Expect me to arrive in mid to early June.

Edited:   John, after repeated attempts to get that shovel secured to my Valkyrie, I've decided now, I will just take my Kubota tractor.   Might take a tad bit longer to get there.  

Rams

[Jersey mike]

Good luck shoveling.

Watch your backs…arms…elbows…knees. Let’s not hear about any slip and falls with cracked noggins either.

Stay safe

[mellowyellow#7933]

Well, I'm jealous. Living in the Great White North, Valk tucked away long ago, sled frothing at the mouth but alas, no snow! Usually trails are groomed by now, but no snow forecast in Northern Ontario for the next 2 weeks
Enjoy it while you can!

Terry

[Rams]

First, let me describe our current weather, 28* F, Reports of roads covered with ice.

Watching my local news (minutes ago), they were showing the traffic flow and all of a sudden, I saw a motorcycle pass the camera.      All I can say is that person must really need to get somewhere and only has two-wheeled transportation available.

My Fat Ladies are and will stay inside my garage today.

Rams

[old2soon]

Good luck shoveling.

Watch your backs…arms…elbows…knees. Let’s not hear about any slip and falls with cracked noggins either.

Stay safe

     Much as I hate to mention it BUT with this group do NOT fergit don't stress the ol ticker-that main pump that Runs EVERYTHING! Snow removal and-SADLY_heartattacks go hand in hand sometimes.
      Had a light dusting here in SoMo. But if we got enough to shovel these days I hire it out. RIDE SAFE.

[Valker]

First, let me describe our current weather, 28* F, Reports of roads covered with ice.

Watching my local news (minutes ago), they were showing the traffic flow and all of a sudden, I saw a motorcycle pass the camera.      All I can say is that person must really need to get somewhere and only has two-wheeled transportation available.

My Fat Ladies are and will stay inside my garage today.

Rams

Rams, I thought you might enjoy this video of my son riding his Valk to work in a blizzard because his truck wouldn't start,
https://youtu.be/TAK_v5SzNfM?si=aqb-J6FElDtyOMuh

[GiG]

The extent of my shoveling consists of clearing the rear deck - outside the door wall so I can go out to grab fire wood & Griz has a path to the yard  
Folks assume I live in an igloo, but we have heat & even indoor plumbing too!
In the rare instances of accumulation, neighbor comes & plows driveway for LuLu   maybe 2x/year  

[Rams]

First, let me describe our current weather, 28* F, Reports of roads covered with ice.

Watching my local news (minutes ago), they were showing the traffic flow and all of a sudden, I saw a motorcycle pass the camera.     All I can say is that person must really need to get somewhere and only has two-wheeled transportation available.

My Fat Ladies are and will stay inside my garage today.

Rams

Rams, I thought you might enjoy this video of my son riding his Valk to work in a blizzard because his truck wouldn't start,
https://youtu.be/TAK_v5SzNfM?si=aqb-J6FElDtyOMuh

Excellent video!   Yeah, I remember in my youth riding in conditions like that.   Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado, I'm not as invincible as I was back then.   I also learned that falling down hurts and can be expensive.  

Glad his spill was at a slow speed, could have been much worse.

Rams

[John Schmidt]

I don't suppose Carl will be out making snow angels until it stops snowing! 

[Rams]

I don't suppose Carl will be out making snow angels until it stops snowing! 

John,
Such events have to be witnessed, videoed or photographed.   Otherwise, it didn't happen.

Rams   

[old2soon]

    IF Big IF the city or county or state have NOT put down any salt I'd be tempted to give the trike a workout on that slippy slidy thingy!  I can envision in my mind full lockup broad slide in either direction long as the L E Os didn't figure I was reckless!  BUT bein as I no longer handle cold very well I'll stay inside and wait fer mucho betta weather conditions! You know what we humans call Spring!                                               RIDE SAFE.

[f6john]

And then came the freezing rain!

John,
Realizing you're in a "situation", I'm looking for my snow shovel to come assist.   Should be there ASAP.   Expect me to arrive in mid to early June.

Edited:   John, after repeated attempts to get that shovel secured to my Valkyrie, I've decided now, I will just take my Kubota tractor.   Might take a tad bit longer to get there.  

Rams

Get here as quick as possible, there’s enough driveways in the subdivision to make it worth the trip! The freezing rain stopped during the night and now it’s snowing again! Those climate change people may have something, just a little less than two weeks ago I was outside in short sleeeves!

[Jess from VA]

Pardon me, but.... SON OF A BITCH, I HAVEN'T WORKED THIS HARD IN A LONG TIME!!!

Dumped 8-14 inches everywhere.  Started working at 0830, staggered in at 1230.  Only stopped snowing 30 minutes ago (and more to come later).

Used the snow blower, the backpack blower (lot of landscape to save from breaking down) and a freeking shovel around obstacles and where it was just too deep for the bower (driveway).

I completely forgot how sh!tty my (suitcase style) blower is in wet snow.  It just packs up and throws nothing and gets real hard to push.  It's never got out of the 20s but I should have been out there at 5-6am for dryer snow (8am noise ordinance, not that anyone would have complained).  I had a lot of powder in back and it blows that like a champion, but mostly wet out front it works for sh!t (though still easier and quicker than a shovel).  Wet show sticks to aluminum shovel too, and I sprayed it with oil which helps (I need to try using oil on the blower's rubber paddles too).

I paced myself, but had to start taking short breaks when I felt the heart attacks coming on.  

Four hours straight and I only cleared maybe 33% of my property.  Instead of the full clearing I usually do, I did paths everywhere, and my very long corner lot sidewalk, with street and sidewalk ramps.  I usually go around to my neighbors and at least do them some paths, but I just can't do it today.  

My mailman (a friend) hates when the snow is so piled up he can't drive to the box and it was packed 3 feet deep there, and I was out of steam.  A (much younger) neighbor friend pulled up in his big F350 super duty with giant tires and smashed it all down for me.  

I will not walk today in 12" snow.  I may not walk tomorrow.  From my house, very few people have even come outside at all.

I am whipped (but not sore, so far).  

[Willow]

I don't suppose Carl will be out making snow angels until it stops snowing! 

LOL!  And that was an excellent prediction.  I hate this stuff.  They virtually shut down everything yesterday and then today.  It has stopped coming down but it is piled up.  We don't normally get this stuff staying around for long but our temps over the next several days to not support a quick melt off.   

[Jess from VA]

Same here Carl.  It won't hit 40 for a week. 

Sunny will help, but probably turn to slippery ice rinks.   

[scooperhsd]

It's slick as snot all over the Metro area. I haven't left the house since saturday to get some fast food lunch (this was before the crap came down), and only this morning I got out to snowblow the driveway / front porch some and clear off the car in the driveway in case we have an emergency and need to go somewhere. The temp hasn't made it out of the teens here yet.

[old2soon]

   Been teens low 20s All day here. Where I live gittin on down to single digit temps!  Might could see some sunshine here thursady so the weather guessers said! Country and western song years back had a line I TRULY believe now-Southern Folks can't live on snow and ice. And I fer sure and fer certain ain't doin to well on the snow and ice. Almost 3 years in the tropics have changed something in me. Do NOT No how No way tolerate Cold near as well as I once did!  RIDE SAFE.

[John Schmidt]

Strangely enough, we got nothing. Looking at weather maps showed it all passed well south of Wisconsin. We did get 5-6" a couple weeks back, followed by a few 40 degree days with rain resulting in most of the snow is gone and we just have temps in the teens to mid-20's. I'll take that over snow any day but the season is still young. We want to head south in a couple weeks but Nancy said Florida is supposed to have a really cold spell of 40-50 degrees temps so maybe we should think about delaying the trip. Oh wow, 40-50 compared to 12-22 up here? Yeah, lets delay the trip. 

[Jess from VA]

Four more hours of cleanup today.  At least it's bright and sunny (with the cold 20 knot wind).

No heart attacks today, but most of my work was with the damn shovel (slowly).  The county plow comes through at night and throws a 3 foot pile of ice over your freshly cleaned driveway and sidewalk aprons and cutout to let the mailman drive to your box (just like always). 

The big chunks of ice are easier to move by setting the shovel down and picking them up by hand and tossing them on the pile.  Some have to be chopped in half to be able to lift.

I like to work, but this sh!t is the least entertaining kind of work I can think of.   

We'll get a nice thaw... in a week. 

[Rams]

A city about ten miles south of me reported 9.7 inches of that white stuff.   I don't know precisely how much my yard got but, it was probably close to that.  

Spent some time yesterday clearing my own drive way with my Kubota tractor (FEL and blade).   Cleared an elderly neighbors drive also.   Didn't take long.  Now, have other neighbors asking me to help them.   Should be noted that these are the same neighbors that asked me why in the hell do I have a tractor.  

Regardless, I'll help out those that ask today.   I'm told our county only has two snow plows and they only clear the major roads.   That's fine by me, a "Country Boy Can Survive".  

Rams

[f6john]

A city about ten miles south of me reported 9.7 inches of that white stuff.   I don't know precisely how much my yard got but, it was probably close to that.  

Spent some time yesterday clearing my own drive way with my Kubota tractor (FEL and blade).   Cleared an elderly neighbors drive also.   Didn't take long.  Now, have other neighbors asking me to help them.   Should be noted that these are the same neighbors that asked me why in the hell do I have a tractor.  

Regardless, I'll help out those that ask today.   I'm told our county only has two snow plows and they only clear the major roads.   That's fine by me, a "Country Boy Can Survive".  

Rams

I great time to go on down the road a make that Inzane 2025 travel money!

[old2soon]

    That 1/2 to 1" weather guessers forecast turned out to be a bit over 4"! My young neighbor cleared the sidewalk opened up my driveway and swept the cage off. And we here gonna go thru that thaw freeze thaw stuff fer a couple days. Spposed to be in the 50s next friday. Gits That warm little testo testo of that new to me 12 G/W Trike!  RIDE SAFE.

[Rams]

I great time to go on down the road a make that Inzane 2025 travel money!

John, I'll give that suggestion all the consideration it deserves.  

Rams