Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="bbbom, post: 1173599, member: 16301"] So we loaded up the trucks and headed for home. Stopped in Salt Lake for a quick dinner and I took a little nap in the backseat of the truck knowing I’d be driving later. Shortly after Missoula I took the wheel. Boy was I thrilled about driving at 2 am for the last leg of the drive which included fog, fresh snow on Lookout Pass in Idaho where I followed the semi’s at 20 – 25 mph due to the slippery roads. Karl commented that it was fine as they had certainly de-iced the roads. More fog, a little more slickness on 4th of July Pass but we were only about 8 miles from Couer d’Alene and the truck was saying it needed diesel. I figured I’d get us to CDA then switch drivers at the gas station. Back on Lookout Pass, I had Becky flip on the outside thermometer to keep an eye on the temps so I’d know when the road were most likely slick, we are in a new F350 long bed crew cab pulling a 4 place enclosed snowmobile trailer with 12 bikes, gear, gas, etc. in it and none of it belonged to me except a couple of the bikes. The trailer was a little tongue heavy and seemed to push a bit in the corners but we were almost home. I was taking it pretty easy, 55 – 60 mph since the thermometer was reading 32 – 33 degrees and there was water coming off the tuck tires. As I approached the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge across a portion of Coeur d’Alene Lake I slowed a bit because I know that bridges can be slick. To my horror, the trailer started to fishtail, we were on a 400 yard long two lane (luckily both in one direction) bridge deck covered in blackice!!!!! I started saying “Oh $%@&*@#$%, oh *&%#$@*, oh #$%&*()” as my passengers started to wake up to the sliding/swaying of our vehicle. We were swerving from one side of the bridge to the other all the way across the bridge. This bridge is like 200 feet in the air and 400 yards long!!! I had a little premonition earlier, prior to the passes, of a truck over a barrier so I was scared ****less at this point and trying everything I could to get control of the rig before we plunged over the barrier to a certain death. Miraculously, I maintained enough control to get across the bridge but as we hit the end of the bridge, the trailer and/or truck hit the barrier on one side which caused it to jackknife and shove the front end of the truck up over the barrier where we came to a stop. I yelled out “Are we over ground or air!!!!?” Becky replied with “It’s GROUND” so we all piled out. Then the fun really started. We quickly realized that the trailer had jackknifed enough to leave the other lane open but the semi’s and cars whizzing across the ice covered bridge were sliding as they tried to maneuver past us. Karl grabbed a flashlight and started out on the bridge deck to flag drivers away (it is still dark at 5 am here). A car starts to skid towards him, he runs to the barrier and is getting ready to jump as I look from the end of the bridge and scream “DO NOT JUMP there’s nothing below you!!!!!” The car makes it past all of us, Karl didn’t jump thank God! He waited till there were no lights and sprinted across the bridge to warn drivers at the beginning of the bridge. Stan grabbed more flashlights & flares and we all tried to keep from getting killed while flagging off the oncoming traffic in the dark. It took forever for emergency crews to show up and get the traffic under control. I have no idea how all the semis & cars made it past us without hitting the trailer or one of us. The other guys came back shortly before the tow truck arrived. It was so icy the guys just pushed the trailer back in line with the truck once the cops shut the traffic off. The tow truck lifted the truck off the barrier and Stan drove it up the road until it started to shudder from lack of tranny fluid – the barrier put a hole in the belly pan and the truck lost tranny fluid. None of us were hurt, none of the bikes were hurt. It looks like the nose of the trailer was all that was damaged on it from when it jackknifed into the rear of the truck. The truck has some pretty bad body damage but other than that & the belly pan appeared to be okay. What a nightmare! I’d take 5 Miles of Hell, even 10 Miles of Hell over black ice on a tall, very long bridge anyday! [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v352/bbbom/moab2007055.jpg[/IMG] [/QUOTE]

Verification: Which ocean is California closest to?