New-York tribune., 1920-11-21
Retter Look Over
Chains; Slippery
Season Is Opening
viuter Driving Is Attended
nv Greater Chances Of
Skidthng. MOI Only I'm
uleasant but Dangerous

sss xent down or not, you lost all con.
ssns az Yourself momentarily. The ef-
~ 10 regain equilibrium. If you dic
- faIl strained every muscle Of your
ScSx. II you know that helpless feel
srssvou know exactly how the driver
-, sk.ddirg car feels.
Wsfer OF an asphalt or oiled road
s.ss exactly after the manner of 9
;cAracant. SIS much SO SIS if tho asphalt
-rre creased or this oil were fresh
SsfeNto navigate such road requires
sr,rcrae caution, yet you will see driv-
srs tesring around corners. rushing
lang toward places where stop must
IL made, utterly needless of the condi-
aon Of the pavement
In tnrning q corner the tendency OF
the car is to so straight ahead. The
t,acsion Of the pavement causes the
e,r. TO turn when the steering wheel
moves the front wheels Now. If there
Ss q ain OF water or anything else
iuserposed between the tires and the
,urfsce OF the roadway the traction is
intsrfered with and the car starts to
70 on tangent toward the far curb
Or, Il the car be going straight away
~nd 1t is necessary to stop FOR traffic
or II for ether reason the brakes are
sppIled, the car either drifts ahead
into whatever may be in the way, or
the rear end wants to get around in
'front.' and there is a skid
Helpless After 1t Starts
After skid has started the driver
# car is practically helpless. In
rounding g corner ne may turn thc
front wheels again in the direction OF
The skid and by gently applying the
brakes gradually stop the car. If ther.
d room enough no damage Is done. If
she euro gets in the way too soon there
viii be q smash-Up.
Disastrous skidding is mininized bv
increased weight Of cars to-dav. Al.
though added weight adds momentum
and would seem to make the danger
greater, in fact, because of the WEIGHT
the film Of water is squeezed from,
under the tire so that it has better
traction even under adverse conditions
his cannot be presumed upon. how.
sver, for it is true that very heavily
laden trucks skid very badly.
The worst time for skiddinc has now
come. Water does not evaporate so
quickly, now that the cooler days ar.
here, and occasionally there NAV be a
little ice. 1t is true that all seasons OF
the gear are favorable for skidding, be.
<suse all that is needed is wet. smooth
pavement to produce it, But when the
frosty days come, with ice and little
later slush or snow, the necessity for
caution i-.creases. In cold months the
psvements are nearly always in bad
condition.
Then, too, suppose the very cold
aakes the driver and his passengers
.agsr TO go faster to get out Of
- .atd IT, - ,
s;other vehicle, brakes are jammed on
hard and the car sAids straight ahead
Or it may be that at n intersection an
other car comes out Of the side street,
and to avoid an accident the driver
turns his wheel. swerves quickly to one
side and the car gets away from him
By skid
This Happens Oftenest
The kid turning the corner is the
nosr equent one, and very often In
such case all four wheels skid. Ap-
plying the brake usually will overcome
front wheel skid. When the rear
vAssls start to skid, if there is room
snougn TO let the car coast, turn the
frunt wheels in the direction in which
the car is skidding. Then, as the
sheels begin to take hold, apply the
brake gently, with the clutch engaged
This Will prevent locking the wheels
which. revolving slowly, give some trac-
ton.
The average driver laughs at q skid
until be has experienced a real one
Then be fears it. WISE is he who
learns to know the cause and how to
werecme it, wiser still if he applies
10 knowledge to prevent it, for this is
case where fractional part Of IN
oanee Of prevention is worth several
tons Of cure.
In country driving special caution
should be observed because these
rsaes ara all crowned that is, they are
sonsiderably higher in the center than
% the sides. This is done so that the
vster will run of instead of forming
escis, which disintegrate the pavement
Bot When one is of tho crown OF the
!sad 1t is Ike driving on a side hill
some cases. Therefore, one should
srive upon the crown of the road and
vhsn compelled to turn out for an
otasf ear should slow up enough to
prevent skidding of into the ditch.
tmount' OF caution should be observed
New, would advise every one to keep
sas'reiy Of freshly oiled roads as far
~ possible Il usually means q hard
et cleaning up the car afterward
ADDITION 70 the danger Of going in
Ms ditch, and the oil does tho tires no
S0oG L there happens to be a little
ssk through which the oil may sink
I've the fabric it Is pretty nearly
,edby tire" II Is almost impos-
s'D.e for yulcanizer to make q salts
.ss0fy repair of tire where oil has
'"a3sd into the fabric.
Uneven Brakes VIII Do II
ssskes adjusted unevenly, which
" cause one tire to hold while the
::her slips, are likely to produce skid
ss. very slight twist of the steer
,ee Wheel just az the brake is applied
:. practically sure TO cause It. II all
- weight 10 In the front end of the
80 TIE rear wheels are likely to skid
soss there is not enough weight to
.s'o tnern down. II the rear end be
s5'osded Il Is almost as bad. since
weight gives momentum and makes
y ear try 10 slew around.
IA, sHess are great many varieties OF
ssisxio tires on the market, many OF
tan are quite effective up TO a GER
ssnx. roin.. but they cannot DO do
ass-d Upon wholly TO remove the
vrssr. Therefore, when the roads are
"a ~, or there is snow or slush, anti
To- chains should be used. In coun-
,ssv sriving. II tho roads are muddy,
II are doubly necessary.
"a cnains should be loose enough
r.s s:p around and thus prevent cut
!. the rubber, and they should not
ss.s.pt on the tires any longer than
a.ssry. driver may well afford
snem on and take them off half