Georgia Kickoff Event Cancelled

[cbale2000]

Originally Posted by GreyingJay

But, I also recognize we're a city that expects snow and prepares for it. We spend a ton of city money on plow equipment, and most people prepare themselves with snow tires, scrapers, etc. It's a very different (and dangerous) game if you weren't expecting it!

Stay safe everyone! Have a great kickoff weekend!

As someone from a smaller town in Michigan that historically has not been prompt in their snow removal efforts (though it's been much faster in recent years), I can say that even just using All-Season tires and dropping your speed is pretty much all you need to do in the majority of cases of winter weather. It's a bit more difficult with smaller cars and/or rear wheel drive but even unplowed/salted roads are usually still traversable as long as you're not going up/down large hills or driving too fast.

Slow down, plan extra stopping distance, and don't use dry-road tires.

[FrankJ]

For Georgia teams, Kit pick up is scheduled for Sunday afternoon at the Atlanta DE Field. From the GaFirst Email

The next issue – distribution of the kit-of-parts – will be handled as follows:

Our kits will be delivered to the Atlanta Destination Einstein location at Johnson Research and Development. The address is:

263 Decatur Street SE

Atlanta, GA 30310

A kit pick-up event only is planned for Sunday, January 8th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. We will have volunteers on hand to help with the distribution of kits and to help you load into your vehicle. To see the size of the kit-of-parts that you will pick up, please go here:

http://www.firstinspires.org/resourc...7-kit-of-parts

If you are unable to pick up your kit on Sunday, please let us know. We will work with you to make sure you receive your kit-of-parts in a timely manner. Contact Connie Haynes at: chaynes@gafirst.org or call 770-366-5612.

[D.Allred]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

For all those getting snowed in this weekend - Stay safe. Set up Skype/Google Hangout/whatever to let your team communicate and watch the stream from home. It's truly amazing how much you can accomplish (in terms of planning and initial design) remotely like this - it forces everyone to stay on point, practically eliminates side conversations that distract people. Use this time wisely and safely!

Yes it is! Our school system has shut down official activities for the weekend. We are setting up a web conference to hold a strategy session Saturday afternoon. It will be a great introduction to virtual meetings for our students. I might loose a few hair follicles in the process though...

David

[FrankJ]

Originally Posted by cbale2000

As someone from a smaller town in Michigan that historically has not been prompt in their snow removal efforts (though it's been much faster in recent years), I can say that even just using All-Season tires and dropping your speed is pretty much all you need to do in the majority of cases of winter weather. It's a bit more difficult with smaller cars and/or rear wheel drive but even unplowed/salted roads are usually still traversable as long as you're not going up/down large hills or driving too fast.

Slow down, plan extra stopping distance, and don't use dry-road tires.

In Atlanta, pretty much if you are not going a hill, you are going down a hill. We rarely have dry snow. It is a mixture of water, sleet, snow, & ice. Even when patchy you have black ice in shady areas. Invariably on corner apexes after a stretch of dry road. Much different than dry snow pack that exists further north for most of the year. But on the plus side, we actually have a summer that lasts for more than a weekend.

[TDav540]

Originally Posted by FrankJ

But on the plus side, we actually have a summer that lasts for more than a weekend.

Oh joy, 100 degree heat for 3+ months out of the year.

In all seriousness, I hope that if anyone drives, they follow Chris' advice. Leave extra space, slow it down, and don't take corners like you're in Formula One.

[JamesBrown]

Virginia is officially joining the list of cancelled kick-off events.

https://www.firstchesapeake.org/news...d-va-cancelled

The FIRST Steamworks Kickoff at VCU in Richmond, VA is now cancelled due to impending snow.

Please see this blog posting https://www.firstchesapeake.org/news...mond-va-update for team contingency plan.

Please watch the blog for further updates on pickup availability (dates and times), contingent on delivery of the kits and field to the new location and the local road conditions.

The live broadcast can be viewed here http://www.firstinspires.org/robotic...2017-broadcast . Pre-show begins Saturday at 10:00am, Kickoff at 10:30am EST.

Thank you, and be safe this weekend.

[Richard Wallace]

Winter storms in Atlanta can shut the city down. Cars pile up in icy depressions, due to daytime thawing followed by overnight re-freezing. Southern drivers are generally less experienced with wintery road conditions, and southern cities are generally less equipped to clear ice and snow. Those of us who lived in Atlanta during SnowJam82 recall these factors well.

[JamesBrown]

Originally Posted by cbale2000

Slow down, plan extra stopping distance, and don't use dry-road tires.

As someone who grew up in the North East and now lives in the south, I find it crazy how bad people here are at driving in the snow, but any time there is snow on the road, I can guarantee I will see 5+ cars off the side of the road or in the median on my 10 mile drive to work.

You can forget about anyone having snow tires, in VA you can pass inspection with 1/16" of tread, and it is good for a year, so there are people on the road on tires that had almost no tread a full year ago.

The worst offenders though are people with lifted pickup trucks and tires with chunky treads, they are great for playing in the mud, but they are useless in the snow at highway speeds.

[SoccerTaco]

Originally Posted by cbale2000

... but even unplowed/salted roads are usually still traversable as long as you're not going up/down large hills or driving too fast. ...

That's the thing though - most all of our roads are hills and curves! In the foothills of the Appalachians - a flat straight road is the exception.

I lived in Utah and there was a lot of snow - and the driving was easy. Most of the Provo - Salt Lake - Ogden corridor is relatively flat.

And, the snow was different. In Utah, it is a nice, dry, powdery snow. Even when it was packed down on the road, it generally wasn't like a sheet of ice. Here, the snow is wet and and seems to get icier....

[TedG]

Originally Posted by FrankJ

But just as a point of reference, Most of the snow related traffic issues in Atlanta come from northerners who "know" how to drive in snow. Any self respecting southerner is at home with his 5 loaves of bread and 2 gallons of milk.

That just shows you there are "bad winter drivers" from the north too.

Usually up here in New England, the first storm usually shakes up 50% of the people until they get back into it for the season.. They "forgot" how to drive in the snow for the first day.



Be Safe.

[Ari423]

I'm not surprised the Georgia kickoff event was cancelled. Georgia Tech has closed their campus today starting today at noon (actually right now). If they don't want their college students going to classes, they certainly don't want thousands of high school students who don't really know where they're going flooding onto campus.

[sarah_storer]

Originally Posted by Ari423

I'm not surprised the Georgia kickoff event was cancelled. Georgia Tech has closed their campus today starting today at noon (actually right now). If they don't want their college students going to classes, they certainly don't want thousands of high school students who don't really know where they're going flooding onto campus.

We actually don't have class until Monday

Campus being closed Friday was a big concern because of KoP delivery. The loading dock we were going to had to be staffed so we couldn't use it because no employees. Thankfully we were able to come up with the back-up plan and get kits to teams before the Tuesday "tell FIRST you're missing something" deadline.

[Omar]

I don't buy northern drivers are better. It is all relative.

I moved from the south to Milwaukee WI. The first miner snow fall of the winter always cause havoc on the roads. This would occur mid October when the temp would fluctuate above and below freezing. Refreezing any melted snow to ice like it does in Atlanta. I would wait an hour or so before trying to go to work, and would see dozens of cars in the ditches and median and say, “This looks just like Atlanta”.

One year the first snow struck at about 3 in the afternoon. As everyone piled on to the roads to get home, the plows could not plow the roads. Hundreds of down town office worker were stuck in down town Milwaukee in their cars. They had to spend the night in gas stations and mini marts. This was all for less than 2 inch of snow.
Think Lake Shore Drive Chicago 2011.

When these Wisconsinite would poke at me about Atlanta drivers in show, I would ask them what is the Milwaukee annual snow fall? They would say around 50 inches. I would ask what would happen if half of that all fell in one 24 hours. That is exactly what happens when Atlanta gets 1 inch of its 2 inch annual snow fall. It all relative.

[BrianAtlanta]

As a northerner living in the south, I know how to drive in snow. I know that you don't drive up or down hills, so when I drive tomorrow I'll stick to the flat roads.....er....hmmm, flat roads, where are they at? .....as a northerner I'll be staying inside. :

Brian

[dtengineering]

Originally Posted by phurley67

As someone in Michigan I always find these things a little funny, but I had my perspective properly set a couple years ago. I was traveling for work and was in Sweden working with some great people over there. We were making small talk at lunch (their English was great, my Swedish is non-existent) no communication difficulties at all until I mentioned that after speaking with my kids I found out that they had a "snow-day" after getting about a foot of snow (I was even fancy enough to say about 30cm). Lots of puzzled looks at the table, some back and forth in Swedish, when they smiled and said:



So it really is all about what you are accustom to, and prepared for -- be safe and good luck.

Depth of snow is a poor guide to the effect of snow. Powder snow, at -10 C is much different from the sloppy, mucky, icy slush that falls when temperatures are near zero.

The challenge isn't snow... it's safety, and that is mostly based on friction.

Jason