 Poster: A snowHead
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Just as I had planned a slide in the big fridge the flipping snow starts so unlikely to try a trip over the Pennines to morrow morning.
Typical 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Jake43, ah but with a bit of luck Another World might open, you could go there 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Do they do ski hire ?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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My patio is now white in S. Glos. Supposed to be going to Loughborough tomorrow to see offspring.........hmmm
(Weather reports welcome from anyone near the M5 Bristol - Birmingham and the M42 up to Loogabarooga)
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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billb, I'm headed down your way (Bristol) tomorrow afternoon till Tuesday for work so would be grateful for regular updates on that area.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Snowing steadily here in West Staffordshire, but the roads have been well-salted and there should not be any problems on main roads. Only 2-3 cm so far.
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Jake43, no idea, never been but I remember a few SHs went year before last and had a great time, Queen B and Butterfly IIRC and some others maybe. Looks great fun.
2 cm here by M'cr Airport but now raining.
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Bring it on 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Just north of Brum been snowing here steadily for about an hour, maybe half inch or so. Sticking to the paths, but not the road. They're suggesting it could last 8-10 hrs, so might amount to a fair bit, freezing overnight so chance it'll be a bit dicey come the morn.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Will be setting off for Stansted airport at 2.00 am. Rearranged from 3.00 am. Any more snow and will be setting off even earlier  . Should be packing ......
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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we're quite sleety (South Cheshire) - but was just up in manchester and it was a lot worse and sticking there
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Snowing in West Birmingham for a couple of hours now. Concentrated to start with but small flakes, even more concentrated now with much bigger flakes and settling on roads. Looks like we're going to get a fair dump.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I don't buy the 'they're used to it' argument
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It's not being used to it, it's every small, one-horse, ski resort having as many men and machines to clear snow as entire counties in the UK. An enormous investment in plant. I've often seen four snowploughs on the 5 km journey from my tiny little satellite to the slightly bigger resort of les Saisies that practically nobody has ever heard of. And there'll be others working at the same time on the other two roads into the resort. After a big fall there are maybe three big tipper trucks working with loaders to cart the stuff out of town and tip it down a hill somewhere.
It would be crazy to invest similar money somewhere which doesn't get snow very often. A few inches on roads round Paris causes just as much chaos as it does in Birmingham. And it doesn't take much to close Geneva airport either.
Would you be willing to pay for your Parish Council to build a huge great hangar and fill it with snowploughs and pay to have drivers on standby 24/7?
The other thing people forget when they have this "man in the bar" moan is that there is very, very, little traffic in the Alps compared to, say, Manchester. And when there is big traffic (like next Saturday) there will be enormous traffic jams even if the weather is OK.
Alpine roads ban trucks on busy Saturdays, and the police can, and do, stop people without the requisite equipment. People still get stuck - it's very common to see cars skidded off the road, or stopped in the middle of the road, when roads here are snowy. I had to drive round two today (when around 50% of the vehicles coming into the resort seemed to have chains or snow socks) which had come to a halt. also a camper van being loaded onto a breakdown truck, taking the whole road. There was a ski bus coming the other way, so I waited five minutes or so until the breakdown truck had done his job, and the bus was able to squeeze past, then I went the other way. The road was very quiet. If that had been a busy road in the SE of England that long a blockage of the whole road would have caused a big tail back.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Starting to get interesting now. Best part of a inch and the main A34 is disappearing under a layer of rapidly sticking snow. Doesn't bode well for those that have to travel  . Allow plenty of time if you need to be somewhere.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Light dusting in Notts so far, but doesn't look like stopping - and is settling.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Oh, and pam w, +1
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Snowing in Salisbury. HA snowploughs parked ready to roll on A303 slip roads!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Quote: |
Would you be willing to pay for your Parish Council to build a huge great hangar and fill it with snowploughs and pay to have drivers on standby 24/7?
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What you mean the ones which are out and about already gritting the roads? The ones I'm already paying for you mean? YES
Some of them have snowploughs on the front, why not the rest?
I take your point but as Winter ROad Rescue showed, we're just not organised enough to even think about winter tyres and chains for essential services. The cost to the UK each year of disruption I would imagine is more than the cost of getting a little more organised to cope with things. I know we can't justify the fleets of snow ploughs the alps has, but I'm sure we could be a little bit more organised than we are
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| pam w wrote: |
| Would you be willing to pay for your Parish Council to build a huge great hangar and fill it with snowploughs and pay to have drivers on standby 24/7? |
I rented office space for 17 years on the Surrey Research Park, where a line item on the service charge invoice was for maintenance of the snowplough. I'm pretty sure it was never used in that time. Almost every year since moving from there into the centre of town, Guildford has had at least one significant dump!
Edit: your analysis is spot on, of course!
Last edited by After all it is free  on Sat 4-02-12 17:55; edited 1 time in total
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I'm sure we could be a little bit more organised than we are
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Yup. But you'd need to pay for it.
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Boris, I reckon your last sentence applies to absolutely everything the Government does.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I'm obviously in a minority then, seems we're all quite happy that a few flakes brings the UK to a halt 
Referring to link above - the worlds busiest airport is reducing flights as there MAY be up to 4 INCHES - that's just pathetic.
I'll just pop to carry on having the man in the bar moan in the bar
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Snowing on the Cote d'Azur -- second time this blooming week  Alpes Maritime ski resorts in stunning nick ... if you can get there
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Snowing since about 1 o'clock here in Warwickshire - and sticking. Outside lane on local dual carriageway already filled in - probably due to so little traffic around that nobody needs to leave the inside lane.
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You know it makes sense.
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Still snowing lightly here, but not really enough to cause trouble on the road.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Quote: |
I'm obviously in a minority then, seems we're all quite happy that a few flakes brings the UK to a halt Puzzled
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It's tricky, isn't it.
We all complain like mad if our plans are disrupted by snow - but I doubt that we'd be completely happy if the country was 'prepared' for these, thankfully rare, occurences.
Extra £30 annually on every council tax to pay for ploughs etc? Extra £?? for everyone to have compulsory winter tyres/chains? Extra £?? for the signage on major roads. Extra £?? for the information campaign to warn everyone of the changes before next winter?
Etc, etc.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I'm pretty sure Winter happens every year 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| Boris wrote: |
I'm pretty sure Winter happens every year |
Yes, everywhere in the world. It's most severe in the arctic (and antarctic) and less so elsewhere. All a case of degrees...pardon the pun.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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There was many a 13ft dump on JWAZ
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Ah there I did not know what they were called I do know where they are though as I used to pass every day. But tricky driving to get up there in heavy snow although they do grit and plough it quite well. Think I will stick to the Motorways though as they are still moving if covered.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Heavier now. Depth has doubled (circa two inches) in just over an hour. Dry cold alpine type snow, not the normal wet mushy stuff we get.
Going to the pub now. Will report later, assuming I can still type.
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| billb wrote: |
My patio is now white in S. Glos. Supposed to be going to Loughborough tomorrow to see offspring.........hmmm
(Weather reports welcome from anyone near the M5 Bristol - Birmingham and the M42 up to Loogabarooga) |
Malvern...
We have about 2 cm cover, its stopped all looking lovely. Roads are all clear as the gritters have been out all day.
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Just started in Luton
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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…and in my corner of Surrey.
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None in our corner of Essex yet, bar the lightest of dustings of icing sugar last night, which didn't even completely cover the ground - could still stick a finger between the flakes on the ground. FraserP reported that the roads North of Manchester were considerably dodgy early afternoon.
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FAQ
Must have had 18" last day skiing and all roads were clear, I don't buy the 'they're used to it' argument, WINTER HAPPENS EVERY YEAR HERE TO 
