Originally Posted by
350htrr
This last week I saw 3 people with flip flops outside... -29*C 4" snow... WOW. WTF is wrong with people today...?...
Yea, I know they "just" went from their warm cars to the warm store, but what about if you hit the ditch, or have mechanical problems and have to sit there for Hrs...??? I carry snowmobile suit/boots, mitts, hats... You know "just in case stuff happens...
Back in '83 a couple of friends and I got caught and stuck in a multi-day, sub-freezing blizzard driving by Lake Erie. After a couple of days we tried to make a break for it Christmas Eve. But we didn't get far, becoming stranded in another motel for another couple of days.
We arrived just as an ambulance was leaving. Apparently, after being snowed in for a few days this guy threw on his windbreaker, no hat, no gloves, and attempted to drive a quarter mile to a convenience store for some cigarettes. He skidded and became stuck in a snowbank, and after the car ran out of gas he walked to the motel we just arrived at.
The other stranded travelers were still talking about it. Lucky for the frozen smoker there were some EMTs stranded also. They stripped this guy down to his underwear and did the same, hugging him from both sides to warm him up while a warm bath was drawn using the shower head in one of the motel rooms. They then stood hugging him under the shower head until there was enough water for him to lay in the tub and warm up. The final consensus was that we would loose portions of his fingers and toes.
That made a real impression on me, and when I pushed my low temp threshhold back down to 12F a few years ago (now 10F), I carry an extra layer of bike clothes, socks and glove liners.