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| The Donner Pass from Truckee, Calif. can be tough in the winter. Bring your chains. |
I was enroute from San Luis Obispo, Calif. to the so-called "Biggest Little City in the World," a.k.a., Reno. Joined by a colleague, the two of gassed up our rental car and set out for the six-hour drive from the Central Coast to the snowy mountain passes on Interstate 80.
Cal Poly was playing in the Big West Conference Basketball Tournament and I was set to handle the radio broadcast. Also, what better way to spend my birthday, than heading to Nevada.
Rolling hills and farmlands on I-5 quickly turned into some higher grades as we made our way past Sacramento. But the sunny skies quickly turned into gray and darker clouds. The weather was about to change.
The first warning was the Cal Trans LED message to motorist: "Winter Weather Advisory Ahead." This wasn't going to be good.
Keep in mind, I certainly was dressed for the occasion. It was nice and warm when I left my apartment back in SLO. I was after all just going to be in a rental car, right?
Nope. By the time we got to Truckee, Calif,. the snow was coming down pretty good. Road conditions were starting to deteriorate. This was nothing new for those who travel this part of I-80 regularly, but this was a first for me.
By the time we got to the base of the infamous Donner Pass, the Cal Trans message board had the sign we didn't want to see: "Chains Required."
What were we supposed to do. We were in a rental and while I am sure there was a spare tire in the trunk, but chains?
We inched our way slowly as far as we could before we came to a wide area of the interstate where officials were checking for chains and telling those who weren't outfitted properly, to turn around. Luckily, we pulled up alongside a place where officials were providing chains for those willing to install. Naturally, this was not an easy task.
Wearing only loafers and a fairly nice pair of dress pants, I plopped myself down in the dirty, slushy snow and did my best to try and wrap the pair of chains around the front tires. But it was too icy and I just couldn't find a way to hook the chains up. My hands were freezing and my feet were soaked.
Nearby, a trucker was putting some on his big rig and was kind enough to offer some help. With a little cash in my pocket, we both accepted his assistance and so glad we did. Continuing through the pass was just a white-knuckle type of ride you would expect at an elevation of more than 7,000 feet.
It was an all-out blizzard, but we kept moving along and finally on the downward slope, things started to ease weather-wise. But there was one problem: the chains were still on the front tires.
The maximum speed you could go with chains on was about 35 mph, and we were on I-80 where the speed limit in clear conditions was at least 65 mph. We just didn't want to stop. We did our best to work our way to Reno as the city's lights in the distance was the equivalent of a beacon calling us to port in a storm.
Crunching on the asphalt, we pulled into our hotel and since my pants were already ruined, figured I would try and unhook the chains. It was much easier to unhook the chains when there was virtually no snow and ice and slush to contend with.
We were exhausted, but happy to make it to our destination safely. A memorable birthday, and if I seem to recall, I think I treated myself to a new pair of shoes.
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