Your vehicle of choice to get to the mountain

JGWI

JGWI

Active member
With most major resorts now days connected by well maintained and salted/sanded roads it is becoming less of a worry on how you are going to get to your destination. Most people can make the trip in front wheel drive city geared cars with no problem in a short and economical way. But even with all these new fancy roads, there still are those windy dirt mountain roads that rarely see a plow truck during a storm.

Coming from Minnesota I am no stranger to snow and ice but considering our lack of mountains I have not dealt much with the vertical aspect of winter driving. Last year I took a trip out to western Wyoming to do some skiing at Jackson Hole and some snowmobiling at a friends lodge. While the drive to the lodge was rather uneventful and flat once I got to the point where it was time to go up a few thousand feet I started having troubles in my Pontiac Grand Prix. So my question is for those of you who live in a similar area, what do you use for a vehicle? Do you use studded tires/chains? Is it just that difficult to get to where your going or is it just me?
 
my mom's minivan gets me back and forth okay. i wish she would upgrade to a Corolla though so I can get the ski bunnies.
 
tl;dr

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I drive a 1989 4runner. I have never had a problem or a need for studded tires or chains.
 
most of the time any car with 4wd and a half decent tire should be good enough. Go slow, use low gears to minimize braking and keep your distance from the car in front of you
 
2004 4Runner SR5. The only time ive been sketchy is on a 200 mile drive across Oregon-nevada-idaho on a long unplowed highway that had recently gone through a thaw freeze and was basically a double track luge. if you got even a hair out of line you were sidways at 50mph with oncoming traffic. Fucking white knuckle driving. The other time was trying to get out of a steep parking lot early morning after a classic tahoe dump that layed down 2.5 ft of super gloppy snow overnight. it took 5 tries to flatten a path long enough to get my momentum to the point where i could keep it. Other than that, they car just sticks to the road.

And , i have a pretty damn sweet system for parking lot camping now. im 6'4" and i can sleep fully stretched out behind the drivers seat on a thick foam cushion with my skis parallel to me behind the passenger seat. I jury-rigged it so i can hang all my clothes up across the windows for drying and for stealth. I just park a little bit away from the base lodge bar and then wander out to my car whenever. If i get bothered "i am too drunk to drive i will move it in the morning, sir". I then wake up at 6am, drive over to the best spot in the lot and go back to sleep for a few hours. Wake up, walk to the lodge to take a shit and heat up my breakfast of grits, suasage, eggs, and cheese...plus tapatio, and then im ready to shred.

Ive only "needed" to have the 4Runner probly 30-40 days out of the 3 years ive had it, but the freedom it gives me makes the gas money worth it. Its nice to know that your car will never inhibit you from getting somwehre you want to go.
 
13074231:californiagrown said:
2004 4Runner SR5. The only time ive been sketchy is on a 200 mile drive across Oregon-nevada-idaho on a long unplowed highway that had recently gone through a thaw freeze and was basically a double track luge. if you got even a hair out of line you were sidways at 50mph with oncoming traffic. Fucking white knuckle driving. The other time was trying to get out of a steep parking lot early morning after a classic tahoe dump that layed down 2.5 ft of super gloppy snow overnight. it took 5 tries to flatten a path long enough to get my momentum to the point where i could keep it. Other than that, they car just sticks to the road.

And , i have a pretty damn sweet system for parking lot camping now. im 6'4" and i can sleep fully stretched out behind the drivers seat on a thick foam cushion with my skis parallel to me behind the passenger seat. I jury-rigged it so i can hang all my clothes up across the windows for drying and for stealth. I just park a little bit away from the base lodge bar and then wander out to my car whenever. If i get bothered "i am too drunk to drive i will move it in the morning, sir". I then wake up at 6am, drive over to the best spot in the lot and go back to sleep for a few hours. Wake up, walk to the lodge to take a shit and heat up my breakfast of grits, suasage, eggs, and cheese...plus tapatio, and then im ready to shred.

Ive only "needed" to have the 4Runner probly 30-40 days out of the 3 years ive had it, but the freedom it gives me makes the gas money worth it. Its nice to know that your car will never inhibit you from getting somwehre you want to go.
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And i dont have chains or studs(illegal in CA). I have more "agressively treadded" all terrain tires, but 99% of my driving is commuting in the bay area so winter tires would be plain stupid. Honestly, you should be able to get through all but the gnarliest conditions with 2wd and decent All-season tires if you can drive in the snow pretty darn well.
 
13074205:SnowshoeThompson said:
most of the time any car with 4wd and a half decent tire should be good enough. Go slow, use low gears to minimize braking and keep your distance from the car in front of you
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all good things to keep in mind. another is when you start getting loose, just let off the gas and brakes till you have the car tracking where you want it again. just go slow, apex turns, and try to imagine you have a steaming hot cup of coffee on your center console that is filled to the top- drive like you dont want to get burned by it haha.
 
I go skiing in my dad's lambo but some asshole keeps on calling me out for it but he's retarded cause his parents got way more money than mine.

we fought once
 
Given the opportunity to pick any vehicle, I'd go with the '00 Yukon XL because it gives me the sentiments

That was my ride back when skiing was a weekly thing before I became old and boring
 
2002 Subaru WRX with 321000 km (199000 miles) and killer winter tires. So much fun - just get a Subaru, perfect the drift, and your life will be complete.
 
Last year it was a Volvo 850 wagon with bald all season tires. No issues.

This year it will be my 99 4runner 4x4.

Fwd, rwd, awd, 4x4, winter tires, etc don't make a huge deal if you drive like an idiot. Likewise, you can go most places if you are a good driver.
 
13075469:saskskier said:
Last year it was a Volvo 850 wagon with bald all season tires. No issues.

This year it will be my 99 4runner 4x4.

Fwd, rwd, awd, 4x4, winter tires, etc don't make a huge deal if you drive like an idiot. Likewise, you can go most places if you are a good driver.
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driving with bald all seasons is driving like an idiot
 
10365621_254956098038756_2082439475203947602_o.jpg


im A fan of the helicopter method, unfortunately im only a crew chief not pilot so they would never drop me off on a mtn
 
13075742:GILLSKI said:
10365621_254956098038756_2082439475203947602_o.jpg


im A fan of the helicopter method, unfortunately im only a crew chief not pilot so they would never drop me off on a mtn
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Is that next year's Tom Wallisch Pro Model goggle?
 
This thing. It's comfortable, pretty decent on gas, nice enough drive, reliable. Just winter tires, nothing fancy, perfectly fine for Calgary.

2007-2008_Lexus_RX_350_(GSU35R)_Sports_Luxury_wagon_02.jpg


It's pretty rare that any AWD car is going to be insufficient to get you to the hill.
 
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