People The Standard, Wednesday, March 12, 1997 Page 11 Clearing the roads A seat aboard a snow plow gives writer a new view of snowstorms By KEVIN McSHEFFREY of The Standard BLIND RIVER - The most familiar sight this winter was snow. But a close second could be the snowplow clearing a path for motorists. The town's crew of seven, which operate and maintain the town's fleet of plowing equipment, had lots of snow to contend with. At times they were barely able to keep up with the snowfall. Little children line the side of the road to watch them pass, but anyone riding in the truck gets a very different view of the world of the plow operator, and gains a new respect for these knights of the road. High up in the cab of the town's four-year-old Ford L9000 snow-plow, Pierre Trudel a four-year veteran on the crew, sets out on his latest battle with the powder. Trudel's target is to recapture the back roads leading to town for the dozens of residents living in the outlying areas of Blind River. His regular route takes him over Robb Road, the Dyke subdivision and the Bass Lake road. Because the truck was designed for use primarily on highways, it is usually reserved for the outlying areas, while the grader takes care of the town streets. "It's too hard in town. In town I can't see the wing or the sidewalks or the signs. It's too dangerous (to operate the truck in town)." The grader does a better job in town because the operator has a better all-round view of the unit and can turn sharper, he says. But with the wind whipping the snow across the windshield, reducing visibility, he continues the run that will allow those living in the countryside to make it home at the end of the day. As he cruises down these roads, some of which are reduced to barely a single lane because of the enormous amount of snow, he meets a half-ton truck and pulls over as much as he dares. He worries that if he pulls over too far, the heavy truck, loaded with 12 cubic yards of sand, could break through the ice-covered road shoulder, plunging the unit into the ditch. As Trudel drives the winding and hilly backcountry, few people are out clearing their driveway. But occasionally Trudel gets to see homeowners working feverishly to open their driveway. In the early season he is greeted with a friendly waves. But later in the season the waves change to the single finger salute as he dumps a foot-high snowbank into the freshly shoveled driveway. "Some people complain that we do that on purpose. But what can we do?" Trudel asks as he crashes through a snowdrift that is higher than the side-wing on the truck. The snow tumbles into the next driveway. Driving such a vehicle looks easier than it is. Driving the plow, in weather that keeps many tucked away in their warm homes, requires the operator's full attention. He not only has to contend with reduced visibility, and the constant toying with the hydraulics to keep the plow blade and wing firmly on the snow covered asphalt, but he also has to work the vehicle around cars parked on single-lane roads. When passing a parked vehicle he must remember the plow is extra wide because of the wing, which is barely visible in the convex mirror mounted on the truck's front. When meeting a vehicle it's the same story. "When we meet a car, who passes first? I know the ditch is close. But people don't move over very much." He pulls over to allow a motorist to pass. With the weight of the plow and the load of sand on the truck, he risks getting caught in the bank and dragged into the ditch, he says. "You can't afford to make a mistake with this. If you make a mistake you're stuck. If you get a wheel in the ditch or the bank, you're staying there." It has happened in the past. A few weeks ago, while cutting the snowbanks with the wing, he caught a soft spot and the truck went in. Trudel was unhurt, but it took several hours to free the truck,. Working his way through the back roads presents other problems. Several of the roads are dead ends and turning around is a tough job, especially when a car is parked at the end of the road. "Trying to turn around in all that snow, it's easy to get stuck." Ice on the steep hills is a worry for all operators. Trying to get up some ice covered hills can be hair-raising. One such instance Trudel remembers occurred while sanding the roads during a freezing rain storm. "I was going up the hill in low gear, I locked the differential, let as much sand out as I could, and (part way up) the truck started sliding backward down the hill. "I caught the snowbank. The truck turned end-for-end between the banks and I kept going down the hill. I was lucky." Don Middaugh, the town's public works foreman, feels his crew deserves a pat on the back for the job they perform. "They're a pretty good bunch of boys," Middaugh says. He says this winter is keeping not only the plows busy, but the sanders as well. Public works has already dumped 2,500 tonnes of sand on the municipal roads, and had to order more. "That's the most I've ever used." Photo Pierre Trudel, one of Blind River's snowplow operators, has to concentrate on keeping the truck on the road while keeping the blade and sidewing firmly on the road. Photo VIEW FROM THE CAB: Even sitting high up in the snowplow the view of the road doesn't improve when the whips up the falling snow.