Ummm... then why do you live in Colorado?

Well, in all honesty, it really doesn't snow all that much and it stays reasonably warm through most of the winter. Just once in a while, it dumps a bit of cold and snow to remind me of how much I don't like proper winters.

Colorado in the summer is gorgeous. The mountains are beautiful, it's warm without being Arizona hot, and there's a lot to do.

Still, San Diego is awfully nice...

You drive a Chevy Malibu? What color? What year?

It's a '97 of some odd sort of light brown color. It's a hand-me-down from my parents. When my dad was buying a new car a few years ago, I bought this from them since it was cheaper and easier than buying a new car.

Why? Do you drive a Malibu, too?

Maybe we should start Malibu Blogging...

I'm with you on the beach idea. I'll take it over snow any day. Heck, I will take it over ANYTHING....

Malibublog. I'm all over it.

My Malibu has a parents connection as well. We got it from the dealer that sells the family company all of its cars and trucks. Mibne is a 2002 Silver Chevy Malibu and it is perhaps the biggest piece of crap I have ever driven. Brakes! Aaaaagh! The breaks. The shocks. The turn signals. The whining noise from an improperly sealed windshield. I'll never buy another Chevy again. The Geo Prizm I drove in college (Really a Toyota Corolla) is still being driven by my aunt to whom it was given. I wish I had that thing. It never gave me a bit of trouble. Back and forth across the country several times, driving in snow. Still, no problems. Nothing besides regular maintenance and it is a 1995.

I think my Malibublog will be all about how much I hate the car.

Yeah, mine has had its share of problems. And even when it's running well, something about it makes me worry that it could stop at any moment.

No, I'll never have another Malibu after this. On the other hand, I don't have car payments right now, and this is the first time in about 10 years that I don't have to sign a check to someone for my car; that's kind of nice.

Dear god, I think I was behind you. :)

naw, it took 4-ever to get across town to drop the kid off at school, but in my trusty 4wd pickup, I wanted to drive over the tops of the other cars (it's a small Sonoma, but the bomb on bad roads). I had it weighted down with sand in the back, and I never even had to put it in 4wd. I don't know how anyone lives without a pickup, so you have my sympathies.

If you were behind me, I think I owe you an apology. And a drink to calm the nerves...

I used to have a Mazda B4000. I miss that even more than I miss the Explorer, if you want to know the truth...

can we talk about the broncos now?

[raider fan just trying to squeeze any amount of joy out of football season as possible]

It was painful. Extremely painful.

Nicky's little CR-V does great in the snow, but it does have faux 4-wheel drive and good snow tires on it. My MX-6 is useless with its touring tires, but with good snows on, it's pretty reliable in the snow - unless there's like an 8-inch high berm to bust through.

My problem this morning (aside from taking the Mrs. to the ER) was all the people who refused to go over 25MPH on I-25 even though our lane was clear of snow and ice.

I think I invented seven new curse words in only half an hour of driving.

Truth be told, the car would do a lot better if I got new tires put on the back. While I didn't hit the speed limit at any point on the highway, traffic was moving along at a pretty good 40/45mph most of the way.

We love our CR-V.
I also love my 1991 Toyota Corolla. It's got 134k miles, and I put 25k miles on it myself, never a lick of trouble at all.
I've been going to junk yards to replace parts like cracked dash fascia and broken door handles and sagging headliner. It's like brand new again for less than $100 and some effort on my part (plus it's fun to play with tools taking stuff apart!)

Um, I've lived in a tropical paradise (Hawaii) for 5 years, and 5 years of pretty much unrelenting nice gets real old. One of the problems is that memory works at least partly on "uniqueness", so events and memories from my 5 years in Hawaii blend together more than other places.

But to tell the truth, where I want to live is Monterey, CA. It never gets cold, it never gets hot, lots of dramatic surf smashing against rocks, but all the warmth you need is 30 minutes away in Salinas, and there's plenty of snow/skiing within 2 hours of driving during the winter, without having to deal with driving in snow...

...but Spokane is pretty good, too, with fairly mild winters and gorgeous summers, plus LOTS of nut and fruit trees. You can walk through the city park picking and eating cherries...

A '97!?

You do realize, don't you, that it can't possibly be a true Malibu without lots and lots of chrome trim...

Malibu huh?

Why did you get rid of the Exploder, er Explorer? Or is there more to that story?

I had the joy of driving through Kansas and Eastern CO yesterday, but my 4Runner did very well.

There were cars spun off the road about every other mile, and this is not an exageration.

Remember the bad weather rules:

1. SLOW the F%&* down.
2. 4 wheel drive does not mean you can stop any better, all cars have 4 wheel brakes.

Well living in Orlando you have a free invitation to come visit anytime. I am actually traveling to Colorado Springs this Sunday through next Tuesday. Kind of nervous about all that white stuff flying around...not used to it and seriously going to rent an SUV with the extra insurance.

Randy:

Have a great time in Colorado.

Seriously, if you are not experienced in the snow, you would be better off renting a all wheel drive sedan or station wagon. A subaru station wangon would be a good choice. No need to learn how to drive a high center of gravity vehicle, at the same time as you drive in snow. If you do get in trouble, it would be easier to use.

2. 4 wheel drive does not mean you can stop any better, all cars have 4 wheel brakes.

Here's how it was put in Fairbanks when I lived there: Four-wheel-drive simply means you can now lose traction with equal efficiency on all four wheels.

And if I may repeat yet again, when there had just been a heavy snowfall, it was always the 4WD trucks I saw in the ditches. My sardine-can Ford had front-wheel-drive, and the only time I had a bad loss of traction was before my wife and I realized that Studded Tires Are A Good Thing In Winter™.

Oh, and Randy? Listen to Shad0runr!

One last comment (until next time):

...the only time I had a bad loss of traction was before my wife and I realized that Studded Tires Are A Good Thing In Winter™.

I should add that even with FWD (both our cars, while we lived up there) and studded tires, we still had modest losses of traction on a regular basis, but mostly after a red light has turned green.

Speaking of Broncos...at least you weren't in the endzone, on the field, 3 yards from the winning touchdown catch.....darn it

Nixing the SUV and adding the all wheel drive sedan. Thanks for the advice!

Great to hear Randy.

Have a wonderful time in Colorado.