In addition to being prepared to wait for help, people who live where snow and ice are common are often prepared and willing to help others who might get stuck.
A cell call to AAA might get you unstuck in a hour or two, but a couple of stout passers-by, or a 4x4 with a winch or a tow strap can often have you on your way in a couple of minutes.
I was raised in Denver, but now live in Albuquerque where snow is rather rare. People seem to be stunned when I help them get unstuck. One girl even picked up our restaurant tab (without telling us first…I wouldn’t have let her) after I dug her out.
ETA: Sand/pea gravel, bleach (improves tire traction on ice), tire chains, tow strap or chain, and a shovel are the basics for dealing with cars stuck in snow.
There is certainly etiquette about helping stuck people, too - if you hear someone outside on the street at night, in an obviously stuck car, chances are good that someone will throw on a jacket and boots and go out and give him a push. If it’s the middle of the day, passersby will stop to push. If you’re stuck within walking distance of a farmhouse in a rural area, I can’t imagine the people in the house not coming out to push your car out. Hell, they’ll probably fire up the tractor and tow you out, then insist on feeding you.
We had the big two feet of snow here in the DC area a few weeks back. I grew up in Chicago, I’m used to this stuff, you just make sure to get out there early in the morning and start shoveling when the snow is manageable, and continue throughout the day.
My GF’s sister, living out in the Shenandoah Valley, told her that she and her husband were just going to stay inside all day and shovel it all when it’s done.
As anyone who lives in snow knows, it’s a lot easier to shovel 6 inches of snow four times than it is to shovel 24 inches once. They learned this lesson the hard way.
Last winter we had a big dump (by Vancouver standards) in Vancouver. Unfortunately, Vancouver drivers aren’t skilled or equipped for snow. Every time I walked to work for about a week I had to push two or three people out of the snow.
I got a pie once for pulling a Blazer out. :shrug: Marie Calendars.
For myself, it’s a lot about the thank you, and trying to impart a bit of common sense to people that really, really have no business driving in the mountains in a two wheel drive rental car without a map. Or just as often, no idea where they are even going.
Or those that insist they are OK and will shovel themselves out. Sometimes blocking the road.
Um. No. I’ve got places to be and you are in the way. You will not shovel your way out of there, and I can pull you out in 5 minutes.
Shovels are very overrated for a stuck vehicle. I rarely bother with them.
I once lived in a Mobil home and had to park on the street. Calendar parking required that I park on opposite side almost every other night. I would bring my battery inside those nights. A warm battery insured I got to work.
In place of a battery blanket it also helps to place a charger on it.
I also run synthetic oil.
May I suggest you get a recycled or used cell phone with a charger and put it in your car. You don’t need a contract with minutes to call 911 in the US. Any cellphone works.
I feel a lot safer having an AAA membership and a charged cell phone. When a big storm is about to wallop, the garages around here send their guys in tow trucks out to wait at strategic points, north south east and west, but if conditions are really bad, you may have to wait in your car a long time for them to show up.
