• Make sure you have some equipment and emergency supplies in your car. Supplies should include things such as a snow shovel, scraper with a brush, tow chain or strap, tire chains, flashlight (with extra batteries), abrasive material (sand), jumper cables, warning device, a rope, and a container to keep candles and matches or high energy food.

• Pack warm clothes

• Put snow tires on before the snow falls, and make sure they are good snow tires.

• Never combine radial and non-radial tires on the same vehicle.

• Clear all ice and snow from vehicle, including windows and windshield wipers.

• Make sure windshield wiper fluid is filled with freeze-resistant solution.

• Bring a cell phone.

• Inform someone were are going to travel. If an accident happens, somebody will be looking for you.

• Know the rules of winter driving.

• Be careful!

• Buckle up.

• Recovering from a skid is the same for both front and rear wheel drive vehicles.

• If your rear wheels start to skid, turn the steering wheel in the direction you need the front wheels to go. If the rear wheels start sliding the other way when you recover, ease steering wheel toward that side.

• If your car has an anti-lock braking system keep your foot on the pedal. If not, pump the pedal more gently as your car slows down

• To avoid skidding in cars without ABS, brake carefully and ‘squeeze’ your brakes in slow, steady strokes. Allow wheels to keep rolling. If they start to lock up, ease off the brake pedal. As you slow down, shift into neutral.

• If your front wheels skid, take your foot off the gas and shift to neutral, but don’t steer immediately.

• As the traction comes back, steer in the direction you want to go, then switch the transmission to ‘drive’ or release clutch and accelerate slowly.

• Drive with the flow of traffic and leave early. DO NOT RUSH!