I forget what it's like to drive on pavement. Stopping gets me every time whether it's on snow, ice, hills, bridge cross-slopes, intersections, crosswalks....... when a guy 'didn't' see it coming' it's is very humbling and hummerbling.
The low traction on the back end was noticeable on an H3 I rented and I see the 'rear brake' lock comment here too. That's something to practice in a 'cornering' / 'braking' scenario. On a course closed to the public and under DSIUFTROU sanctioned rules, ......using the left foot for braking, the right foot for throttle, check how it responds under different speed and cornering situations.
Most heavy nose trucks I play with tend to 'snow plow' under heavy braking scenarios. If you're lucky, the front wheels grabs traction and the back end will snap around. It is a lot of fun under the right conditions and it's the only way to really find out what it can't do. I started drifting in gravel trucks in 82'. Using that two foot method, practice brake pedal pressure that still allows you to steer. Staying light on the brakes...then steering through most scenarios has kept me out of trouble so far. The second you 'don't see it coming' and stomp on the brakes, the mass will slide in the direction it's going, barring gravity/ road slope and steering traction is gone.
Maybe more than once, in black ice or inattentive stopping scenarios, this plowboy 'operated' surgically through near hit scenarios. Stopping and steering....monitoring brake contamination under heavy snow/ ice conditions.....ie, brake testing while in motion prior to needing them....and knowing the changing road conditions is mission 1.
Light rear end traction.
Rarely, you won't feel the back end begin to slip out from underneath you as you come out of a river-valley or anytime the engine starts pulling. I say rarely because you feel it in your belly and if you're pulling highway speeds in traffic it will fill your pants.
If you don't feel it break traction it's likely too late...however, practice "understeer" skid control at various speeds. Breaking traction at highway speeds, up hill, depending on the crown, can happen fast. Real fast. Tendency is to over-correct, snapping the back-end in the opposite direction. Practice high speed skid recovery with smaller corrective input than you would think.
Escape Plan.
I smashed into a tree, a field, a hill, is better than saying a bench, a light, a hydrant, a car, a person. Constantly scan for time and space to avoid the guy that didn't read your thread.
.........and use your cruise control on dry pavement only. What's it like to drive on dry pavement?
