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Rob Wachala Jr
02-02-2011, 11:13 AM
Put some photo's up I took from yesterday when snow started and a few from this morning. Unfortunately they did not show up in a comparison order and I"m to lazy to change all the file numbers and re-upload to fix it. A good eye will catch before and after -- Still snowing here and snow is so high on my doors I may have to go out the window to get outside.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/album.php?albumid=555

Ken Fitzgerald
02-02-2011, 11:21 AM
Ray,

It's time to hunker down!

I survived the winter of '78/'79 there in Chicago. We moved back from Oregon and checked into a motel. I had roughly 3 engineers working for me (I was a new manager) and none could get around for 3 days or so. I had a 4WD Scout II and did get around. Driving down Wilson Avenue to get to Ravenswood Hospital to work on the CT scanner, I had a woman chase me for a block wanting me stop and pull her car out of the snow drift. That was the year the guy got shot and killed for putting a sprinkler on his neighbors car and turning on the water.

harry strasil
02-02-2011, 12:02 PM
If your shop is inside, make snowshoes so you don't disappear when you go out the window.

Charles Goodnight
02-02-2011, 12:17 PM
I was in Chicago in '79. It was pretty amazing. The big fun comes with the cleanup when they can't find a place to put all the snow. Here in Vermont we are getting nailed right now. I am pretty sure we will end up with more snow on the ground than you, but then we are used to it. They didn't even bother to close the university today, although I am curious how many will actually be in class. Most will probably be skiing!

Bill Edwards(2)
02-02-2011, 1:08 PM
We're about 2 hours SW of Chicago and got a lot of it too.

My wife and I are real tired of winter but Jake really shows his distain!

(but since this is about Chicago, maybe it's da' stain):D

180972

Rob Wachala Jr
02-02-2011, 1:42 PM
I was 6 with the 79 blizz came through with the extremely high drifts. We had a drift that went all the way to tip of roof. I ended up digging myself in there and hanging out for a few hours. My parents were running around the neighborhood in a panic thinking I was lost the whole time lol. I was also here for the 1999 storm. My neighbor blew his trans out in the street I had to get my truck out and push him into his driveway.

For the 79 guys here is what beat the storm (we got 2 feet here +3'+ drifts)


180980

1978 snow thrower from Montgomery wards. Jury riged my own air filter as snow was so high was dumping snow into the carb killing engine. Had to rig up a nice copper wire to replace a spring and keep the rpm high. Down with the China made B.S. 33 years old and still rocking the winters!

Ken Fitzgerald
02-02-2011, 1:53 PM
Rob,

My family and I were in a motel in Joliet during the storm of 78/79. We were there for 6 weeks waiting for the home sale to close. They closed schools for 2 weeks there if I remember correctly. The only saving grace was we had 2 motel rooms with interconnecting doors. 3 young kids .....2 weeks no school....in a motel.....luckily for me I could drive to hospitals and work. I am not sure how my wife maintained her sanity! Restaurant food got awfully sickening too!

Rob Wachala Jr
02-02-2011, 2:57 PM
Ken,

Yeah that had to be crazy. I could not imagine 3 young kids stuck in a hotel for a couple weeks. I'm surprised she kept her sanity as well. My teacher buddy called me a little while ago. Looks like they canceled school here for another day & of course he's hoping they will call Friday off as well so he has a nice long weekend. I know my town declared a 'state of emergency', personally I think they just fishing for $$$ but I have not even attempted to go anywhere to see the roads. We still have no even had a plow come down the street here, I'll be screwed with that happens though. Probably be 5' of snow at end of my drive.

ray hampton
02-02-2011, 3:00 PM
the one thing about the snow storm in the 70/s is the cars being park
in the middle of the street/a 2 lane street both ways reduce to a single
lane each way

Charlie Reals
02-02-2011, 3:33 PM
Got stranded twice in feb of 1964 in Hammond, Indiana and couldn't get back to the base. I have pointed to the news casts lately and told a few folks that this is what I have been trying to tell them about. Although we get some big storms I will bow to a North Dakota blizzard or Chicago streets packed with snow, I have been in both. Most in California are whiners when it comes to inconvenience from a storm.

Callan Campbell
02-02-2011, 10:52 PM
I was 6 with the 79 blizz came through with the extremely high drifts. We had a drift that went all the way to tip of roof. I ended up digging myself in there and hanging out for a few hours. My parents were running around the neighborhood in a panic thinking I was lost the whole time lol. I was also here for the 1999 storm. My neighbor blew his trans out in the street I had to get my truck out and push him into his driveway.

For the 79 guys here is what beat the storm (we got 2 feet here +3'+ drifts) Yeah for old all -metal snow blowers!


180980

1978 snow thrower from Montgomery wards. Jury riged my own air filter as snow was so high was dumping snow into the carb killing engine. Had to rig up a nice copper wire to replace a spring and keep the rpm high. Down with the China made B.S. 33 years old and still rocking the winters!
I spent 4-5 hours moving snow around today, didn't even bother with the garage door/alley since no one has plowed the alley yet and my Montero sits out front on the street. My snow blower is a couple of years newer than yours, but not by much. Sears still carries a few parts for it in their huge distribution system. I bought it used, with a water logged/ruined engine since the previous owner had stored the blower in his basement and it flooded. I replaced the engine with a new Tecumseh unit back in 1990, and it's been running ever since. Mine was the only snow blower on our side of the block that handled the same snow amounts you posted. I hope our "old iron" never die, since I'm not that thrilled with the new replacements.

Callan Campbell
02-02-2011, 11:05 PM
I helped a guy in a large Ford today who was stuck in the street, Town Car I think. After blowing lots of snow out of his way to get him unstuck, he made it less than 2 blocks up the street and got stuck for hours till the tow truck he called finally showed up. I wouldn't put a Town Car on my list of snow worthy vehicles, but I guess he did[smile] I popped through some deep snow at times while driving around with my old truck to have a look around today after I got done with shoveling and blowing snow. A car or two abandoned, but nothing like Lake Shore Drive where something like 200 people had to leave their vehicles due to lack of gas, stalled, or worse weather than when they started hours earlier driving on it. I'm still amazed how one accident brought the whole thing to a stand- still on the lanes. Since we have a mayors race/election about to happen, all of this will probably get hashed out in the news and papers for awhile since the vehicles are still there, slowly being towed out at this hour. Lake Shore Drive is still closed, with morning rush hour not that far off