10 simple tips to help you get to Sevendays without a hitch.

You’ll drive super smoothly; When driving in snow, be smooth with the steering wheel, accelerator, and brakes. Why is that? A jerky movement with the controls easily unsticks tires on slippery roads that have a tenuous grip

Look Far Ahead;  Driving carefully and safely takes extra concentration. It is better to look and think farther down the road as the road becomes slipperier. Anticipate what you’ll need to do next. Slow way down for turns. Allow double the stopping distance when the road is wet, triple on snow, and even more on ice.

Look; If you feel your car beginning to skid, always, always, look where you want to go—not where the car is heading at that precise moment. Let your peripheral vision take care of whatever you’re trying to avoid.

Deal with the Skids;  Sooner or later you will hit a slick spot and get a queasy feeling in the pit of your stomach as your car starts to slide away from the direction in which you want to be heading. Skids, even big ones, can be managed, and you can bring the car back under full control in short order. First, don’t panic—and don’t stab the brakes! Instead, do the following:

For a front-wheel skid—where the front tires lose grip and the car turns in a wider arc than you expect—ease off the gas. In a beat or two, the front tires should regain traction. Then aim where you want to go as your traction returns.

For a rear-wheel skid—where the rear tires lose traction and you feel yourself beginning to spin out—quickly turn the steering wheel in the same direction that the rear is sliding. If, say, the rear is swinging to the left, turn the wheel to the left. Ease off the accelerator and stay off the brakes. As the rear wheels regain traction, steer back in the original direction. No matter which type of skid you’re experiencing, make sure you keep your wheels pointed in the direction you want to be going. And you can gently (remember point number one) use your brakes if you think you can recover without hitting anything. If an impact is imminent, don’t be afraid to stand on the brake pedal as described in point number six.

Use Anti-Lock Brakes; If all else fails and you need to stop as quickly as possible in snow or on ice, it’s time to engage the help of your car’s anti-lock-brake system (ABS). All new vehicles on the road today are equipped with anti-lock brakes, which use an onboard computer to optimize the car’s braking in extreme conditions. If you are in a skid from which you can’t recover or you need to avoid an obstacle—and your vehicle has ABS—push the brake pedal down hard, and don’t let up. The computer will do the rest, keeping each wheel braking as aggressively as possible based on the available traction.

The amazing thing about ABS systems is that you can keep the brake pedal fully depressed while steering around obstacles; the computer will adjust the braking force at each wheel to allow you to maneuver while simultaneously slowing down. So in an emergency, don’t just jam on the brakes—keep steering!

No safety system can ensure you avoid all accidents, but anti-lock brakes undoubtedly have saved many drivers from disaster. Note: most ABS systems cause the brake pedal to shudder when they activate to let you know they’re working, so don’t lift off the brakes when you feel this vibration; it’s perfectly normal.

Constantly Assess Your Traction; In the course of almost any snowy drive, your available traction will ebb and flow as road and weather conditions change along the route. In addition to the warning lights from the traction-control and stability-control systems, your anti-lock-brake system can help you assess how much grip you have on snow-covered roads. Here’s how: Make sure there are no cars close to you, then apply the brakes gently for a second or two while driving in a straight line. If you feel the brake pedal chattering underfoot but detect minimal deceleration, the ABS system has activated, and you can rest assured the road beneath your tires is very slick. If you can slow down at a reasonable rate without ABS activating, you’re on a more grippy surface. Once again, be sure there are no other cars around you that will be bothered by your unexpected slowing. Some anti-lock-brake systems will also flash a small amber light in the instrument cluster while ABS is working, so this can be another clue to low traction when you are brake-testing for grip.

Beware All-Wheel Drive; Vehicles equipped with all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive can lull you into a false sense of security on slick roads. They send their power to all four wheels rather than just two, which on slippery surfaces enables impressive, slip-free acceleration, especially from rest— which can make it feel as if you have much more traction than you actually do. Don’t be fooled; these systems don’t in any way improve your vehicle’s ability to turn or stop in snowy conditions, so expect it to behave just like any other “normal” vehicle when you push on the brake pedal or turn the steering wheel. If you want to assess how much traction you have, you can employ the technique described in the previous step.

Plan Ahead; We already mentioned looking as far ahead as possible, and that’s a good idea in general. But chances are, you’re driving in familiar territory, so you can use that knowledge to your advantage, too. When you head down that hill, is there an equal climb on on the other side of the valley? Maybe conserve momentum for that. Is there an off-camber downhill left a quarter-mile away? You don’t have to wait till you see it to slow down. If you know what’s coming, drive like you’re your own rally navigator and think a few steps ahead.

• Fit Winter Tires
• Read the Road