Well, the temperature dropped below10°C a few times over a couple of days, and a bit of snow fell in the south. And we all know what that means, kiddies…
It’s the Annual Winter Tyre Argument.
This year it seems to have taken a lightly sinister turn – or rather, it has got nasty right from the get go instead of dragging on for about four months, and then getting nasty.
Some of the forums frequently bemoan the dearth of new posters and, in some cases, any posters at all. Their administrators try to explain it away as apathy, or maybe provide some other convoluted explanation which could easily form the plot of another Harry Potter book if J K Rowling ever decided to go back to that series. But what they continually fail to understand is that it is the “characters” (i.e. the regulars) with their “strong views” (i.e. arrogance) who are the main problem. The lurking non-posters even tell them this, yet they still ignore it, probably because it would mean losing one of their few remaining contributors and – in far too many cases – someone they know.
Blatant advertising, for example, will often get a new member banned immediately. But the “regulars” are at it all the time (some of them only ever post anyway when it’s time for a bit of publicity). Heck, the main reason any newly-qualified ADI joins forums and associations is to get their name about, so stopping them from doing it merely because they’re not yet in the clique is just stupid. Let’s face facts here, if a new ADI joins a forum, gets lambasted for asking an “obvious” question or wrist-slapped by the moderators for “advertising”, is it any surprise they don’t participate ever again on that particular forum? (Edit: And another one is doing it now! A playground spat on one site, carried over to snidey remarks on the other. I hope his misguided belief that forum moderators often aren’t the most objective people to appeal to doesn’t come as too much of a disappointment when he finds out).
Back to the Great Winter Tyre Yawn, though. One poster with “strong views” has made their usual absolute statement on another forum about winter tyres – and then continued to push it (the sinister turn I mentioned). Clearly, this is going to rub those who hold a different view the wrong way. and it does – several other people have disagreed with him both on the matter of winter tyres and on his insulting and forceful way of pushing it this year.
That poster has now made himself feel a lot better by dragging the subject – and I mean the part after it got sinister and personal – across to the other forum (the one in its death throes) and into a 2-day old thread which probably wouldn’t have got any more responses. And they wonder why people don’t post anymore when you have these “regulars” using the forums for their own petty purposes.
On the winter tyres topic, as I’ve said before: you don’t have to have winter tyres. In some cases, in some areas, at some times, some people might benefit from them. But that doesn’t mean everyone will.
We’ve managed quite well without them for many years – just as we’ve managed without huge 4x4s, other all-terrain vehicles, and snowploughs across 95% of the population, and that’s in spite of them being available for much of that time.
Trying to persuade people to switch to winter tyres is like trying to persuade an atheist that God exists, or vice versa.
Footnote: The same argument raged last year, and the year before that. Last winter was extremely mild and we had little snow or conditions which would have at least put up a good argument in favour of fitting winter tyres.
Instructors are always going on about teaching people safe driving for life. Maybe they should remember that the average person they teach is probably going to run their tyres almost bald to avoid the cost of new ones, so expecting them to fit winter tyres as an extra each year is unrealistic.
The false sense of security that fitting winter tyres might create among inexperienced drivers as a result of listening to over-enthusiastic converts who already have them on the tuition vehicle is worth considering.