Can You Relate To These Fears Heading Into A Bismarck Winter?

The other day I asked a Bismarck/North Dakota native a simple question...

...and I ask this frequently - "Do you ever get used to the winters here in North Dakota?"  - he didn't take long to answer - "NEVER" and he then gave me many reasons why. I'm pretty confident you may have the same fears, I know I do. The obvious for me is the dangerous road conditions - as amazed as I am at the job NDDOT does plowing the roads almost immediately  - I find myself extremely fearful every time I attempt to drive home from work. This is my number one fear, by far.

1) Road Conditions  - losing complete control of your vehicle

2) Blizzards  - We ( Bismarck ) have a pretty good idea when a possible blizzard is coming directly at us, and yet the thought of being stranded somewhere without help is always a concern

3) Unbelievable Cold Temperatures  - The coldest I have ever experienced was -26 degrees with a wind chill of like -2,600. These are the days and nights you plan on never leaving your house.

4) Black Ice  - Most of the time you can kind of tell by looking at the creepy images of black ice on cars ( like a black car for instance ) - Last December was THE most dangerous black ice conditions I have ever been in - so many car accidents that day around Bismarck and Mandan. December 23, 2023 kfyrtv.com "By 2 p.m. Tuesday, the Bismarck department says they had responded to 85 crashes, but there were still many calls they hadn’t yet responded to"

5) Not being prepared for a huge storm       - The absolute worst is being completely stuck at home - you can't get out of your driveway, and you took the upcoming storm lightly and weren't prepared ( as far as having food, supplies in case you have no electricity )

There are many more fears that I probably haven't even mentioned. When I first moved to North Dakota over ten years ago ( from San Diego, California ) people out here asked me "Do you have a survival kit in your car?"  - I said "Absolutely, I have a jack and a spare tire" - I had no clue back then how easy you can die out here if you get stuck in a whiteout, in a ditch, car runs out of gas, and you failed to have a blanket, water, batteries, and other SURVIVAL KIT needs - I do now. 

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