Days are getting shorter, nights are getting longer, and the weather is getting colder. You can’t let these things ruin your social life so you are still going skiing on the weekends, going to dinner parties and Christmas events. Everything is great right?? But picture this… You are visiting your friends out in the country, it’s getting to be about 11:00pm so you decide to head for home along the dark, deserted country roads. Half way home you feel the car start to wobble, something is wrong. It is getting difficult to control your vehicle and you slowly ease your way onto the shoulder of the dark snowy road. You’re no mechanic but you pop the hood anyway to have a look and just like you suspected…you don’t have the slightest clue what’s wrong. Now if your cell phone works and you have good friends or your car has OnStar like in the commercials, then you’ll be ok. If not, you either have to hope someone drives by and you can flag them down, or you’re spending the night in the bush. This is why it is important to carry a well stocked roadside emergency kit in your trunk at all times.
A roadside emergency kit can be the difference in getting back on the road or being stuck for hours upon hours. In some extreme cases it may even save your life. Every car should carry one and sadly not enough do. They can be bought at any retailer for around $40-$50 or (for you DIY people out there) you can put one together yourself. Some basic items include:
- 12 foot jumper cables
- Four road flares
- Two quarts of oil
- Gallon of antifreeze
- First aid kit
- Blanket
- Extra fuses
- Flashlight
- Extra batteries (for the flashlight)
- Screwdriver set
- Wrench
- Tire inflator (Fix-A-Flat)
- Duct tape
- Rags
- Windshield washer fluid
- Leatherman or swiss army knife
- Energy bars
- Bottled water
Of course this may seem a little excessive so a basic version of the above can suffice and will not take up as much trunk space. So before you hit the roads this winter, take the time to put a kit together for yourself or head out and buy one. It’s like Insurance or a parachute…Hope you don’t need it but if you do, you better have a good one.