Please be mindful of all the obstacles on the road.  (Provided photo — Diane Chase)

The change of seasons is much more than just crisp air and sweater weather. It’s the time of year when the roads have additional obstacles. Animals search for food closer to roadsides. Our tourist towns become more congested, and road conditions constantly change. We need to be more diligent during these transitions because we carry precious cargo: ourselves, our families, and friends.

A few years ago, my child asked if he could be the designated driver for an event. He wasn’t a new driver, but he didn’t have much experience with snow and ice. He did everything as expected. He didn’t drink. He paid attention to his group and wasn’t reckless. Even with precautions, the car slid on black ice during his last trip, and he ran it into a bank. Thankfully no one was hurt. He was so angry at himself. He was upset that he could have hurt someone. He was mad that he had damaged the car. He’d been going below the speed limit, but when the car hit the ice and began to slide, he wasn’t skilled enough to stop it. (Yes, we had practiced with him, but real-world experience isn’t the same as a controlled environment.) There are still some people who think they have a handle on their drinking and driving. They believe they are the exception. They take little care for their personal safety and a complete lack of disregard for anyone else’s. Please keep a watchful eye and call an Uber or make a plan to keep those people off the roads so we can all be safe. So we don’t have to contend with drunken beasts as well as maneuvering the other wild animals wandering the roadsides.

As every driver knows, being on the road is always an obstacle course. It never helps when the road conditions suddenly change from wet to icy. We can get complacent during this transition to winter. Please be watchful when it’s the change of seasons and a holiday weekend. It’s better to arrive late than not at all. I wish for you to always arrive safely at your destination. Watch the roads and the wacky Adirondack weather. Stay safe and remember when you are annoyed with the people on the road, they are carrying their own precious cargo.