Hot New Rubber

Winter is coming. That's what the weather man and my achy knees keep telling me. That means freezing rain, snow and ice making the roads the motorized equivalent of a slip and slide. Anybody who drives during this challenging time of year knows that you need good tires on your ride to keep the doughnuts and fish tails confined to a church parking lot and away from the expressway on ramp.

With safety and low insurance rates in mind, I went out to check my tires. Imagine my surprise when I discovered I was essentially riding on"slicks". I probably should have noticed this before, and I may have, but buying tires is like saying "I love you" to family members, I'll do it later. Anyway, Big Daddy Don Garletts could have won some serious drag races with my back tires. One look at the bald, steel belt exposed tires convinced me that the chances of me surviving even the slightest drizzle were slim, so I began my quest for new rubber.

Back in the day(as old pimps and R&B singers like to say), I would throw any old tires on my sled. Price was always the object. I tried to adhere to the principle of buying at least two tires so the pattern matched, but that was all the thought I put in to my purchase. Now I find myself worrying about brand names, raised white lettering (a must have on my SUV) and tread pattern. Don't even get me started on mileage warranties and road hazard protection. I can't just have any bargain basement remnant tire on my ride, I have to roll in style or not at all. Well, I still look at the price, but the now I go up a couple of notches from the bottom. I'm stylish, not stupid.

I actually had to order these tires. What a nightmare. I wanted to replace my tires with exact duplicates. After calling a few places, I found the best price. The tire jockey told me that they didn't have any in stock but would be getting five in today. Who buys five tires? He told me if I put down a deposit, he would hold them and they would be mine. I asked repeatedly if they were the exact tire I was rolling on now. "Yes sir, exactly the same." LIES! When I went to have them put on today,these tires didn't have the white lettering. I realize that getting so upset about white letters shows my lack of perspective, but I like what I like. Thankfully the big boss of tires overheard my squawking and offered me an upgraded tire at the same price.

Now I'm rolling on some sweet new tires and praying for a little snow to test out my traction. I may peel out a little tonight to break these bad boys in. Gotta go, I think I see some drizzle. Later...Brian