City Folk + Winter conditions + Vail Pass Colorado = Bad JuJu!!!

I feel compelled to sound off about this because this is the second time I have used my tow rig for this purpose!  
I made a trip to Denver, CO and back from Grand Junction, CO today to deliver a set of tires I was selling.  Needless to say it was snowing on both Vail Pass and Eisenhower Tunnel on Interstate 70.  Now for those of you that are not familiar with this route, in the summer time this is about a 3 1/2 hr tour one way if you don't stop, in good conditions... but it can turn into Gilligans Island really fast if the weather turns to crap :grinlike it did today, and usually does in the winter)!  I must admit that the Colorado Department of Transportation is partially to blame for not jumping on lighting up the signs to warn people of the conditions worsening at the time, but honestly.... it is NOVEMBER IN THE ROCKIES!!!!  You can go from zero to BLIZZARD in seconds!!!!  
 The trip to Denver was rather uneventful.  But as I was returning home this afternoon (westbound) the conditions deteriorated rapidly as I approached Copper Mountain Ski Resort, which is at the base of Vail Pass.  Approximately one mile up the hill the road went from wet to snow packed and there was an accident scene where an F-150 was on it's roof in the fast lane!  Luckily no-one was injured and a State Trooper was already on scene.  Not a half mile later I came upon another accident where I found a newer Ford Explorer with 22" "BLING" rims, low profile street tires, and a U-haul trailer, jack-knifed in the ditch, in about two feet of snow, up against a rock wall, and facing the wrong direction.  I am an ex-police officer so I felt it my duty to stop and make sure they were ok and see if I could help.  Again, everyone was not injured, just shaken up from the incident.  I gave them my phone to call for a tow while I signaled traffic to move over to avoid chain reaction accident.  About one hour later a trooper arrived on scene, and took over... I was again on my way!
 But not for long!  About a mile up the road... guess what!  That's right... another street SUV with "BLINGing" wheels and low profile tires off the road and in a couple feet of snow.  By now I am thinking... "I am not going to make it home!!!"  I made sure they were ok.. again... no injuries thank goodness!  I told them about the accidents down the road and how it would likely be a while before they would be receiving assistance and asked if they would like me to try to pull them out?  My '01 Dodge Ram 2500 with a 3" lift on balding MTs was more than up to the task with it's approximately 500 lb/ft and easily got them to the road surface!!!  SWEET!!!! They were super psyched and so was I!!!  They tried to pay me.. of course I said... keep your money to repair anything that might have been damaged when you slid off the road!
 The moral of this story..... WHY do people with street vehicles, that are PURELY street vehicles go totally unprepared through the most dangerous roadways when they shouldn't???  Are they expecting those of us that are prepared to help them out???  Or are they counting on their... ON STAR  or  RoadSide Assistance to work???  Honestly???  Am I the only one that sees a problem here?  I have no issue pulling them back to the road... I have pulled State Troopers back to the roadway in blizzards, if I can help, I ***  Am I the only one that sees things this way?
 Sorry for the ranting... my toes got cold
Matt Klouzek  

You aren't the only one. I don't live in anywhere nearly as hazardous as your area, but I've had some similar experiances with my '97 1/2 dodge. It seemed my truck was the biggest available "tow rig" for helping my friends without having to call a farmer or wrecker.

One night I helped some kid that got his daddy's new expedition stuck... Ok, he burried it to the doors on one side, because he thought AWD was the same as 4wd. He thought he was prepared because he DID have a cell phone and a tow strap (but it was rated for nothing bigger than pulling a small honda civic... he tried...). I pulled him out using MY 1/2in steel cables and 5/16in chains (that stay in my personal rig ALL THE TIME) and taught him how to use the 4wd selector. Turns out he was trying to show off in the mud for a few girls. So much for showing off... I had several friends try before I showed up, but nobody's "modified bad @ss" chevy or ford could even budge the 7k or 8k rig. (and YES, my tires were balding too) Guess the 6500lb, 5.9L all-stock dodge was the baddest rig in town... LOL, nice to hear about some other dodges and good samaratons are still out there in other places too.

People that don't know how to use their 4x4, don't need to play by themselves... Street tires are for streets only (from what I've always seen and heard)... YAY 4x4's (with competent drivers)!!!