IA KCCI.com, 11-16-06 Study Shows People Forget Winter Driving Skills Researchers Say November Is Most Dangerous DES MOINES, Iowa -- Researchers said that driving during snowstorms can be even more dangerous than drunken driving. NewsChannel 8 talked with the Iowa State University professors who poured through driving data. Researchers said they have proof that Iowans forget their winter driving skills every summer. "They just don't understand the risks of driving during the winter," said ISU researcher Tom Maze. Maze reviewed a decade's worth of snowstorms and crashes. Truckers went through having to reacclimate themselves to winter driving last Friday when it snowed. "People tend to forget. (The) first snow of the winter is generally the most dire time to be out on the road. If you can avoid it, do," Maze said. Using a formula, researchers found November snows are the most dangerous. Research shows that as winter wears on, people tend to driversafer. The study also shows that during snowstorms out on rural roads, traffic counts drop by 80 percent. the In city, drivers tend to push it a little bit more. Researchers said they think that's because of a false sense of security. "It may be an issue that people have to get to work and do things and that in rural areas, there may be more discretionary trips," Maze said. Overall, they said drivers are 13 times more likely to be in a crash during a snowstorm than they are any other day. "The real moral to the story is that people need to, whether it's your TV station or the radio or the web, need to pay attention to the weather and need to plan their activities either before or after the event," Maze said. Iowa D...