If you overdrive conditions you are relying on every driver in front of you not being stupid, and these days that's a bad bet.
My first indication that I was on black ice was that the car was spinning like a top. Fortunately it did not hit anything before stopping. My California-acquired driving skills were not adequate for real winters.
“Black ice is a big danger this time of year. Since it’s the same color as the road you only know your on it if you feel a slip. Best just to lay off the speed and be alert.
If you overdrive conditions you are relying on every driver in front of you not being stupid, and these days that’s a bad bet.”
This wasn’t black ice, unless you consider thin icy spots UNDER snow in that category. There was a considerable amount of snow coming down and lots more predicted; however, at 3 p.m. it wasn’t yet deep (at least not one county over). Visibility may have been quite poor, and there may have been icy conditions under the snow that the vehicles came upon suddenly. I know I found some in our driveway around 1 p.m. when I moved the car to a spot it would be easier to dig out after the snow. The ground and drive both felt perfectly fine underfoot with just a little snow, but the tires had a different experience. ;)
There have been other big pile ups along this general section of road over the years, and I’m sure some of them were caused by black ice. Whenever, I hear of one in PA, I automatically expect it to be on I-80 in or near Clinton County. But, yeah, the truckers are always over driving conditions, and anyone smart isn’t on the same road with them when conditions aren’t the best.