Driving north on I-25 in Denver, it was snowing and icy. At about 50 MPH, the car in front of me locked up the brakes; then, all hell broke loose.
Two cars went spinning on either side of me, and a semi-tractor and trailer in front of me starting going sideways. My BMW 535 kept its grip, and the brakes kept me from spinning. Cars were flying and crashing everywhere and all around me, yet somehow by the grace of God, I managed to miss everyone.
I heard a loud “crunch” and thought I got nailed in the back, so I pulled up to a safe distance and got out to check. It wasn’t me that got hit; it was the guy next to me. My car was untouched. The cars were still piling up when I decided it would be best to keep moving and let the emergency workers soon be there.
I learned later that one person dead, and about twenty-five were injured in the pile-up. I also found out that the traction control system on the BMW was designed, in part, to handle this type of situation, adding and releasing power to the wheels as they gripped or slipped, making it incredibly easy for me to maneuver away from the out of control vehicles around me.
That kind of engineering is amazing and deserves to be applauded!