We know that Russian roads are some of the most dangerous in the world, a modern day wild west where anything that can happen… will. But conditions there may be harsher than you think, as this next video shows.
During the winter months, snow and ice grip the country, hampering traffic. However, once their effects are lessened, all that snow turns into water and the fields just can't handle it. It's been going on ever since the horse and kart era and the Russians have never found a way to deal with the problem.
This next footage is shot using an HD camera attached to a aerial drone. It shows how cars literally ford a river where the road used to be. It was shot in Samara, which is not a horror movie character or 1000 year old asari alien from Mass Effect games. No, this is a real city, the 6th largest in the country, located at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers.
During the Second World War, Kuybyshev, as Samara was called back then, was chosen to be the capital of the Soviet Union should Moscow fall to the invading Germans. Ironically, it's basically this nasty weather that stopped the Nazi invasion, as the brutal cold was followed by a muddy season that literally stopped the Panzers in their tracks.
Looking at the video, it's almost as if the Russians have given up on ever solving the water problem. There are no drainage canals and no flood wall on either side. We can't even imagine what's going on through the minds of these drivers who must be wondering why there isn't another path to where they are going or if there are hidden boulders under that artificial river.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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