For many couples, a snowy Valentine’s Day meant pizza, drinks and a movie at home.
But for those who deliver pizza, it meant a long night of navigating slick roads.
Papa John’s deliveryman Sam McCabe, a junior construction management major, said Valentine’s Day, the snow and the popularity of Papa John’s heart-shaped pizza specials made for a difficult shift.
“Usually when we have bad weather it’s busy, and also on holidays it’s busy, so it’s kind of like a two-in-one,” he said. “It’s a hard day, that’s for sure.”
Chris Brown-Epperson, also a Papa John’s deliveryman, said Feb. 14 was one of the busiest days of the year so far.
“We’re swamped,” he said. “It’s about as bad as the Super Bowl, ... if that tells you anything about Valentine’s Day.”
Kyler Durham, a senior landscape architecture major, also delivers pizza. He said other drivers can be just as dangerous as the snowy roads.
“I would say that people sometimes aren’t quite using their brain when they’re driving,” he said. “They’re kind of speeding sometimes so you’ve gotta watch out.”
Pick-up trucks are the most frequent offenders, McCabe said. The diesel trucks seem like they go about 20 mph over the speed limit, and it seems like they love to go fast in the snowy weather, he said.
Slowing down is necessary, because it can take a while for Muncie’s roads to be plowed, he said.
“Neighborhoods are really bad right now,” he said. “A lot of the roads down on McGalliard are really bad too. It’s all-around tough.”
But Durham takes an easier route whenever the roads are bad. He tries to avoid the slick roads by cutting through Ball State’s campus.
“Campus is probably one of the more safer areas to drive,” he said. “They clean the streets pretty well, have salt down and everything. I actually drive through campus more often than I do other streets, so props to Ball State.”
Even so, he makes sure he drives carefully — giving himself enough time to stop, looking both ways and reading other people's driving styles.
Among all of the delivery drivers, being careful is a common trend.
“I think the most important thing is to be careful,” Brown-Epperson said. “You know, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Even if it takes a little bit for the order to get there or what have you, it’s always better that it gets there.”
The drivers generally don’t receive more tips when they have to deal with poor driving conditions, Brown-Epperson said.
“It’s usually about the same,” he said. “There’ll be a couple instances where it’s very generous, but then there’s also instances where it’s casual, business as usual."
But McCabe said even if the tips aren’t better, customers are usually more thankful.
“People are being a little bit nicer,” he said. “The weather is a talking subject. I think there’s some pity in that, but it’s a good night for me, I’d say.”
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