IT'S a shame winters aren't what they used to be around these parts, because there's nothing Swindon's Snow Men like more than a good struggle with Mother Nature.

The Snow Men are the highways workers at Swindon Services, who every year lock horns with the forces of nature to make sure that come frost, sleet, or snow, we can all get on with our lives as usual.

They do it with a mixture of big trucks, hi-tech weather forecasting and, when the going gets really tough, sheer enthusiasm that perhaps borders on machismo.

These days, the Snow Men usually know what's going to hit Swindon in advance, armed as they are with round-the-clock weather forecasts that tell them when a heavy frost or snowstorm is imminent.

Between October and April, weather forecasters working 24 hours, seven days a week, feed temperature reports to a 14-strong road clearing team headed by Swindon Services' Richard Hedges.

If frost is forecast, Richard's trucks begin a two-hour circuit of primary roads like Kingshill, Great Western Way, Fleming Way and Okus Road, spreading rock salt as they go.

After that, they start on so-called B routes around the town, and major bus routes, so that people waking up for work should be able to get there with the minimum of fuss.

"The main principle of any winter maintenance is to make sure that we keep all the emergency routes open," said Richard. "We're talking about the way to the police station, and to the hospital, and we also make sure the primary routes are clear.

"You can never defeat Mother Nature, but the forecasting gives us a lot of information about what's happening on the road.

"It's trying to beat the weather before it happens, but if it turns really bad and we get snow, we are constantly salting."

In recent winters, frost has been the Snow Men's main enemy, but Richard says his team are old hands at coping with serious snowfalls, and are ready again this winter.

Like Richard, Mick Liddiard, 51, from Chiseldon, has spent more than 25 years making roads safe. He recalls a time when he was stuck for a week at Wroughton's former RAF hospital, making sure staff and patients could get in and out.

And in 1979/80, as Britain shivered in the so-called Winter of Discontent, the road clearers were called upon to plough Liddington Hill 24 hours a day, hampered by snow blowing in from the fields.

In 1983, temperatures dropped to minus 20oC, and the snows and the salting and ploughing lasted four weeks. "Fortunately, we haven't had really bad snow for many years," Richard said. "But in the past we've had to cope with 12ft snowdrifts, and it's going to happen again one day."

Huge snowdrifts used to mean people like Mick working until he dropped, but now they work 12 hours a day battling the elements.

As well as tiredness and extreme cold, the Snow Men have to cope with being called out at all hours of the night. "The workforce we have is absolutely brilliant," Richard said.

"We've pulled them out of family dinners when they're not even on call, and they don't complain. The effort they put in is fantastic.

"There's a certain amount of comradeship that develops. We've been out on Christmas Day, and a bond develops."

The bigger the challenge, the more you sense the Snow Men enjoy it. Richard admits testosterone levels at Swindon Services' yard can shoot up when the weather gets really bad.

"We line all the gritters up at the main gate with the lights blazing, the engines roaring, and all the traffic stops to let you out," he said.

"I must admit, it is a bit of a buzz."

When they put so much effort into their jobs, it's not surprising that the Snow Men are easily stung by complaints that they have not managed to grit some minor road.

"We do get a bit upset when we get criticism," Richard said. "A couple of years ago, some of the boys really got upset, especially when they'd been up all night, with their beards growing and their eyes drooping.

"It doesn't matter how big the workforce is, you can't be everywhere. Everyone wants their road gritting, but it's impossible to do.

"You get some irate people phoning in now and again, but if you explain the situation to them, they generally understand."

By and large, the Snow Men exude the contented air of men who know what they do is enjoyable and worthwhile. "It has been said that a pre-salting team probably saves more lives at night than all the emergency services put together," Richard said.

"Just imagine the number of road accidents you would have if you had a cold night and none of the roads had been done."