Second test of RX-8 on snow/ice/slush. Much better!
 

Well, after my experience this morning, I feel much better about how the car performs with the Blizzak WS-50s. If you read about my first experience, https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-wheels-tires-brakes-suspension-55/my-first-experience-driving-rx-8-snow-not-good-i-hoped-48247/, you know that it didn't go so well. In that case there was deep snow that hadn't been plowed (upwards of 8" in some areas due to drifts). The car had a very difficult time gaining traction from a stop or climbing slight inclines, and anything more than a gentle touch of the throttle turned the car sideways. My guess was that the car was partially plowing through the snow due to lack of ground clearance. I also didn't have any extra weight in the rear.

This time around, there was probably about 4" of snow covered by a layer of sleet. I also had about 130 lbs of weight in the trunk (thanks to 4 big cases of cat litter--useful for me and my cats!). The drive to work went very smoothly. I was passing most vehicles on the road because the car felt very stable. Starting from a dead stop was no problem at all (I always turned off TCS/DSC in these situations). Overall, I was extremely pleased with the capability of the RX-8 with the Blizzak WS-50s. However, I am still concerned about situations involving deep snow (6" or more).