DBA, what part of Colorado are you in?

Here in Vermont, if you break down on the Interstate in the middle of the night, it might be an hour before you see another person. A few hours before someone stops. It happened to me, my universal belt snapped on I89 between Burlington and Montpelier- those are the largest population center and the state capital, respectively.

I don't imagine it's any different on rural interstates anywhere in the US. Now put it on a back road with a tenth the traffic. It doesn't have to be a mechanical failure, a little bit of ice can do it. I've had to dig my car out more than few times due to hidden ice, it can happen to anyone.

As for the urban myth in question, it was an avalanche. You can't really avoid a slide, they happen. And all the good places in the mountains are potential places where they will happen. If you live in mountains, you probably need to just accept that they could happen.