To Ride or Not to Ride: The Winter Question.

Winter is a good test of a cyclist's soul.  We are faced with that important question -- should I go outside and ride or not -- which says a lot about who we are as people.  And I don't mean to create a hierarchy of toughness.  I fully respect other people's decisions to be a three season cyclist.   I am more interested in what it says about me.

It is 8pm.   I've just put the kids to bed.  I've had a long day at work and have more work I need to do tonight.  It is 17 degrees outside with a windchill that is closer to 10.  It is pitch black dark.  There are 5 inches of snow on the ground.   As I flip on the porch light and stare out into the snowy cold void, my every instinct is telling me to plow through a sleeve of cookies and then pseudo-hibernate under the warm covers.  Should I go out?  I know I'll feel better if I do.  

We've had an unusually cold and snowy winter in Ohio.  December, typically a warmish month punctuated with days hitting the 50s, was, this year, a snowy chilly arctic abyss.   We've had snow on the ground since Dec 1 and nary a day above freezing.  The first snowy month is easy.  It is novel.  Riding in the snow and cold is fun once again.  Winter would be great if it lasted a month.   But now we are in the middle of the second month of bitter cold and the novelty is long gone.   I have a lot of appreciation for folks in, say Wisconsin, who basically have a month more of winter than do we.  

On this evening, my desire for exercise wins out and I put on my gear, strap on my lights and hit the trails.   And I have a blast as I almost always do.  

One bike path is untouched except for the pioneering footfalls of a few intrepid joggers.   The going is hard here and I tell myself this is building character.  I have visions of Pugsleys and Mukluks dancing in my head as I strain to keep the bike upright and moving forward in the slippery conditions.   I jump off the path onto residential side streets.  These are the best.  They are "scrapped" but not clear so it is a nice snowy surface with enough traction to move along but enough slip to add excitement.  I am riding my faux single speed (fss) -- a 16 year old bike that I don't shift anymore though I could probably coax it into another gear with enough torque on the grip shift.   I head up and down a variety of hills to get some burn in the thighs and some warmth in the finger tips.   Otherwise I enjoy the tranquility of a snowy evening as I seem to have the world mostly to myself.   I decided to ride and I am glad for it.