Dan Casey

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We were halfway up Mill Mountain when the knobby tires began to slip.

"Whoa!" Doug Clary, Don Mankie and I cried nearly in unison. It was a foggy, sleety, freezing rainy Sunday morning in December 2003, and as we climbed the steep S-curve on Fishburn Parkway, our back wheels started spinning and sliding on black ice. We did just about the only thing you can do in such circumstances. We turned our mountain bikes around.

Easier said than done.

If there was a general law of outdoor recreation physics, it would go something like this: The energy required to go up a mountain is roughly equal to the peril of heading down -- except when asphalt and ice are involved. In those circumstances, the risk is squared. Which is exactly what we were about to find out.

Gingerly, we began the descent. We pumped our back brakes as gravity took hold and the bikes hurtled down the icy hill -- slipping and sliding here and there, but managing to stay upright. Then from behind me came the metal-on-asphalt clatter of a bike hitting the road. I wrestled my bike to a stop, twisted around and glanced over my left shoulder.

Doug stood in the middle of Fishburn Parkway with a dazed look on his face. His bike was lying on the ground 20 feet away, near the shoulder. It had slipped out from underneath him and slid away and he sped down the mountain. Miraculously, he landed on his feet and in a dead run and managed to keep his footing on the treacherous road. What a recovery!

Like skiing on wheels

There's a popular misconception out there that winter weather and bikes are a bad mix. As the anecdote above illustrates, there are times when that's true. But for the most part, DON'T BELIEVE IT! This is the third winter in a row I've been snow biking, and it's about as much fun as you can have outside in the winter. Think "skiing on wheels." Last winter, Doug and I had so much damn fun we didn't want the season to end.

Most of our cyclist buddies think we're crazy. They shake their heads, titter and retreat to dimly lit indoor spinning classes. Those are kind of like riding a bike in rave, without the Ecstasy. How much fun can that be?

While they spin to deafening dance music and sweat buckets in a hot room, we breathe crisp winter air as our wheels crunch softly through bright, powdery, sound-absorbing snow. And slowly but surely, we're gaining converts. Our most recent is Robin Giordano. Robin was apprehensive as we led her down a snowy single-track loop trail on Mill Mountain one recent Saturday. But as she finished a second lap, she was sold.

"That was the BEST I've ever done on single track," she proclaimed. "You guys were right!"

Questions and answers

Q: What should I ride?

A:Your mountain bike, and only your mountain bike, with nice big knobby tires. Although there are winter riding tips out there on the net that claim narrower tires cut through the snow best, you're stone crazy if you ride a road bike that has 120-psi tires on icy pavement. Besides, you'll never be able to take it down single-track trails, which are the most fun places to ride. You can ride your mountain bike almost anywhere in the snow.

Q: What are the best conditions to ride in?

A: You can ride a mountain bike in any fresh snow that's 4 inches deep or less. The best is that wispy, powdery stuff that falls when the temps are really low -- the kind skiers crave. You could easily ride in powder snow that is much deeper. But when it falls, get out there and do it as soon as you can. If it melts even a little and refreezes with a hard crust overnight, you're screwed. It'll grab your wheels tight and make climbing nearly impossible.

Dan Casey | The Roanoke Times

Doug Clary and Robin Giordano head toward Mill Mountain on the Roanoke River Greenway.

Q: OK, so subzero temps are the best. But how do I stay warm?

A: Layers, layers, layers. The priority in ultra-cold weather is staying warm enough to stave off hypothermia, but not so warm that you sweat heavily on the climbs. Because if you get wet, eventually you're going to get very cold. And in those circumstances, hypothermia is just around the corner. The advantage to layering is that you can take off or put on clothes depending on the circumstances. When you're climbing and working real hard, take an outer layer off. Put it back on before you head down. A windbreaker is added insurance for long descents on very cold days, or if it starts snowing.

Heavyweight nylon/spandex cycling tights will keep your legs warm and dry. Wear two pair when it's below 20 degrees -- your legs will thank you on the downhills. Avoid wearing cotton on your upper torso -- it soaks up perspiration and holds onto it, so you'll freeze on descents or in a stiff wind. You're best off with a fabric that wicks the moisture away from your body and dries as you move through the air. Wool is a good one, although it tends to be itchy. Synthetic materials, such as Patagonia's Capilene outdoorwear, are designed for winter outdoor sports. They're available in many catalogs or at bike and outdoors shops. The stuff is pricy, but worth the money.

Q: What about my head, fingers and toes?

A: Depending on how cold it is, I wear three to four different items on my head. The first is an earband topped by a balaclava, which is a very thin, full-head covering kind of like a ski mask. On really cold days I also wear a fleece neck gaiter that I can pull up over my nose. Finally, I wear some clear glasses, which work great in dark woods. You can buy those cheap in the eye protection aisle of your local hardware store. Gloves are a very individual thing -- just keep trying kinds until you hit on something that keeps your fingers comfortable but not so warm that your hands sweat.

Q. Hey, you forgot about the toes!

A: The toes are the biggest problem in the cold. I can stand staying outside just to the point that my feet are frozen solid, and maybe a little bit after that. So I've experimented a lot. The best solution I've found is a combination of wool socks, bicycle shoe covers and Foot Warmers. Shoe covers are made from neoprene rubber or fleece-lined nylon and slip over your bike shoes. They have holes in the bottom so you can still clip into your pedals. The toe warmers (or hand warmers) are single-use paper packets the contain a mixture of iron filings and other substances. When exposed to air, they heat up. They're just the right size to slip into the front of a shoe, and will keep your toes toasty for up to six hours. You can buy three pairs at Wal-Mart for $2. Make sure you leave them out for little while so they get nice and warm before you put them in your shoes. Are you rich? Then you may want to invest in a pair of battery-heated insoles, which are available from REI.com for around $140.

Q: Isn't riding in the snow and ice dangerous?

A: Danger, schmanger. Hey, you want to ride, right? Truly, ice- and snow-covered roads are less than ideal. The greatest risk is on the slick patches of ice, but you can handle these if you're prepared. First, watch the road carefully for ice. Slow down (or stop) BEFORE you get there. Then proceed slowly across it. The same rules for skiing on ice apply to biking: NEVER try to turn or brake on ice. Just glide over it in a straight line and you'll be OK.