Steve and I got out for a couple hours in Hollis last Saturday. It was a challenge trying to figure how best to dress for the cold, and we turned to the roads after finding the trails a bit too slick.

I enjoy running in the winter, most of the time. I can’t think of anything more beautiful than a forest full of fresh snow glowing in the light of a full moon. Also, it’s neat how the freezing sweat makes my eyelids sticky. If it's really cold, you can turn a fleece hat into a hardshell helmet.

One of my most memorable runs last winter came when I followed a hard-packed snowmobile trail into Pepperell and ran several miles down and back up the Nissitisset River. I could hear moving water at times, but figured if the ice would support sleds, it probably would hold me.

Snowmobile trails are great for mountain biking, too, when they’re packed and frozen hard, and if the quads haven’t chewed up the snow. The snow smooths over all the jarring bumps, letting you glide along like a rollercoaster, so long as you have traction. Studded tires are essential, unless you enjoy skidding and falling down. I had good luck making my own, using short, round headed screws (pointy side out, through the knobs). I cover the heads inside the tire with duct tape, and use double-thick, downhill tubes. The toughest part of winter biking is to keep your fingers and toes warm when the temperatures fall into the teens or lower. I’ve yet to find anything that really works, except to keep my rides hard and short.