It's getting so bad here that I had to drive my car to work today. It wasn't actually too cold. 15 deg F or somewhere near there. But it had snowed overnight and the roads were simply too dangerous to be on a bike.
Tonight it's supposed to go to -3 deg with a nasty wind chill factor. I could even ride a bike in that. I've done it. But even a die hard like me will admit that it's not a lot of fun at those temps. Not as bad as people think, maybe. But not all that enjoyable, either. It's hard to actually be comfortable. And some of the fun is lost when you're worried about blow-outs because of frozen tires. (Even though I know that that's highly unlikely or even impossible. I still worry about it. Or about some part snapping, etc.)
Then over the next couple of days it's supposed to get even colder. Cold enough that I'll be afraid to let my wife and children drive themselves around. I'll feel the need to be with them. So, more driving.
The last two winters were so mild that they were open season for me and my bike. But I remember before that; in January I'd get in 2 or 3 rides. Otherwise it was the car. I'd console myself with the ideas that I had a climate control system at my fingertips. And that the physical effort of the day ended when I walked out of work. And that I'd get home earlier and could sleep a bit later because I could leave later. And that was enough to make it okay. I didn't mind it.
I guess I'd better get back into that state of mind.
But.......February, please come quickly.