Are Skiing and Winter Sports doomed?

Having just returned from a 5-day ski trip that 25 years ago certainly would have provided 5-days of snow filled skiing, with good base depth and cold weather, Winter- or the lack thereof- was on my mind.  While early December was cold, a warm weather system drove temperatures in Vermont into the 50s and we suffered through 2.5 days of rain that basically wiped out skiing at Mad River Glen.

With no natural snow to ski on, we were relegated to skiing on manmade snow at Sugarbush.  Because Sugarbush had been blowing snow since November, they had enough base depth to survive the warm weather and rain.  There is no doubt now that climate change is upon us, most experts agree. Even if we can't agree what the cause is (I'll save that point for later), the trend is clear. Melting glaciers, shrinking polar ice, increased temperatures. The season of winter is becoming shorter, starting later and ending earlier.  The amount of snowfall and snowpack is dropping.

This is of particular issue at Western resorts, and was featured in a recent article in Powder magazine about "why snowmaking won't save us…"  The large Western resorts like Vail and Snowbird are huge amounts of terrain compared to smaller eastern ski areas. Snow making there is not feasible due to the high cost, limited water supply and regulatory restrictions. The article predicted that by the year 2100, that most of the Western USA ski resorts will be closed due to lack of snowpack. Those that remain will only have snow at their highest elevations.  In the east, only 4 of the largest ski resorts will remain. This is a scary thought..in just over 80 years, the sport of skiing and mountain snow sports could vanish. If climate change accelerates it could be even sooner.

I am seeing it in my own lifetime. Growing up in lower New York State we routinely had long, cold snowy winters. I have photos of snowbanks in our driveway that were 6 feet tall.  Small eastern ski resorts operated for many years without snowmaking systems.  While they were dependent on mother nature for snow, the snow was routinely reliable. Then beginning in the late 1970s there seemed to be fewer cold winters, more warm weather and rain. Today, there are few, if any eastern ski areas that operate without snowmaking.   Certainly the small, family oriented mountains cannot depend on natural snow in New Jersey in Pennsylvania.  At one time there were hundreds of smaller ski hills that dotted the landscape.  But due to the high cost of snowmaking infrastructure and operation, it does not work well on a small scale. So we are left with only two ski areas in NJ and a handful of larger mountains in the Poconos.  Snowmaking has even found its way to the Northernmost reaches of Vermont.

Snowmaking was once a way to extend the ski season. It could start earlier and end later with man made snow. But now, without it, some winters there would be no ski season at all. Mad River Glen, which lacks extensive snowmaking opened on December 15th with 40 of its 45 trails. But that opening only lasted 5 days, through Friday Dec. 20th.  By the time the warm weather/rain event was done, the only terrain available was one smaller trail fed by man-made snow.  It is likely there will be more snow in January, and they will reopen all 45 trails. But this is becoming all too familiar a pattern. A later start, a melt-down and then reopening in Mid-January. The ski season which used to extend into April, is now often done by March 20th.  Ski areas make nearly half their revenue on Christmas week. It is a huge blow to not have snow on the trails. It is a big expense to have to blow snow at times when 25 years ago the areas could rely on natural snow fall.

So yes, the future of skiing and outdoor winter sports is certainly looking grim, for our children and grandchildren.

Why are my feet cold? And what can I do to keep them warm?

Gaerne Winter Road shoes

Now that winter is really upon us, I've started hearing a lot of chatter about cold toes and feet. If you want to keep riding outside through the winter weather, having a strategy to maintain warm hands and feet is essential. Freezing cold fingers and toes can quickly ruin or cut short an outdoor ride. The risk of frost bite is real!  

To achieve warm feet, it helps to have an understanding of why your feet are cold. For the most part cold feet are due to the following factors:

1. Poor circulation
2. Wrong footwear and/or socks
3. Moisture
4. Heat transfer, convection and conduction.

Lets look at these in order. 

• Poor circulation.  Some people just don't have good circulation to their extremities. These people will be the first ones to say their hands or feet are cold. When temperatures drop your body thermoregulates by sending more blood flow to its core. Protection of vital organs comes before extremities.  Ever read "To Build a Fire" by Jack London?  The hunter knew that he might lose parts of his foot or toes to frostbite, but that he could live if he could make into camp.  One strategy to keep your hands and feet warm then is to make sure your core is warm. This means eating enough fuel before and during the ride, hydrating well to ensure good blood pressure and circulation and dressing properly so that your core stays warm. If your core is heated well, your body's thermoregulation systems will continue sending blood flow to the surface and extremities. When it goes below 35 degrees, I recommend a long sleeve base layer, a fleece long sleeve jersey and winter jacket. For the lower body, I've worn fleece bib knickers with a layer of winter tights on top. And long ski socks. 
• Wrong footwear. Your standard bike shoes are designed primarily for summer riding. In fact their design includes mesh and venting to let out heat and moisture. This is great for warm weather riding, but it will work against you in cold weather. As temperature drops into the 50s you can add toe covers, which work well, as temps hit 40 you may need a full bootie. The other problem with your summer bike shoes is that they are designed to be worn with a thin summer sock and be snug on your feet. If you now try wearing them with thick winter socks, you may find that your shoes are tight and that will restrict circulation in your feet.  All booties have a cut out on the bottom for the cleat and cold air will come in through the opening.  If you plan on doing a lot of winter riding, I would recommend a winter shoe.  The advantage of a winter shoe is that (a) it is insulated, (b) it does not have venting like a summer shoe and (c) it is build wider and roomier, to accommodate thicker socks without restricting your circulation.  The better winter shoes use Windtek fabric on the exterior, are water and windproof and have thermal insulation built in. If you buy a pair, they will last 5-10 years because you will only use them a few months out of the year. They come in road or MTB versions.  You will never again have to fuss with putting booties on.
• Moisture is often overlooked, but feet do sweat and get damp. If you wear booties, you will see the moisture when you get home and take off the booties. This is water vapor that leaves your feet and condenses upon meeting the cold air outside. The key here is the right kind of sock. Cotton socks are the worst, the absorb moisture and will be very cold when wet. Wool is the best, it will retain its insulating property even when wet. Some people like silk sock liners, which will carry moisture away from your feet to the outer sock. 
• Heat transfer.  Your feet are producing heat, but that is balanced with heat loss. The colder it is outside and the more frontal wind, the faster the heat loss.  Heat will be conducted away from your foot through direct contact with the sock and inside of the shoe. One of the keys here is to have warm air spaces in your shoe (i.e. shoes not too tight), because air is not a good conductor of heat, you will reduce heat loss if your shoe is more loose and has enough room around the toes.  Convective heat loss will be very high on a cold windy day and the only real solution is enough insulation and windproof fabrics.

What about supplemental heating? If you've tried all of the above and still have cold feet, you may want to try supplemental heating in your shoes. This can either be a chemical warmer (hot packs) or a battery operated footbed.  The chemical warmers are sold at Home Depot and Outfitter stores. You can attach the toe warmers to your sock or insole and I've found that these will produce heat for 3-4 hours. Some people put them on top of their toes, I've always thought that they work better under the toe.  There are also heated foot insoles available, one is the Thermacell, which cost around $100 and use a lithium ion battery built into the footbed. Some reviewers liked these, others said they didn't heat well. The Hotronics system used in ski boots is probably the best. If you already have Hotronics in your ski boots, you can buy another set of heating elements and footbeds for about $40. You can use your existing battery packs, although you will need another set of clips. Aside from looking silly having the Li-ion batteries attached to the back of your winter shoes, you will have adjustable heating that will definitely keep your toes warm even on the coldest of days.

Can exercise help a cold?

It's 12 noon and I'm feeling rotten…head hurts, stuffed up, pressure inside my ears. A head cold? Feeling kind of tired and blah, I debated whether to flop on the couch for a nap. But the sun is shining and I spent all day at my desk on Monday on my job search.  Perhaps there would be solace in a bike ride.

I quickly mapped out a route on ridewithgps.com, uploaded it to my Garmin Edge and kitted up. With 50 degree sunny weather, I needed only bib shorts and leg warmers and a base and long sleeve jersey.  I left the house around 12:45, with a nice little tailwind helping me. After the initial 20 min warmup, I started feeling OK.  The pounding head was gone, sinus passages cleared somewhat. I began ramping up the speed.  Unencumbered by heavy winter shoes and clothing, buoyed by the warmer, less dense air and enlightened by the sun I felt like I was riding in a dream.  I was. Between 10am and 2 pm out here in Hunterdon county (aka cow land) you can ride for miles and maybe see two cars. Wonderful!

So can cycling or moderate exercise help a cold? Absolutely, according to Dr. Edward Laskowski (Mayo Clinic). "Mild to moderate physical activity is usually OK if you have a garden-variety cold and no fever. Exercise may even help you feel better by opening your nasal passages and temporarily relieving nasal congestion."  How true!   After an hour on the bike, I'd forgotten all about my earlier symptoms. They were gone.  Regular exercise can boost your immune system, release endorphins that will make you feel better and less "blah" and increase circulation to tissues.  Our bodies were designed to be in a state of motion and sitting at a desk for hours and hours is a completely unnatural act.

I bombed down Cherryville Hollow through the bare trees onto a sweet flat section in Hamden along the Raritan River.  A few miles away I'd pass through Clinton, a coffee boost and slice of pumpkin bread would make this trip even more worthwhile.

Sometimes, when you least think you can exercise, just go out there and do it. You might be surprised at the results.

Demise of the off-season

Way back in 1992 when I was relatively new to racing, I was riding with San Diego Bicycle club. The racing season had ended and the fall group rides had begun. While weekend training rides were held during the racing season, many of the hardcore racers didn't reappear on the training rides until the fall.  I had not yet learned the art of fixed gear road riding, but many of the riders converted their steel frame road bike to a fixie.  Back in the days when we rode steel bikes with horizontal drop outs, one could easily do this. While the in-season ride was fast, the off-season ride was a sedate 16 or 17 mph average.  At best it was a moderate tempo ride. On one particular October Saturday, one or more riders (with gears) showed up on the ride and started hammering the pace. It didn't take long before there was yelling in the group and someone told the hammering riders that they should "slow down, its October."  The strongest riders (who happened to be on the fixed gears) laid down the law and etiquette for the ride.

Fast forward to 2002, when I started riding in New Jersey with Somerset Wheelmen in October, and Joe Saling was leading the winter rides. A group of 6-15 riders would meet at Duke Island Park in Bridgewater and would ride at "winter pace" of around 16 mph. The ride was not ridiculously easy, but was easy enough that the women riders and even some of the juniors would have  no trouble keeping pace. If it was too easy for you, you could show up on a fixed gear and make it harder.  But the point of the rides was cohesion- to keep the group together in a tight double paceline on those cold windy days, to be able to talk/chat and have a social ride, to be able to enjoy the scenery. Racing was done, winter training would start soon enough in mid-December or January, so why go hard?

The dogma of bike racing experts has always been that November is a rest month. In Fred Matheny's Beginning Bicycle Racing he writes "November and December. This is the off season. It is the time for alternate activities that allow you to retain fitness but escape the onerous aspects of a rigid schedule and hard exertion." In Eddie B's Bicycle Road Racing, which is often considered The Bible, he recommends from October 15-November 30 to "cut your mileage drastically and ride no more than 3 or 4 times a week." Seniors (meaning senior men age 35 or less) should do 50-90 km (~30-55 miles) per ride, "these are not fast rides, not hard rides."  [Note that he also advocates shorter distances for women and masters].

Sadly, the cohesive winter ride is disappearing, or in some cases being shattered by riders who just want to go hard all year round. Here are a few possible reasons why:

1.  Cyclocross. Once viewed and advocated as a way to get off your road bike and enjoy some trails, gravel and dirt during the off-season, 'cross has now evolved into its own racing discipline. Statistically speaking 'cross race attendance far outnumbers road and while not every roadie does cross, those who do are now on a totally different schedule than the rest of us. They're not resting in November they are still racing and training and at peak fitness.  Those that are racing cross on weekends obviously are not going to be there for the group ride.

2. Coaching, training and power meters. Not only has equipment improved (which raises average ride speeds) but with  many riders using a coach and power training, there are a lot more stronger riders, which tends to fuel the "lets go faster mentality" during a time of year that is meant to go slow. While individual strength has increased, that has not necessarily gone along with riding skills.

3. Strava. It would be easy to blame all of cycling's ills on Strava, but in many ways it goes beyond its purpose as a social networking/training tool and is having an effect on our sport.  Strava tends to fuel the "I need to do more" feeling that social networking generates. When you see on Strava and Facebook how much (and how hard) your friends (or in some cases people you follow) are training, you might feel compelled to keep up with them. This can quickly become a "virtual competition" for mileage, monthly badges, KOMs and other achievements, where in reality there are no winners.

When you get a KOM on Strava, what have you won really? Its a brief moment of fame on a social networking site, it may even flood your receptors with dopamine. But the KOM will likely fall, and then what?

There is a new breed of rider now, which I've termed the "Strava Hunter-Killer."  Many of the SHKs don't race at all. You won't find them at USAC events. But they roam the roads each day looking for segments they can kill and take the KOMs.  The group ride is shunned, as the purpose is to slam certain segments and nab the KOMs. If they do ride as a group, its only a means to an end, where the goal is to use teamwork to capture the KOMs.  Ride slow? What would be the point of that? If I ride slow, then I get fewer "trophies" and achievements on Strava.....Its interesting to see these riders in November, riding at 95-100% max HR in cold weather, basically doing hard interval training.  I had one pass me last weekend, as I was cruising about 17 mph on my fixed gear, he flew by at 25 mph, head down. No time to say hello, after all if he slowed down to say hi, he'd blow his chance at the KOM on Oak Grove Road (which by the way is not even a hill).

There is no doubt that many of these guys are strong, you can't argue with their times up the hard climbs. I just wonder whether they would be riding this hard if there were no KOMs or Strava? They are missing out on the group tempo ride experience, which are some of the most relaxing, fun rides you will ever do.