First ride outdoors of the new year

I rode to work the other day (and home for that matter). It was around -22 degrees out with a bit of a wind (so it felt closer to -30) I finally got the chance to try out my new tires on my commuter bike (some schwalbe cyclocross tires), and I can say that I was impressed, enough grip for riding in the snow, but also smooth enough for riding on the road and not losing too much speed.

As far as the ride itself was, the balaclava I had on (a Ninjaclava from Outdoor Research) was restricting airflow a little too much for my liking, so I had to uncover my mouth. Not too big a deal, I just covered as much as I could and I was warm enough. My fingers did get a bit cold, and so did my toes, but aside from that, it felt nice to get out on the road again. It reminded me of how much more fun it is to ride outside than indoors on a trainer watching old episodes of Top Gear (brittish car show).

On a more family related not, we went to Birds Hill park with the family to feed the birds and walk around a bit. Here's a couple pictures from the day. Abby really was enjoying the birds being so close.