by: Eki
I talk to people about using bicycles for errands or commuting, someone invariably says something along the lines of “that's great when the weather's nice, but you can't do that in the winter.” Non-cyclists and even some commuters have come to believe that four-season cycling is something only suitable for warm southern climates, where riders don't have to contend with snow and ice.Believe it or not, some of the most bike-friendly cities in North America are in places known for serious winters. Minneapolis, MN, Madison, WI and Vancouver, BC all boast healthy populations of year-round cyclists. How is it that those midwestern winters don't send the local bicycling population scrambling for their car keys?Part of the answer lies in the infrastructure. Plowed and salted bicycle trails as well as wide, accomodating streetscapes give riders in those places a safe, easy path to where they're going in any weather. However, even outside of those bicycle utopias, a healthy percentage of bicycle commuters keep rolling through the winter.If you'd like to give it a shot yourself, here are a few tips for winter riding: