Winter..... it is all about perspective.

I was born and raised in the Northeast, and I love it here. I tried my hand in the south, on the West Coast, and even down on Long Island New York. I always ended up dreaming of this. I did not grow up in Rochester, I grew up in Buffalo, which is 60 miles form here. I am fortunate to have my parents still there, close enough... yet far enough.

My brother traded the winter for the sunshine years ago when he moved to Georgia. My sister traded snow for culture long ago when she moved to Paris, but not me. Call me a homebody but I love the four seasons that the Northeast provides for us. I love the snow, I shall admit.

Often times my fair weather triathlon friends inquire about how we train up here, much like we are animals in the circus. "My friend Mary from Rochester trains in the snow", someone once said. Both gasped and looked at me with wide eyes. "Touch me." I said holding out my hand, "I am a rare circus animal."

Contrary to popular belief it really isn't necessary to spend the winter on a treadmill in these parts. The roads are actually clear. Western New York has the best batch of snow plowers and salters on earth, we need more than eight feet of the fluff to keep us home! So running is no problem, as long as your dress right. A Pair of subzero tights from Sugoi, a Fila running jacket, and then anything Pearl Iszumi or Craft to keep the parts cozy will do. They even make these terrific little things to slide over your running shoes to give you traction, but they aren't needed more than once every few weeks.

The potential of ice almost forces you to run with a good quick cadence, and notice those who run outside will get sick less. Even if you run with wet hair. Remember bring outside and being wet doesn't make you sick, bring outside, being susceptible to the latest virus, being in the presence of that virus (maybe a bit run down?) etc., makes you sick. There just is no substitute for fresh air, cold or not. Your lungs are designed to breathe freezing cold air.

Biking isn't horrible here either. Yes, most of my riding is on the trainer or spinning bike. But I do my best to whip out the mountain bike once a week and hit the roads. If you are a hardy mountain biker there are chain like things you can put over the tire, or you can hang with me on the roads. Again, fresh air.

And then, there are all of the activities that translate perfectly to multisport training. Cross Country Skiing and snowshoeing. Ever try snowshoeing? Slide on a pair of snowshoes and hit the trails for a great run, or maybe enter the weekend snowshoe race! Yes, your mile splits are slower, but it is incredible fun, incredibly strength training for your legs and again.... fresh air. It translates to running quite nicely. Throw on a pair of cross country skis and double your run time, while doubling the pleasure and the fresh air.

While I concede that Thursday morning I will spend four hours on the trainer, I won't concede that it will in any way suck. I don't use the television (It is there in case I change my mind) but I use music. I can feel lost in a beautiful world of heart rate, cadence, wattage and drumbeats. Red Hot Chili Peppers, Krishna Das, REM, anything goes. Give it a try without the tube sometime. Choose a spot to look at, and see how long you can focus on that one place. Wandering eyes, wandering mind. In your next Ironman notice the difference.

All the while I have white snowy glory to my right via the window. The earth is brighter, the day is lighter. Even at 9pm when the world would otherwise be pitch black, step into a snow covered forest and it is bright.

It's winter my friends, it did not come last year, but it is here now, and I hope it is here to stay.

:-) Mary Eggers