I go sub zero on my fat biking and skiing, so that's really something of a different game than riding in the 20s and above. Still, maybe you can put some of this to work for you. To begin, I can tell you that, when you start to dip down in the teens, the three places that become critical in a hurry are your face, your hands and your feet.

For the face, I always use a fold down balaclava or even a ski mask, typically in combo with a scarf. When things get really cold as in single digits and below, I will also add a good set of ski goggles, even though they are a real hassle when they fog. That cold air ripping your eyes at such temps is brutal. Even wearing sunglasses can help. Any exposed skin, though, in single digit temps is frost bite country, even on a calm day, because you are making your own wind on a bike.

No one I knows actually likes mittens when they bike, but there's no finger glove made that will handle single digit temps for long. I use lobster mitts for warmer temps, then add gloves inside them for as long as I can, but, sooner or later, out come the heavy duty lined mittens and you'll want ones that extended well up your sleeves or that cold air will seep into the mitts as you ride. Have even used snowmobile and ice fishing mittens. The good news is that mittens work well enough with thumb shifters on MTBs and fat bikes. The bad news, not so well on road bike grifters. Still doable, but pretty clumsy. One thing you might explore is cold weather hand hoods for you handlebars. A lot of us, up here, use them on our fat bikes.

If you insist on going clipless on your winter bikes, good luck. Invest in some high dollar insulated winter clipless biking boots/shoes, or deal with cold feet all the time. Those neoprene booties that fit over your summer biking shoes are tempting, but in my experience, they are no substitute for insulated shoes. Otherwise, switch over to flats for your winter riding so you can use regular insulated footwear. For example, was out on the fat bike, yesterday, with woolen lined Sorel type pack boots. Yup, about as far from a biking shoe as it gets, but still very doable with the big wide flats I use on the fat bikes. Temp was 4 above, wind chills pushing minus twenty and feet stayed tasty warm.

I only use the layer approach for protecting my torso and legs and never, no way, cotton. Wool is fine, though heavy. Otherwise fleece or other synthetic insulation that can breathe and dry out, quick. Can't stress enough how your insulation effectiveness goes to hell once you start sweating and how downright dangerous this is in serious cold biking. This is old hat to those of us who XC ski (very similar in its clothing to winter biking), but not so with a lot of bikers who are just starting to brave winter temps on the bike. The temptation to grab a heavy winter coat and go is tempting, but it is a bad idea because it allows you no options for controlling your temp.

Believe it or not, the way you see me dressed here on a ski outing with my hubby is much the same as when on the fat bike.