Fuel EX 9.8. Mostly sunny, so cold - 17 at the start, warmed up to 20 by ride's end, stiff West wind that really hurt at times in the open prairies - Feels like temps down as low as 6 degrees! Surprisingly, I kept warm and even worked up a bit of a sweat under it all. Key was 4 toe warmers on each foot sandwiched between base and top wool layer, best Rapha tights with jock, long sleeve base with a thin long sleeve jersey under my warmest Bontrager jacket, lobster claw Toko gloves with thick wool base layer, finally a balaclava with a neck gator. I only wear a balaclava when it's really cold, usually 1-2 times over a typical Winter. Unusual and unfamiliar conditions. Trails were snow covered but well traveled, mostly by fat bikes with a fairly narrow 18" track to stick to. Lots of old packed snow but it was more like sand with the cold temps, so I never really had an issue with traction except on some of the tight turns and off camber sections. Up in the Hawthorn prairie North section, there were more freeze/thaw wet and slippery sections to deal with, so overall my speed was pretty slow vs a normal MTB ride. There were quite a few riders in the parking lot at the start but it appears they were just finishing their ride. I only saw 5 riders on the trails, but a total of eight deer - kinda cool, most of them didn't see me until the last second 'cause of the sound dampening of the snow. Two of them didn't even move as I rode past - you know you're close when you can smell the deer musk. Great ride, so nice to be outside after most of the week riding in the basement. Post ride at The Assembly, which is becoming one of my favorites. Good beer selection, Sunday great pricing on Bloody Mary's and wings, plus some of the best Chili on earth.