I’ve ”always” been able to work myself warm, so apart from hands and feet, riding in the cold hasn’t been a problem for me.
Then one afternoon, I was riding home from work at about -18C/ 0F, and something just wasn’t right.
Couldn’t get my heartrate up, couldn’t keep my speed up.
When I finally got home, I was so cold that I couldn’t unlock the door. Not only b/c the key was such a small and fiddly thing, but also b/c I wasn’t entirely clear on how to operate it.
Wife had to help me in, help me out of my clothes and into the bath. After a 30 minutes soak I STARTED to shiver. Change of water and another soak before I stopped.
After some investigation, it turned out that I had developed asthma, triggered by cold air exercise. This was what prevented me from putting in enough effort to maintain body heat.
Quite scary in hindsight.
Partly b/c when I ride, ski or skate, that somehow blocks the sensation of being cold. I don’t shiver, teeth don’t chatter. Nothing. No warning.
Well, it can feel a bit nippy to the exposed skin, nose, cheeks - but that’s about it.
I usually feel OK - until I stop.
And when I do, I can be in such poor state that there’s no guarantee I can get going again.