In deeper snow, gear down. It'll be harder going, anyway, so you'll be riding more slowly. And you need higher revs for a number of reasons. First off, if you're spinning fast, you're less likely to spin out due to lack of traction. Secondly, if you get turned a little sideways suddenly and have to stop pedalling for a second, you'll more likely to be able to continue at the slower resulting speed if you were already in a low gear.

In deeper snow, don't grip your handlebars too tightly. There's a tendency to try to want to rigidly maintain a direction, but this can be impossible. If your front wheel suddenly turns slightly, just keep pedalling and let it turn, then slowly bring it back. Chances are your bike will move straight ahead even if your front wheel is turned slightly, as it will just plow snow rather than bite in and turn your bike. This is easier to experience than to explain.

When climbing a hill in the snow, keep the revs up so you don't have to put a lot of slip-inducing power into each stroke. If you have cleated pedals or rat-traps, you can also try pulling up on each stroke in order to impart more thrust without the risk of slipping.

Don't lean your body at all for turns, because the instant your weight is not over the bike, it's likely to skid out from under you. Instead, stay upright, and turn your handlebars like a steering wheel. This is best practiced at low speed initially.

Recognise that with deeper snow, especially if you are riding in car tracks (with their layer of loose pancakes of snow atop an icy layer underneath), it can be impossible to maintain a straight line. You need to learn to read the surface and be able to tell when you are at risk of sudden divergences of direction. If you are riding on a road with cars, it's especially important to be able to maintain a line. If the conditions are becoming such that you can't do that, consider getting off the ruts and into virgin snow - while deeper and more drag-producing, it's also less likely to throw you off your line. In conditions with poor directional stability, it's very helpful to be riding with a helmet- or glasses-mounted rearview mirror so you can ride most of the time on bare-pavement ruts, but know when you need to get out of the way.

Sure we're all adults and are no longer supposed to ride on the sidewalk, but in inclement weather the sidewalks can often be more passable than the roads. When there's 10 cm or more of fresh snow, I'll often opt for riding on sidewalks in residential areas; I can make better time, and I'm also staying out of the way of motorised traffic.

A few days after a storm, most residential streets will have packed white snow, interspersed with big brown cow-patties of sugary, sandy snow; the hard surface is easy riding, but the patties are soft and tend to throw you off balance. Try to avoid them, or else build up speed and just coast through them without pedaling.

If the snow's quite deep, it can be really hard going. Dress more lightly than you would otherwise, at least on your torso - you're going to be working hard and getting warm.

If you are going downhill in a straight line, you can usually use both brakes equally, but be ready to let off the front brake the instant you feel any slippage. When in doubt, use less front brake. And if you have to turn at all, even a few degrees, limit yourself to use solely of the rear brake.

If you can't limit your speed sufficiently using only your rear brake, and it's too icy to use the front brake, slip down onto the top tube of your bike and put one foot down on the ground as an outrigger. You'll be able to stay upright even if your bike slides and turns ninety degrees off the course-line.

If it's simply snowy, studded tires won't help, but knobbies will. But as it starts to get icy, studded tires can be very helpful. If you can't afford two, at least put one on your front wheel since front-wheel slippage is often disastrous while rear-wheel slippage is only an inconvenience. And on bare pavement, especially concrete, studded tires can actually be a menace. There's nothing more dangerous than studded tires on a wet concrete parkade -- trust me on this.

There are differing opinions on the best width of tire to use in the snow. Some argue for wider tires to give more surface area for gription, but wider tires also have to push or squish more snow. Narrow tires have less surface area to grab on with, but they may be better at cutting through deep snow and getting down to a hard enough surface to ride on.