Back to the original question:

Yes I did ride this morning but this afternoon is going to be a game time decision. I left for work later than usual because I had to drop my daughter off at school and even by that time the trails/roads were slushy and icy. It's supposed to keep snowing into tomorrow. As for the duration of the vortex I expect to ride on most days barring another large snow event.

I will confess to being caught a little flat footed. I did a cursory cleanup of my winter bike last spring but since it was my first year using ATF inside my Alfine, I wanted to pull the hub apart to make sure all was OK before riding on it anymore. So the bike sat all summer and there was quite a bit of work to be done to get it ready in time for this morning. I did manage, but I'm a little sad that I didn't get a few weeks of riding on it before the studs went on. Plus I still have some brake work to do.

Looking at the forecast for the next 10 days, it looks like winter is here to stay. By the time the effects of the vortex move off, it will be about the time I'd normally start riding the winter bike anyway.