I'm down in the southern Willamette Valley. Pretty odd weather lately with a lot of frigid temperatures and not much rain.

I don't use studded tires because I can usually work my riding schedule around ice and snow. If I was riding studded tires for short rides, they'd probably go on a MTB. On the other hand, my average RT commute is somewhere between 25 and 50 miles, and I just like riding more road oriented bikes. Drop bar MTB?

Commute on what you are comfortable with, be it road/gravel/cross/hybrid, or MTB.