‘You feel alive in this kind of weather’: Six Winnipeggers share secret to staying warm

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This article was published 29/01/2019 (2060 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Winnipeg Free Press photographer/videographer Mikaela MacKenzie hit the streets Wednesday to check out how Winnipeggers are coping with the cold.

She asked respondents: what’s your secret to staying warm? Is it really that bad out there? Is there a benefit to being outdoors on extremely cold days? Do you prefer -35 C or plus-35 C?

The Free Press talked to a cyclist, a downtown pedestrian, a gas jockey, a retiree walking in Assiniboine Park, a skater at the Assiniboine Park duck pond, and a jogger. All six said the secret to staying warm was to keep moving and to dress in layers of clothing. All but one preferred warm weather.

Addie Prentice, cyclist:

Q: What’s the secret to staying warm?

A: “Having no exposed skin. It helps a lot,” said Prentice, who was doing his best to stay upright on icy roads. “It’s a beautiful day, minus the cold.”

 

Marci Davis, pedestrian:

Q: Is it really that bad out today?

A: “The weather is that bad… but we’re Winnipeggers,” Davis said, adding the cold takes a certain state of mind. “We’re strong and we survive it.”

Her secret to staying warm is “two pairs of pants, two pairs of socks, and many shirts… There’s no benefit to being outside today. Be outside if you have to go somewhere, otherwise stay indoors, under your blankets where it’s nice and warm.”

 

Henry Pauls, Co-op gas jockey:

Q: Is there any benefit to being outside today?

A: “Absolutely. You feel alive in this kind of weather and as long as you move around, and we do, you stay warm,” Pauls said. “I love being out here, serving the people, so they can stay warm while we do the work.”

He said he prefers the cold. “You can’t escape from the heat, when it’s +35. In -35 C, you can dress for it. In layers.”

 

Bill Carlyle, retiree, walker:

Q: You say you go out every day. Why?

A: “I get bored staying in, so I spend some time outside. I don’t like being in all the time,” Carlyle said, poking a little fun about the cold at the expense of Americans. “Talking about Chicago (in shutdown mode), in Winnipeg, (we) don’t really notice (the cold) as much. It’s only when it gets down to the States and that’s when they notice it. Either extreme, I don’t care… I live with it.”

 

Glen Toews, skater:

Q: Is there any benefit to being outside today?

A: “It’s gorgeous. I can do this when it’s -35 C when there’s no wind. It’s exercise. That’s why I’m here.”

 

Bob Hummelt, jogger:

Q: What’s the secret to being outside?

A: “You have to embrace the cold,” said Hummelt, who buses to work and jogs home 10 kilometres, a couple of days a week. “You can’t cower from it and this is how I do it.”