Running in snowy and icy conditions

Last night saw much of the UK hit by a 'huge snow storm', panic ensued as people desperately rushed to supermarkets to buy food, drink and blankets, preparing to be stuck in their homes for at least 4 months...in reality it was a bit of a dusting in most areas, now I've got 100 cans of Baked Beans to use if anyone fancies popping round for a Beans on toast party!? 

All joking aside, it DID snow, and there are certainly some icy patches out there. As a result, I felt the sudden urge to share with you my top 5 tips for running in such conditions. You don't need to cancel any scheduled runs due to these conditions, but you do need to be careful. So here we go...

1. Run SLOWLY...these conditions are not ideal for your 7min/mile tempo run, that's just asking for trouble. If you insist on running fast, maybe consider a helmet? 
2. Don't make any sudden directional changes, or take corners too fast, you'll simply end up flat on your face! Take the corners REALLY slowly unless you are 100% sure they are safe.
3. Avoid pavements and smooth services where black ice may be present. If there is snow on the ground, then aim for that for more grip. If the pavement has a grassy verge, run along that. 
4. Run on trails if you can, they will offer better grip (although avoid notoriously wet trails like the picture of me this morning included in this post). If you absolutely have to run on roads, then try and stick to main roads which are more likely to have had treatment and the increased footfall and traffic will likely mean that the ice and snow has disappeared anyway.
5. Finally...embrace it, don't get upset that your training is being disrupted, it's nice to experience different conditions and before you know it, the roads will be back to sludgy wet rubbishness anyway!

Be careful...be safe...have fun.