Kahtoola's MICROspikes are an incredibly handy, highly effective solution to the challenges of treacherous winter footing.

MICROspikes work with your trail running shoes roughly like chains work with your auto tires. Just wrap the durable elastomer harness around your shoes and go. There are no extra harnesses or straps for cold fingers to fiddle with.

The spikes themselves are made of rugged stainless steel that performs great even in silly-cold temperatures.

Linking the spikes together is a chain web that allows each individual spike to shift ever so slightly. This design allows each spike to sink in to its best ability and maximizes traction across the entire foot. The end result is that you can go very, very confidently across ice or most any other slick surface.

The convenience of MICROspikes is also hard to beat. Each shoe harness can be installed or removed in seconds -- and each unit folds into a small ball for easy packing -- so it's easy to use them for sketchy sections of trail and lose them when the going gets reliable again.

Sizing is for standard trail running shoes; size up one size to use with snow boots. Your choice of red or black straps.