Freezing on the bike and warm on skis

What's more miserable, riding a bike in the winter or cross-country skiing? Well, I suppose skiing could be miserable if we headed out in a blizzard, but nasty weather usually means we don't make the trip. Meanwhile, no matter what the weather, if I'm in town on the weekend, I've got to get on the bike.
Last Saturday eight of us headed out into the worst conditions for cycling, 33 degrees and wet, and met wind, rain, and sleet. I went through 3 pairs of gloves and my feet took about an hour to thaw out once I got back home. 66 miles took over 4 hours to complete. Luckily when I got a flat tire the skies were clearing up and it wasn't too bad out, but standing there my feet had no feeling left.
I know that as usual, by heading out and getting miles in I will end up being one of the best prepared riders in the state, and that is what gives me the motivation to head out and coax others to face the elements with me. Hopefully it will pay off for them too.
The weight of the rain bike, and my unwillingness to head right into zone 4 on the hills had me dangling off the group a couple times, but I think hitting the weights pretty hard on Thursday also caused some fatigue. I upped the incline leg press weight to 360 lbs. plus whatever the rack itself weighs--probably another 40 lbs.
After the tough outing on the bike Saturday we headed up to Hyak for some skate skiing on the Iron Horse trail. The weather was nice, no wind and about 30 degrees, no snow falling. So, skiing was much more pleasant that riding a bike in the lowlands. The trail there has about 20 ft. of total elevation, which sounds easy, but isn't. You have to kick and pole constantly. No jumping in the tracks on a downhill or just taking it easy. Granted there are no super steep walls that you have to grovel up, but after 15 miles of flat skating I was pretty worked. Did I mention I towed Marieka in the Chariot for about 6 or 7 miles? I was doing that while sticking behind Sarah and John, whom I can leave behind just fine without the Chariot. Towing the Chariot puts me on their level and makes it a lot tougher. I was probably feeling the strain of towing the Chariot out on the way back, and I was taxed for sure in the end.
Today I will get a well-deserved massage and I hope the shot of B-12 last night will also add to my recovery. I assume I am not losing any weight because I'm 1) building some upper body mass from skiing and 2) lifting weights with the legs and 3) replacing fat with muscle overall from doing more aerobic activity. Absolute weight is meaningless since muscle weighs more than fat, and fat comsumes oxygen, DOES fuel you, but does not directly contribute to power like muscle does. I assume the weight will decrease after some interval and sprint training begins and of course once racing starts. I'm hoping to have an even better sprint and sustained short-term high end than before anyway, and might lose some of my modest climbing abilities in exchange.
Thanks for reading this boring stuff. See you in the sleet!