We've been fighting the icy sidewalks and roads since early last Nov. - we joke that ice picks are the newest fashion statement. Most peole here don't like the Yaktrax, they don't seem to dig in enough - maybe our ice is harder up north? I've been using these rubber straps that you pull on over your winter boots and they have little spikes on the bottom. They've been pretty good, but this morning I was taking my usual shortcut through a playground. The path is deep rutted ice, but with more fresh snow last night I thought it would be better. I ended up falling over sideways as my foot slipped on a rut - a nice soft landing in lots of snow, but I was sure snowy and hoping nobody was looking!