I saw a post on Facebook that I’m sharing because it pretty much nails how the weather works in southeastern Virginia.  Last week’s ride was on a joyful, springlike day.  Today’s ride was a race ahead of winter’s return.  Oddly enough, the temperatures were close—both in the 50s.  But today the sun was hiding behind the clouds and the wind was blowing in the colder air that marked second winter’s arrival.

            But with the right gear, riding a motorcycle is comfortable even in a chill.  I wore my Klim wool pullover under my leather jacket and, with my heated grips on, I felt great during the ride.  Of course I’m lucky enough to choose when to ride; I saw some poor souls out during the rainy week on their motorcycle because that must be their only transportation.

            Because of Friday’s rain, we rode cautiously and avoided shady lots such as the gravel.  We did our fast-stopping drills dodging puddles and trying not to disturb the Canadian geese who were loving the large puddles.  I spotted a large collection of buzzards circling above the park and was glad I couldn’t see what might have drawn them there.  I also spotted one daffodil bravely blooming in defiance of second winter.             We were lucky second winter waited until Sunday to arrive, and we may be lucky again next Saturday.  I always feel lucky when I get the chance to ride my motorcycle.

Today we’re under a sever weather alert due to high winds and extreme cold.  My phone said the temperature was 25 but felt like 7; the car said 31, but whichever temperature gauge was correct, it was too cold to ride.  Bill and I are so tired of not being able to ride, we’ve already checked the forecast for next Saturday in hopes winter will let us ride again.

            Even though it is extremely cold, I am seeing signs of spring.  My daffodil shoots are up and the buds have formed.  I also spotted three robins on this bitterly cold day, so nature is trying to bring spring about.  And the sun was very bright as Bill guided the motorcycles onto the driveway to start them up and let the engines warm up.  The battery tenders have been doing their jobs; both the Rocket and R Nine T started right up, and at least I got to enjoy the engines rumbling.  But I will have to wait until next week and hope for a warmup for my actual ride.  Bill joked about us losing our riding skills, but I pointed out my skills seemed sharper after my health layoff, and his skills came right back even after decades without a ride.  Even so, once we can ride again, we’ll have fun reworking our skills.

The cold of winter does not stop us from gearing up and riding our motorcycles.  Normally.  We’ve ridden when temperatures dip down into the low 30s, but the line is drawn when temperatures are well below freezing.  When the high temperature is 25 degrees with a wind chill of 7, I don’t need the R Nine T to flash a snowflake at me to tell me it is way too cold to be out on a motorcycle.

            Last week’s ride was cancelled due to illness; I was fighting the flu and losing in the early rounds.  By Sunday the flu had knocked me completely out, and I could only lie in bed and dream of motorcycles.  This week’s ride was cancelled due to winter.  The snow was arriving late enough in the day to allow us to ride, but even with our quality cold weather riding gear, sitting out exposed and generating wind on a day that already feels like single digits would have been stupid.  And one thing one does not want to be when riding a motorcycle is stupid.

            I’ve managed to recover from the flu and can finally get off the NyQuil.  Looking ahead, next Saturday is promising to be in the 30s, so I’m hoping for a chance to ride.  And I’m hoping on Monday Punxsutawney Phil won’t see his shadow, spring will arrive early, I’ll stay healthy, and we won’t have to miss any more rides!