The Beauty of Change

Autumn is the season of change. The vibrancy of life brought on by spring and summer is nearing the end of its cycle. The green trees transform with burst of gold, orange, red, and brown. The flowers droop and the petals blow away in the wind. And the caterpillars begin their transformation into butterflies.

I took note a week ago of some monarch caterpillars munching on the fennel I’ve planted in the yard. I planted the fennel expressly for the monarch caterpillars as I read that the butterfly will lays its eggs on the fennel, and the caterpillars will become their fat green selves munching on it. So I was thrilled to spot one of the caterpillars beginning its cocoon for its transformation. I spotted the back half of the caterpillar with green covering its front.

Before I headed out for this week’s motorcycle ride, I checked in on the chrysalis. It fully covered the caterpillar. As I checked in on “my” chrysalis, I noticed the grayish-white husk of another chrysalis whose butterfly had transformed and flown off. Then I spotted another one; I had missed these cocoons because they are well camouflaged. They look like green leaves while the caterpillar is inside. I will keep tabs on the remaining chrysalis, though the butterfly will probably emerge while I’m at work.

But the chrysalis made me think about change. One change I’m seeing is more motorcycles out on the road taking advantage of this mild August weather. Bill and I passed a cruiser rider as we began our ride; it wasn’t a Harley because it lacked the engine noise, but I couldn’t see the logo to know if it was an Indian. We also had a sport bike rider come up behind us at a stop sign which is very unusual to encounter two riders on our route.

But today was spectacular—sunny skies and mid-70s, with a chill in the breeze. When I first headed out, I thought I’d made a mistake not wearing my neck tube, but as the ride went on, I warmed up enough to be completely comfortable. It was also pleasant to not have my t-shirt plastered with sweat to my back.

We mostly cruised along with Bill getting the drifting monarch butterfly across his line of sight this week. I spotted one monarch then thought I was mistaken and it was a falling leaf before the wings flapped again and the monarch took off. It gave me a better understanding of why monarchs seem to drift; it’s part of their camouflage. I spotted what I think was a dainty sulphur butterfly; it had more orange to its wing shading than the usual yellow sulphurs. I even spotted a tiger swallowtail lofting along above us. It has been a good summer for butterflies.

I let my mind wander a little during this ride, and I need to be careful about that. Mostly we cruised, but I did work on my lean into the U-turns. I noticed my turns are getting tighter, but I did have to dab my foot on one of my right-side turns. I also noted that my ABS always comes on in my fast stops even when I try to use engine braking. Bill said it might be very sensitive brakes. In any case I had fun practicing and will have even more fun during next week’s ride.

green monarch caterpillar halfway into green chrysalis

Getting Spoiled

Another beautiful Saturday in August with partly sunny skies and highs just reaching to 80 degrees; this is the most pleasant August I can remember, and I’ve lived here for decades. The only time I felt a little too warm was during stopping drills in the hospital lot; for the rest of the ride, I was cool and comfortable.

The sun hid behind clouds for most of the ride which helped keep it cool and comfortable. Lots of people were out catching up on yardwork to take advantage of the day. And I spotted a number of butterflies enjoying the day including a monarch that drifted across a foot in front of my visor. One of the butterflies I saw was another monarch hanging out over the lantana bushes where I spotted one last week; I wondered if it was the same one hanging out.

During one of my U-turns, I spotted what I think was a banded hairstreak down close to the road. As we rode further up the road, I spotted another one. But then I wondered if it was the same butterfly and it had hitchhiked a ride up the road. Of course, it wasn’t, but it was a fun thought to have.

My ride went smoothly and my skills practice went well, so I had time to admire the butterflies I saw, including a black swallowtail that flew up next to me. I spotted a few more monarchs, and I noted that they seem to fly by drifting along, whereas the cabbage white butterflies seem to almost buzz with energy as they move about. I was noting a lack of the cabbage whites from the past few rides, but I spotted one on the drive home, so there are still a few fluttering about.

As I zoomed up the road, I noted more colored leaves fallen on the berm. Even as autumn grows closer, I saw flower buds on the young magnolias. I haven’t seen anyone with mums out yet, but I have noticed more of the twice-blooming azaleas with flowers. I am looking forward to fall, but I am sure enjoying the end of summer and these beautiful days are spoiling me.

orange and black monarch butterfly resting on yellow lantana flowers — Photo by Garuda on Pexels.com

Hints of Autumn

Yet again the dogs have not arrived, that is the dog days of summer. While Saturday was humid, the temperatures were in the mid-80s, and a lot of motorcyclists were out and about for an end of summer ride. School starts on Monday, so summer is definitely coming to its end. Overall, we’ve had some beautiful days for riding this summer.

The fall hints were there in more leaves beginning to change color and drop. I haven’t seen any mums yet, but I noticed the green leaves have a tired look as though they’ve given almost all the soothing green they can. I definitely see the change in the Japanese maples, but with the mild summer we’ve had, there are still lots of flowery blooms adding color to the ride. And I spotted a couple of butterflies still enjoying them, including a small Baltimore checkerspot that flew right in front of me and a monarch flitting about the late blooms.

My ride went really well, though I did have one mis-shift into neutral. My on-street U-turns were all street, and I enjoyed working on the lean over the tank and trying to tighten up my turns throughout our ride. Even my quick stops had very little shake from the ABS as I worked on using the engine braking to help slow the motorcycle. My only real issue was the numbness in my right hand. Maybe the humidity that helped to plaster my riding gear to my skin made my jacket tighter, but for some reason the numbness was worse during this ride than it has been. I thought I might ask Bill for handlebar risers for Christmas if they aren’t too troublesome to install because I really do think it’s the slight lean forward riding position on the R Nine T that messes up my circulation. I think this because I didn’t have this issue on either of my other motorcycles, the BMW 310 GS nor the Ducati Scrambler. The discomfort, however, isn’t enough to stop me from riding especially since next weekend is forecast for more low to mid-80s. Beautiful August riding weather even as autumn approaches. As I took off my boots, I noticed a garden spider in its web, another sign of fall which, like the spring, makes for perfect motorcycle riding weather.

yellow black garden spider in zipper web

The Gifts Keep Coming

I thought last week’s ride was a fluke; it’s August in the mid-Atlantic, temperatures are meant to be in the 90s with high humidity. But I think we may be in for an early autumn this year (yay!) as careful looking will reveal leaves already changing. The high for today’s ride was 80 degrees with a cool northeasterly breeze. I actually felt a little chilly as I started off and reveled in that autumn air here in August. We passed a lot of motorcycle riders on our way to our own ride taking advantage of a perfect riding day.

There are other hints that fall is fast approaching. The Canadian geese flocks are growing in number as their ranks swell from migration. I am also seeing more robins about, and I noted on today’s ride that the brown-eyed Susans, blooming strong for so many weeks, have a tired fadedness to them. Now there are still splashes of color from the vincas, newly planted impatiens, geraniums, and begonias, but I spotted another twice-blooming azalea with flowers opening, another sign of autumn.

I needed this ride even as I felt it might be more than I can handle. I felt woozy and weak and seriously considered telling Bill to go off on his own, but I decided to see what I could do and head in early if I felt overwhelmed. It was the right decision; my weakened state seemed to make me more focused, and my ride was helpfully smooth. My only mistake was during the on-street U-turns. My first turn around was all road, and I took a moment to feel self-satisfied. But in that moment, I lost my bearings on where Bill was in his turn, so as I started my second turn, I realized I would turn right on top of a sewer cover. I straightened and went further up the road to complete my second turn, but Bill had to wait in the cul-de-sac for me to catch up.

It was funny that I was given pause over a sewer lid. I had been thinking about writing about the dangers these metal plates in the road hold for motorcyclists. What makes them dangerous? They can be extra slick and slippery especially when wet and hold onto oil in the road causing a loss of traction. Since we only ride on dry roads, the loss of traction threat is minimal, but it could still happen if the tire tread angles onto the metal in just the right way. That was my concern in my U-turn; with the motorcycle leaned over and the front tire turned, I wasn’t confident that the traction would hold, so I avoided the issue by riding until I was turning on pavement.

I was glad to realize that my mind was well-focused on what I was doing on the ride especially the way I was feeling. I thought the U-turns would be physically challenging, but I managed them well-enough and lasted for our entire ride. I managed to not trigger the ABS on my one quick stop by using more roadway and engine braking to slow down.

One sad note about the approaching autumn. Yes, my rides will be more comfortable and less sweaty. And I very much look forward to the colorful leaves. Yet I will the butterflies. On today’s ride I only saw two; a confused monarch that almost flew back into Bill and a small black butterfly that might have been a great purple hairstreak, but I can’t be sure. Maybe I’ll see it again on next week’s ride.

sewer cover in roadway — Photo by YWEN ZHU on Pexels.com

Gift of a Day

The forecast held and actually improved by riding day. On the second day of August our ride was under sunshine and with a high of 78 degrees and a cool breeze out of the northeast. A perfect riding day which is why I spotted tons of motorcycles out on the roads. There were some large cloud banks in the sky, but they never covered the sun, giving us the gift of a perfect summer day for riding motorcycles.

Fully geared up, I was excited to head out. I needed some riding therapy after seeing my car this morning. A tree branch from the neighbor’s tree fell in the strong winds that brought in the cooler air and dented and scratched the right side of my car. Now, for my final week of summer holidays, I have to deal with body work on the car—not fun. So, I needed some serious riding therapy, and I was presented with the perfect day for it.

I had a rough start on the R Nine T trying my rear brake technique on the road camber. I was fighting against gravity and over rolled on the throttle; luckily, I have terrific brakes on my motorcycle and didn’t go flying. After that, though, my ride smoothed out and I enjoyed working on my skills such as U-turns, straight line riding, swerving, and sudden stops (though I still trigger the ABS).

I also enjoyed the beautiful flowers still blooming thanks to the plentiful rainfall—including Friday—and the cooler summer. The crape myrtles were smelling sweet again after getting some rain, and the brown-eyed Susans are still blooming strong. I also noted the bursting blooms on the white oakleaf hydrangeas which seem to be the plant of the season. I even spotted a small azalea in deep shade with flowers; it might be one of those twice-blooming varieties, and it is getting an early fall bloom.

With the strong breeze, I wasn’t sure if I’d see many butterflies, but the butterflies were making sure I spotted them. The first one I saw was a small American copper that I couldn’t miss as it flew right at my helmet before veering off to the left. A few moments later, a black swallowtail flew right at me before veering off to the right. I appreciated them making sure I got to see them. A tiger swallowtail flew across our path, and I spotted a ceranus blue butterfly before seeing another American copper. As we exited the square lot where I briefly hit full lock on the right side, a monarch butterfly drifted by.

The motorcycle ride was just what I needed to lift my spirits. We rode a little longer because of the beautiful day and, with the sun on us the whole time, I did get a little sweaty in my gear, but not uncomfortably so. And the butterflies definitely made me smile. While I took off my riding boots, a huge tiger swallowtail flew up to the window and then across the yard, adding the bow as this gift of a day wrapped up.

tiger swallowtail on purple flower among yellow flowers — Photo by Mark Stebnicki on Pexels.com

Perfect Summer Day

This July 4^th weekend has to be one of the best on record. The 4^th itself was a beautiful day—sunny, warm but not hot, and low humidity. We had a repeat of that pleasant weather for our Saturday ride, and I couldn’t wait to head out.

I worked on my rear brake “hill assist” as I worked up the camber on takeoff. I improved over last week’s attempt and was able to hold the motorcycle and look down the road. As I rode I worked mostly on my turns trying to focus on the entry and exit points, and I feel I did well. Unfortunately, we didn’t head up the curvy road, but I still worked through the corners.

Bill did something different during the ride and, once I figured out what he was doing, I followed suit. As we headed up the long road, he set himself in between the double yellow lines. At first I looked for any road obstacles he might be avoiding, but I couldn’t spot any. So after another moment, I realized he was working on keeping the Rocket along a straight line, and I moved behind him to have my attempt. We’ve tried the straight line on our bicycles and found that speed helps prevent the gyroscopic effect that would cause wobbling. Of course on a motorcycle, it is much easier to maintain speed, but it was still a challenge I look forward to pursuing in future rides.

The idea for this straight-line challenge comes from some motorcycle videos we’ve watched where people ride BMW R1250 GS bikes through various challenges. One of the challenges is to ride on top of a 2×4 board or between narrow logs. This challenge can be done on any motorcycle if one simply finds a straight line to pursue. My only concern with practicing this skill on the road was maintaining awareness of oncoming traffic. I have the advantage of Bill in front of me as bonus awareness, but I recommend the practice on a quiet road.

I enjoyed the ride and spotted two butterflies. One was a tiger swallowtail fluttering high overhead. The second was the Aphrodite fritillary which enjoys fluttering close to the ground. I noted the opposite nature of these two butterflies; I always seem to spot the swallowtail high among the tree leaves, and I’ve always spotted the fritillary down close to the ground. Neither seemed to be enjoying the gorgeous explosion of bright orange day lilies that I spotted everywhere on our ride.

I haven’t seen the little garage cabbage white in several weeks. But this week, a fat dragonfly sailed overhead. And, as I headed into the garage at the end of the ride, a fat, black carpenter bee nearly collided with me. But she veered away just in time, so I may spot her again during next week’s ride. I hope this lovely summer weather holds.

fritillary butterfly--orange and black — My attempt to photograph the fritillary butterfly.

Crossing Paths

Our ride day came with a slight break in the heat wave of the week; instead of temperatures in the mid to upper 90s, temperatures were in the low 90s, around 91 for our ride. The sun was out, but there were towering clouds in the sky, so I was hoping for some cloud cover to provide some relief; the relief never came. The whole ride was hot despite the little bit of cool air in the slight breeze. Hot rides like today’s provide me understanding for people who choose to ride in their t-shirts and shorts. However, all it would take is one tumble for me to appreciate sweating in the safety gear.

For this ride besides keeping cool thoughts, I worked on looking ahead and around for potential issues. Sometimes I let myself rely too much on Bill for watching the road. I am working on not letting that become a habit, so while I enjoyed the still lush foliage thanks to all the recent rain, I forced myself to pay attention to the road and the traffic as though Bill wasn’t ahead of me. Luckily, there wasn’t anything weird or funky in today’s ride; the only squirrel that crossed our path did so well out ahead of us.

The ride was one of movement to keep the air flowing over us. I didn’t mind because we zoomed past some softly sweet-smelling crape myrtles. I had my helmet visor up slightly to let in air and those soft summer smells.

With the heat I wasn’t sure about spotting any butterflies. I thought I’d see a few cabbage whites around, but we had been cruising for over half the ride, and I hadn’t spotted a single butterfly. As I rode past the gravel lot, I looked around for last week’s kamikaze pipevine swallowtail, but it wasn’t until we were heading back to the garage that a black butterfly crossed right in front of my helmet. A mile more down the road and a cabbage white seemingly appeared out of thin air crossing in front of me causing me to laugh out loud. I think what makes crossing paths with butterflies while riding a motorcycle is the chance of contact. I’m not riding fast enough to hurt the butterflies, yet the motion of the motorcycle doesn’t set up a good landing platform for the butterflies. The two butterflies did distract me from the heat of the ride and made me even happier that I was out riding even on such a hot day.

Kamikaze Butterfly

All credit to Bill for the title for this blog. I was thinking about it being the summer solstice and, as I rode, noting the beauty and lushness of a summer with plenty of rainfall. I’ve never seen the magnolias with new buds this far past spring, the roses and day lilies joined by the brown-eyed susans, hostas, and gardenias blooming in the deep summer greens. The temperatures were summery, in the upper 80s, but that was a relief from the mid-90s we saw in the middle part of the week.

On take off I struggled with my newfound strategy (using the rear brake as my hill stop). But I’m not surprised; new skills take practice and this was only my second practice. I was able to catch up to Bill and practice my other skills like no-look turns, target fixation swerve, and on-street U-turns. Other than my right hand going numb halfway through the ride, I enjoyed the ride, especially the muted beauty of the day.

The sun was out but throughout our ride, threatening clouds covered it providing shaded light to the flowers and greens. The animals were pretty quiet; I didn’t spot more than one cabbage white butterfly during the ride. We roared into a cul-de-sac and startled the great blue heron into spectacular flight out of the muddy low tide. As we rode up to the historic house with the gravel lot, I made a mental note to request more gravel lot practice once the summer ends and cooler weather arrives. To my surprise Bill led us into the gravel lot where I got an up-close view of the brown-eyed susans in the center flower bed. As we arrived in the lot, I spotted a black pipevine swallowtail butterfly heading toward the flowers. There was lumber stacked up in the parking lot blocking my two-spot U-turn, so we rode a few loops around the lot.

As we rode toward the exit, Bill did a sudden stop. The pipevine had decided to land on the gravel right near the Rocket’s front tire. Had Bill not stopped, there might have been a smushed smear of a butterfly left among the seashells. However, it was the pipevine’s lucky day; we stopped and watched as the butterfly smoothed out her wings and sat there for several seconds before finally lifting off out of danger of the tires. She followed us a bit up the road until becoming lost among the shadows of the trees.

When we arrived in the garage, Bill asked me, “Did you see that kamikaze butterfly?” I responded that I had and was happy to know the kamikaze mission failed and she flew off perhaps to join us on a future ride.

American Cooper

I can’t remember a Memorial Day weekend this cool and comfortable. For today’s ride the temperatures will barely hit 70 degrees and the sun is shining brightly. We headed out early enough for me to be hopeful of seeing many butterflies, and I did spot eight throughout the ride, including my first ever American copper butterfly! Mostly, I spotted the cabbage whites; six of the ones I spotted were these ubiquitous yard butterflies. But I also managed to spot what I believe was a tiny gray hairstreak. This little guy isn’t even an inch in wingspan, but he fluttered up by my right shoulder.

My ride went really well with much smoother turns than last week. My U-turns were also nice and tight, but we didn’t do the on-street turn, so I couldn’t test that one. I realized during this ride that I feel more confident on my motorcycle. The idea of dropping my motorcycle now seems more like a fluke not an every ride possibility. I think hearing the weight of a motorcycle (487 pounds fully fueled with my R Nine T), the thought of having to prevent a fall seems intimidating. But with some strong legs and the riding skills to use the clutch and speed, slips in balance can be corrected and drops prevented. My front tire slipped on a rock during a U-turn and though I wobbled a bit, I had the presence of mind to let out the clutch and allow the bike to use speed to correct.

Because the day was so cool, we headed into the hospital lot to practice quick stops. My stops are short—within two parking spaces. But I still have the ABS (anti-lock brake system) kick in on my sudden stops. I tried using engine braking with the downshift to help stop the motorcycle without having the ABS kick in, but my stop rolled over three parking spaces. In discussing the issue with Bill after the ride, I decided I should try longer stops without the ABS kicking in. Once I can use the downshift and engine braking without the ABS, then I can start working on shortening my stops.

As we headed toward the last loop at the end of our ride, we came across a swarm of dragonflies near a Yoshino cherry tree. I suppose there were lots of good eats in the tree and the dragonflies were having a feeding frenzy. We also spotted the Canadian geese, stopping in the road to let the mam goose and her goslings cross the street. Bill saw a hawk but I missed it because I had spotted both an egret and the blue heron wading not far from each other in the low tide. I guess the heron didn’t migrate north for cooler air, and with our current weather pattern, there was no need.

The extended spring temperatures are also allowing some roses to hold on to their blooms longer. They are joined by even more day lilies bursting with color and the hydrangeas now sporting their colorful flower balls. I did see a few crape myrtles with flowers already, but it’s a little early yet for them to reach full bloom. The magnolia blooms are holding strong and their perfume is joined by the tiny white blooms from the ligustrum bushes.

All in all, it was a lovely ride for the Memorial Day weekend. And a shout out to the riders who are part of Roll to Remember in Washington DC this weekend for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Ride on!

American copper butterfly--orange with black spots on a yellow day lily — Photo by Erik Karits on Pexels.com

What a Difference a Few Hours Make!

Last week we rode earlier and I went to the gym after our ride. This week, despite the 88 degrees high temperature, I went to the gym first and we rode our motorcycles in the early afternoon. The few hours later in the day made a big difference in the number of butterflies I saw during our ride—less than half of last week’s number. So butterflies must take afternoon siestas.

I did see more dragonflies, more than two for every butterfly I spotted, including one little guy who flew directly at my left shoulder. I never felt an impact and there weren’t four wings stuck to my Helite airbag vest after the ride, so I believe he managed to veer off and continue with his day. Of course, with the warmer air and the increasing number of dragonflies, the mosquitoes are around. Luckily, we ride early enough in the day to avoid them.

My ride wasn’t the best in terms of my technique. My shifting and stopping went well, but all of my turns were wide. I turned a corner so wide I went into the oncoming lane (luckily free of oncoming traffic). And my on-street U-turns both went a bit onto the grassy berm. I think part of that was my distraction because one of the cabbage white butterflies was flitting along the side of the road right where we did our turns, and I was watching her flit about.

As we turned up one road, both of us spotted a young osprey working on its flight skills. It seemed the osprey was following us along our route up the road in a zigzagging fashion which was really neat. But soon the parent osprey showed up to guide the little guy either back to the nest or back over the water to find lunch.

Despite the heat of the day, I wasn’t uncomfortably hot. Sure my t-shirt was adhering to my back, but there was a lovely breeze blowing with some cooler air to keep the ride mostly comfortable. Plus, we didn’t go into the hospital lot for slow speed maneuvers. I saw some more bright scarlet day lilies in bloom, and the magnolia blossoms are holding strong. But some of the roses have begun to fade, and the blooms off the honeysuckle were gone. I noticed that the leaves on the Japanese maples seem more burnished and less bright than they did a few weeks ago. Summer is fast approaching which means even more relaxing rides.

rider on motorcycle — I’ve been riding motorcycles now for just over four years! And I’ve come a long way since the school parking lot.