Is it Riding Season Yet?
 When
does riding season begin?
Clearly this is a subjective question, but let's look at some of
the ways people figure it.
If you live in the Midwest, riding season begins when the snow
melts. Temperatures get warmer and for maybe a week or so you have
some sunshine before the wet spring, summer and fall weather set in.
If you don’t live there, here’s something you may not know - the
Midwest receives more precipitation during the summer months than
during the winter months. So for Midwest riders, the coming of the
rain marks the beginning of riding season.
Hmmmm…it’s the opposite here in the Northwest. That is if you’re
a fair-weather rider.
There are those of us who ride all year. After you’ve ridden in
the rain a few times it’s not a big deal. However my own experience
tells me that riding in the rain is work, while riding in the
sunshine is pure pleasure. But for those of us who do ride all year,
there is no beginning or end to our riding season.
"I don’t get on my Harley until the air temperature goes over 55
degrees" commented one rider who approached me from his parked car
on the Kitsap Peninsula one day in March noting "You got balls." So
for him riding season starts when the air temp hits 55. That will
likely be sometime in April if you live west of the Cascades. They
will drop below 55 come late October – so for this guy he’s got
about a six-month riding season.
Which brings us to another point. When does riding season end?
I was talking to someone one day about going to the Oyster Run.
The event is held the last Sunday of September each year and draws a
humongous crowd of American and Metric cruiser owners. "Yeah – that
event pretty much marks the end of the riding season" said the rider
I was conversing with. I had to point this out because…
…I recently read some editorial that noted that the Old Snohomish
Antique & Classic Motorcycle Show is considered by some to mark the
beginning of riding season. The show is held the 3rd
Sunday of May and draws a similar crowd to that of the Oyster Run.
If this is the beginning of riding season and the Oyster Run marks
the end then let’s do the math here…riding season is about 130 days
long. Yikes – are there people plopping down $20,000 on a bike so
they can ride it over a 130 day window each year?
So obviously this is a subjective question. The only way to
really answer it is that riding season begins when you decide to get
on your bike and ride.
If you’re new to motorcycling, you may be a fair weather rider
your first few years out. If you live in the Northwest it’s only a
matter of time that you can get away with the ‘fair weather rider’
ideal because eventually you’ll get caught in a rain storm or two.
That’s when the evolution begins. You get used to the rain, the
cold, and you learn how to better prepare for it. Then, before you
know it, your riding season is getting extended longer and longer.
Instead of running across hot asphalt for a four month period,
you’re seeing the rhododendrons in bloom, watching the leaves change
and fall – all from the cockpit of your motorcycle.
So ask yourself, when did riding season begin for you? This year,
last year and the year before that.
Have a great ride.
PT/Spring 06 |
