My Riding Days For This Season Are Numbered ...

The chill in the air is telling me that my riding days for this season are numbered. This morning I had intended to head to Ottawa at 7am (about 300km round trip), but 7am came and went and the temperature hadn't moved much above the zero mark. It was 8:30 before the mercury rose to near 9 degrees, 10 Celsius is usually my cut off. I could have easily convinced myself to ride in comfort, wrapped in an SUV - but the thought that this might be the last ride of the season convinced me to bundle up and hit the road despite the cold. The road was distinctly devoid of motorcycles this morning - just me and one other cold, lonely rider. The forecast had promised sunshine for the day but in the grey of the morning the streams and marshes had a distinct, "winter's coming" cold look to them. The fall colours have almost all faded to their end of season browns and the air is damp and cold. Today, the smell I noticed most, took me back to my childhood. It is the pungent smell of corn silage being harvested for the cattle this winter. By afternoon and the return trip, the sun had managed to entice the temperature to 16 and in the sun, it was ideal. But then mother nature suspended a heavy grey cloud below the sun just to remind me winter is coming whether I like it or not.
If you are in Ontario - check out this link (ride, snowmobile or boat) gorideontario.com