Was it Global Warming, or was it Wishful Bikers?

The calendar may say that we are in the first week of November, but this past week - with daytime highs in the 70s – had those of us living in Northern New York thinking the calendar was more like late August. Thanks to the jet-stream quite a few states were experiencing warmer weather, with several states having the hottest year on record. Plenty of people will point to Global Warming as the cause for heating things up when they should be cooling off. But maybe it’s just “Biker Wishful Thinking.”

Heating things up on Planet Earth

Sure, Global Warming (or Climate Change) could be to blame – there seems to be lots of science backing the claim that greenhouse gasses trap the infrared radiation in our atmosphere and re-direct it back at the earth. Although a recent study of Arctic Ice indicates that the threat of Global Warming may not be as horrific as predicted. Scientists have seen an increase in the ice over the last two years. This seems to refute the claim that Global Warming is causing arctic ice to melt and sea levels to rise. But I'm not here to prove or disprove any of these theories - I think that the recent spike in warm weather was caused by me and other Motorcycle Enthusiasts.

This time of year the weather can be unpredictable. Shorter days, temperatures (usually) getting cooler, rain brings a dampness to the air, and frosted windshields in the mornings are all saying that the riding season is nearly done. And once the salt trucks come out then that’s it – it’s over! (Because salt mixing with steel and chrome just isn’t a good thing.) So right now you’ve got a pretty large group of people wishing for just one more week, day or hour of good riding weather. The freedom of riding on two wheels cannot be exactly matched by anything else. And for those of us living North of the Mason Dixon line, where the snow and ice tend to dominate half of the year, we want to extend our riding season - and that freedom - as much as possible.

Subatomic Particles Moving To The Groove 

My mom used to say, “Be careful what you think because it may come true.” I thought she was confusing the whole “be careful what you wish for” bit that I’ve said to my kids plenty of times, but it turns out she was right. (Did you hear that mom??) Scientists have influenced the behavior of subatomic particles they’re observing with what’s on their minds – this has been proven over and over again. And lots of successful people also tell of their similar belief – Henry Ford often said, “Whether you think you can, or whether you think you can’t, you’re probably right.” Given all of that, it’s by no stretch of the imagination that a group of bikers can influence the weather!!

Perhaps all of us “thinking warm thoughts” can bring about good riding weather…. Maybe it was the greenhouse gasses heating things up…. But then suddenly that song by The Rolling Stones pops into my head:

You can’t always get what you want.

But if you try sometimes, you might find, you get what you need.

Maybe it was just the Universe smiling on us…. And we bikers living a Life Behind Bars were glad for it.