Riding the Seasons - Fall

By Jeffry L’H. Tank

As fall arrives some folks put away their machines for the winter, be it for whatever reason, while others await the changing seasons with a heightened sense of anticipation. No doubt each of us has our favorite time of year, for riding as well as other activities. For some that season is summer, taking rides in the bright sun through the long days and warm sunny weather. For others it may be fall, with it's changing colors and crisp mornings. Yet others may consider spring to be the best riding season and enjoy rides down quiet country lanes as the world wakes up from it's winter sleep. And yes, there are those who look forward to winter, the cold biting air that invigorates the soul, the challenge of and inner sense of accomplishment that comes from "beating the elements" And too, there are those of us who enjoy the secret pleasure in seeing the looks on the faces of our co-workers as we stand in the elevator with helmet in hand, and they ask in disbelief "you rode in today?!"

While each season has it's own rewards, each too has it's drawbacks, being stuck in traffic in the heat of summer, or caught in a sudden drenching downpour without your rain gear. Fall, with it's sudden changes in temperature, the increased chances of an encounter with large woodland animals that in the heat of mating can be even less predictable than usual as they dart across the road, or roads covered with rain slicked leaves. Winter, with it's cold temperatures that can find even the slightest gap in your warm weather gear, or change suddenly from a bright day to a winter storm and accompanying snow. Spring, with it's sudden cold showers and small critters scurrying back and forth across the roads looking for their first meals to fill bellies emptied during their long winter nap, heedless of the approaching traffic.

As a year around rider I have come to know each season, it's up and downs, and I too have my favorite riding season; Fall. For me there is no other season that can quite compare to it's splendor.

Fall, with it's crisp mornings that warm through the day so that by late afternoon a temperature of 60 feels almost hot. The frost covered earth that sparkles in the moonlight or headlight as I pass by in the predawn hours. The swirling mist that rises from the meadows, fields and lawns as the sun rises in the distance and warms the earth. The unimaginable intensity of the smells born on the cool, frosty air, that so unlike summer when they are so soon gone with the rising sun, linger throughout the day. The warmth of the sun on your face as you emerge back into the sunlight from some tree lined road. That self same shining orb that just months ago we sought shelter from, we now rejoice in finding. Perhaps it's an evening ride down some lonely country road as twilight descends and turns the colors of the fall leaves to mystic shades of grays. Rides through forest enshrouded lanes, the brilliant shades of gold, red and orange on the leaves as the trees shed their foliage and prepare for their long winters rest. Or maybe it's a ride up to the Blue Ridge along Skyline Drive to enjoy the quiet of some hidden road side glen or rocky outcrop that overlooks the Shenandoah Valley and feel the warmth of the sun above and the cool of the earth beneath. To sit and watch the sun chased shadows play across the valley as the small woodland critters scurry about filling their nests with their winters hoard of nuts, roots and seeds. Or perhaps just sit and watch the morning mist rise from the valley floor and be blown away by soft breezes while overhead the dark silhouette of a lone eagle or hawk against the bright underbelly of the clouds, wings spread wide, glides on the rising currents of air that rush up the mountain side from the valley far below. To stop for a moment and enjoy the sounds and sights of a myriad birds heading south for warmer climes, or watch a flock of (sometimes) hundreds of birds descend upon berry laden trees to strip them clean of their precious cargo, scattering the seeds to the wind and renewing the cycle of life once more. Or maybe it's something as the simple as the rustle of drying leaves blowing across the roads and lawns and being disturbed by the passing of some two wheeled mechanized marvel.

Riding through the fall, with summer a fading memory, knowing that winter's chill is fast approaching, the trees soon to be barren of leaves in stark contrast to their fall splendor, the fields flattened by the first icy frost, intensifies the moments spent riding the fall roads and reminds one of the ever changing seasons and the years endless parade of nature's splendor.

The very act of setting astride such machines as these and exposing oneself to the elements, is to immerse oneself in nature. It is, as always, simply a matter of taking the time to fully appreciate the bounty that is offered up to refresh and renew one's soul. You have the choice to zip by unknowing or cast all else aside and feast for the moment on the harvest thus offered. No one can do it for you, no description, no matter how bold or brilliantly written, can convey that which is waiting just around the next bend, over the next rise, or down that road yet explored. Only you and you alone can find it for yourself, so, before you put that machine away, go exploring.

I Ride the Seasons of My Youth

I ride the seasons, one and all;
Summer, winter, spring and fall.
I search the back roads of my youth;
Within each find a single truth.
To satisfy this passion deep;
That lies within, and never sleeps.

I ride the winter, harsh and still;
Past sleeping farms, past frozen hill.
Past frost tipped meadows still and cold;
I ride forever, strong and bold!
Thru frosted air that clings to bone;
I ride the winter all alone.

I ride the spring (I have no choice);
Each living thing and I rejoice.
In warmth of Sun and gentle breeze;
That thaws the fingers of the trees.
The fields awake, as birds take wing;
I ride on thru a timeless spring.

I ride the summer, hot and bright;
Thru heat of day, and warmth of night.
The brilliant fields of summer bloom;
Dispels the last of winters gloom.
And so I ride throughout the days;
And weave through summer's endless maze.

I ride the fall, so cool and clear;
And know that winter soon will near.
The trees in colors now reveal;
That winter soon will come to steal.
Their splendor that it must recall;
So ever on I ride the fall!

I ride the seasons, one and all;
Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall.
Revisit roads from my lost youth;
And find again that simple truth.
This passion still with me deep;
Will never rest nor ever sleep.

© Jeffry L’H. Tank

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