Motorcycle Meter Redux

Today's Red Zone Was Over Our Building

Last winter, I formed an attachment to motorcycles. I began to believe that, collectively, that the number of motorcycles at work was indicative of riding conditions. And so it seemed. The motorcycle meter has always lacked predictive power, instead being an affirmation of my wisdom in riding in, or as an indictment of my poor weather sense. Still, when lots of motorcycles came in, it looked like good weather and when few showed up, it was going to be lousy. Today, my faith in the motorcycle meter was shaken a bit, when the red area in the map above passed above our building about 2:10PM. At the time, the motorcycle meter stood at six.

An hour later, an ominous gray cloud hung over our building, with tinges of purple and gray. The motorcycle meter had dropped to five. Then four. Lightning struck all around and my engineers started wondering out loud if I'd be wanting a ride home. I noted that rain wouldn't melt me, but I sure didn't like pretending to be a human lightning rod.

The motorcyclists weren’t the only ones fooled. There were quite a few motorists that left sunroofs and windows cracked open. That led to an amusing stream of people running through the downpour to shut the open portals before their cars turned into aquariums. Even the morning weather forecasters claimed a 30% chance of rain this morning, mainly to the east. We're about as far WEST as you can be and still be in the same Metroplex. It seems to me we got drenched last time they forecast a 30% chance as well.

The meter failed for those that abandoned its power. The rain stopped ten minutes before I left for home, having cooled everything down. Two miles from work, I was even on dry pavement, and that pavement stayed dry all the rest of the way home. All the motorcyclists of little faith, on the other hand, got sopping wet. Myself, leaving just a little later, got no worse than a stripe down my back. Better yet, Buddy came home from the shop today, needing only a few minor adjustments from me and a good cleaning. Buddy will be ready when I give up commuting on the road bike around the end of July. On balance, I'd say that meter reading of six was about right, though it looked all wrong for a while.

Motorcycle Meter Reading of 1 Last Winter