"It's only water..."

There's a chill in the air and steady moisture is on the way. Fall is my favorite season with the changing leaves and the special food that's unique to this time of year. I think many people look forward to the coming rain that's almost here.

Our rainy season is long here in Oregon. It goes from late October through July 4th, then on the 5th the rain stops.  Funny how that happens. So the big decision on rainy mornings is, should I ride or not?  As a sales rep I get on and off the bike multiple times during the day which can be tricky in the rain. Thus the title of this little story.

September of last year I took the Team Oregon Basic Rider Training class and thought it was very worth while. I'm not saying that because Irondad might be reading this, I really was impressed with the information and the professionalism of the instructors. 

During one of the breaks on the range I visited with one of our instructors. I was admiring his bike which was a new white Honda VFR Interceptor. I asked if he rides year round and he said yes. At this point I had my Vespa only two months and it was summer so I asked, "Even in the rain?" To which he answered with a straight face, "Oh yeah, it's only water". I knew he wasn't trying to minimize the risks of wet weather riding, after all, he's a professional riding instructor. But I thought his comment was both funny and an interesting way to look at it.

Wet weather keeps a lot of riders off the roads, and for good reason.  I'm certainly not worthy of going into a discussion on rainy weather riding tactics. Nevertheless, it's probably safe to say that everyone gets caught in the rain at some point while riding and the initial concern when that happens might be overcome with the thought, "Oh yeah, it's only water". 

Just riding and thinking.