my first BIG BUG of the year (28 degrees??)

[Cliffy777]

i rode down to the hospital to visit my dad last night (he is doing well). left to come home around 8:30 pm. it was 28 degrees. as i am getting onto the slab i hit a big yellow bug. part of him/her/it/transgendered is still on my helmet and right shoulder of my jacket today.
what the heck is a bug doing flying around on a 28 degree night in march? i didn't think things could fly at those temps....dang - one of my main reasons for riding in the cold izzat there are no bugs.
username - did you send that ugly thing up here from texas?

[BradfordBenn]

Actually the first bug is a sign of the spring.

Since it was Yellow it means that it will be a moderate spring with not much rain. :thumb

[username]

username - did you send that ugly thing up here from texas?

yes, he was carrying a special message for you. you hit him? that's sad news.

i'll send a 3" roach up there next time, theyre more durable. :D

[BubbaZanetti]

i had one on my front turn signal after riding to work yesterday, they must be getting an early start this year, i'm gonna leave it there as a warning to future trouble makers

[RT_guy]

I love those big yellow ones! I had a huge one on a constant-azimuth, decreasing-range scenario at around 80 mph last summer. It smacked me on the front right quadrant of my Shoei and durn near sent me asphalt surfing. It actually chipped the plastic as it exploded into a florescent yellow sunburst.

We're already into the season where you drape a wet towel over the windscreen when you get home so you can clean those guys off in the morning. And it'll only get worse when the love bugs soon start hovering amidst the no-seeums and bright yellow pollen.

Ahhh, Spring time! :clap

[hurricane]

Saw our first mosquitos yesterday, too.

Course, it was 82 degrees, not 28.

Be glad to send them north. :D

[lorazepam]

My favorite are the giant grasshoppers that come out in late summer. Like hitting a hummingbird.

[The_Veg]

Ah yes, the bugsplat- all TexSux riders have no choice but to become connoisseurs of this delightful art form! Yellow, red, brown, indescribable multi-hues... we love them all! We have grown accustomed to that feeling of anticipation that happens when we see that little black dot out there in the airspace ahead, then the delicate and beautiful curvature of the way it spirals gently on a direct course for our helmets. We know when we first spot them many seconds out that they WILL be splattered before our plastic-shielded eyes momentarily. Of course not all of them do those lazy spirals in. Some just come from nowhere and hit with a sharp loud tap that will bring you back to the here and now with a jolt if you've been daydreaming. Variety is good in art. And it's interactive art as well. Not only because I can change the splat pattern by tilting or turning my head in the airflow in a feeble attempt to change the flow around the helmet and hopefully clear the carcass, only making interesting streaks instead- but also because I can will a good one to do it's worst. Here's how: every time I clean the shield at a fuel stop I know what will happen next, for it is written in the soul of the Texan Road. I'll pull back out onto the road and within three miles I'll see one spiraling in and it will splatter in a most spectacular fashion, and always right in the very center of my field of vision- right where I can't tune it out even with either eye closed.
Then there's the hidden treasure to be found lodged deep in the vents of the helmet every once in a while when I do a really thorough job of cleaning. And the occasional oddball that makes it in between the foam and the padding.
Come on down some summer and I'll give you a personal tour of some of the finest splatting roads!

[Cliffy777]

well written veg man. michigan bugs are famous not for their variety but more for their abundance when the weather is warm (that is why one able to fly at 28 degrees shocked me.) when i leave the store on a summers night i have to cross two rivers. sometimes the bugs are so thick i tuck my head down so they pepper the top of the helmet cuz the little squeege thing on my glove just smears 'em around. (if i am really hungry i open the visor and my mouth......)
i like to hit the really big ones, like an 8 ounce june bug that sounds like a small caliber bullet or a stone pinging off the helmet.
did i ever tell you about the june bug that made it between the top of my sunglasses and the edge of my helmet?

[username]

june bugs (and bees) are a really good justification for full-face helmets. i hit those suckers and it's like i'm getting pelted with rocks.

the other fun part is when you get somewhere in your riding jacket, and theyre all dried and crusty, and someone wants a hug. mmmmm, bugs!

[GeoffMiller]

How about on one of those hot August days. Motoring along, face shield flipped up for a little ventilation, AND ONE OF THOSE BIG OL' BUGS MAKES IT PAST YER GLASSES AND INTO YER EAR!! Dang thing is crawling around in your ear, bike swerving all over the place, and all of these mystified cage drivers wondering about your sanity as you dance around on the shoulder trying to rip your helmet off. Just a thought....... :D

[GeoffMiller]

Oh, and what about campfire bugs? You know, when you are standing by the campfire, holding a cocktail, lips flapping away about how you beat 205 Tilley in a race, and the little kamakazi flies in your mouth and sticks to the back of your throat!! Do you succumb to your relexes and spew the thing out onto your buddies t-shirt or do you take it like a man and wash er down with a slug of alcohol? :drink

[einnar]

Actually the first bug is a sign of the spring.

Since it was Yellow it means that it will be a moderate spring with not much rain. :thumb

And if he hit it before it could see its shadow, then winter is over, right?

[SheRidesABeemer]

what the heck is a bug doing flying around on a 28 degree night in march?

Mrs. Betty Bug regrets to inform us of the passing of her mate Billy Bug. Billy, a lifelong flying enthusiast "got onto a helmet" last night while out for his first flight of the season. One witnesses to the incident expressed his wonder this way: "what the heck was a motorcycle helmet doing out on a 28 degree night in March?” Billy Bug had been waiting to fly all winter; frequently chatting with his best bug pals who where all waiting to get the first flight of the season. He will be missed by the others on the "Big Yellow Bug Forum".

[Cliffy777]

excellent point gail. i should have looked at it from billy's perspective. and what about betty.....and the kids......was there insurance?

[username]

betty is left all alone in the nest with 40,000 mouths to feed...

[SweetT]

I've recently studied some insects that have the ability to briefly increase thier metabolic rate by altering the membrane of the mitochondria in thier flight muscle cells. This means that they can heat themselves up if the temp drops too much.

This trait is pretty rare but can be found in some beetles and a few orthopterans (roaches, crickets, and grasshoppers). I really think its quite facinating that this "cold blooded" animal actually has the ability to increase the temp of their flight muscles so that they can fly in sub freezing weather! In fact, the Rain Beetle in northern california has its mating season during the winter. Males can often be seen flying in sub freezing weather looking for some females to mate with. Cool! :D

[GeoffMiller]

Why do I think that Tarren takes a really, really really long time to clean his windshield? :stick

[username]

I've recently studied some insects that have the ability to briefly increase thier metabolic rate by altering the membrane of the mitochondria in thier flight muscle cells. This means that they can heat themselves up if the temp drops too much.

This trait is pretty rare but can be found in some beetles and a few orthopterans (roaches, crickets, and grasshoppers). I really think its quite facinating that this "cold blooded" animal actually has the ability to increase the temp of their flight muscles so that they can fly in sub freezing weather! In fact, the Rain Beetle in northern california has its mating season during the winter. Males can often be seen flying in sub freezing weather looking for some females to mate with. Cool! :D

tarren, i'm putting you in my category of people that if i don't see them cook the meal, i'm not eating it. :D

[Hodag]

I hit a roach once, hit it pretty hard......
Had some Pink Floyd playing, some cookies and milk.
:brow
why is it I don't think we are talking about the same thing??

[lorazepam]

I hit a roach once, hit it pretty hard......
Had some Pink Floyd playing, some cookies and milk.
:brow
why is it I don't think we are talking about the same thing??

:rocker

[SweetT]

Why do I think that Tarren takes a really, really really long time to clean his windshield? :stick


I've got to put my Entomology degree to use somehow! :D I've actually used insects pulled from the radiator screen of my bike in one of my insect collections. I did have to glue one of its legs back on though...

And BTW Username, I do happen to know an EXCELLENT recipie for Engorged Tick Stew! :drink Yummy!

[boofer]

Mrs. Betty Bug insists that Billy was not hooked on cookies and milk. She blames his errant behavior on peer pressure, something about acceptance.

Close scrutiny of Billy's computer found that he had frequently been lurking at the BMWMOA forum and had been fascinated with the idea of becomming a rounder. Dang !

Tim

[jgr451]

It has been cold riding around here too,but not 28.The forsythia sprang into life a week ago and the bug population also resumed a higher activity level.Looking for friends,family,a party spot with a 2 stroke blender,quiet family camping, a place to puke,a tiara fit for a queen or a princess,I don't know.What does go through a bug's mind when they go TOCK off the plastic?(Some might say,their @$$%oles;but this is a FAMILY forum and I DO digress).
No what struck me when folk mentioned the colour and consistency of the various bugs they have encountered, is that here,in BC ,it is the sheer variety of sizes of things, and how that progresses.
I notice that now,in the early part of the season,there are little black dots,fluffy bits stuck here and there that are unmistakably bugs,but what kinds?You saw them arrive but heard and felt nothing.Just as hard to scrape off sometimes as the real ones.
Then there are hornets;june bugs;bumblebees;dragonflies;grasshoppers;and so on.
A veritable accelerando of bug sizes,followed by a crescendo,then a slow glissando back down to sotto:the little bits of black fluff.Maybe they are tiny birds.... :drink