What is it?

“Indian summer is an informal expression given to a period of sunny, warm weather in autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, typically in late October or early November, after the leaves have turned following an onset of frost but before the first snowfall. The generally accepted use of the term is when the weather is sunny and clear, and above 21°c (70°F), and all of the leaves of the trees have turned but before the first snow has fallen; a period normally associated with mid-October to late-November in the northern states of the U.S.

Traditionally, in former times in Europe, ‘Indian summer’ was called ‘Saint Martin’s Summer,’ referring to St. Martin’s day, Nov. 11, when it was supposed to end. In British English ‘St. Martin’s Summer’ was the most widely used term until the American phrase Indian Summer became better known in the 20th century. In Italy, St. Martin’s summer (Estate di San Martino) was expected and celebrated as a rural tradition with ancient origins, and is marked by a festival throughout the peninsula on November 11. In Spain, it is called ‘Veranillo de San Miguel’ or ‘Veranillo de San Martín,’ depending on which date it occurs. It can also be called ‘Veranillo del Membrillo’ (little summer of the quince).

In Russia, it is called ‘Women’s Summer/Babye Leto (Бабье лето),’ in Poland – ‘Babie Lato’ and in Croatia ‘Bablje ljeto.’ In Galicia (northern Spain), it is called ‘Veraniño de San Martiño,’ and in Portugal it is called ‘Verão de São Martinho,’ both of which refer to St. Martin’s summer.

In Bulgaria, the phenomenon is sometimes called ‘Gypsy Summer’ (Bulgarian: циганско лято, tsigansko lyato) and in some places ‘Gypsy Christmas’ and refers to unseasonably warm weather in late fall or a warm spell in between cold periods.

In Sweden it is called ‘brittsommar,’ which is derived from Birgitta and Britta, who have their “name day” in the Swedish calendar on Oct. 7. That is when Britt Mass, an official fall open-air market, was held.

In Germany and Austria it is called “Altweibersommer”, in Hungary “vénasszonyok nyara” (Old Ladies Summer or Crone’s Summer) because the many white spider silks seen at this time of the year have been associated with the norns of Norse folklore or medieval witches.

An alternative to St Martin’s summer was ‘Saint Luke’s summer,’ as the saint’s feast day is Oct. 18. Another alternative was “All-hallown summer,” as Halloween is Oct. 31; the expression is used in Shakespeare’s King Henry IV, Part 1, Act 1 Scene 2.”

Hey, stop it, Wikipedia overload is setting in. OK we all now know that Indian Summer comes after Halloween, and every country has their own version of this time of year! Back here in good ole central Indiana, we had one spectacular Indian Summer weekend. I even had to bring one of my favorite two-wheeled toys out of a comfy winter storage to click off some miles on some of my favorite twisty roads in southern Indiana with a couple riding buddies.

Three other Yankees, two from Texas and our own “Kentucky Kid,” had a spectacular “Veraniño de San Martiño” ride last weekend at the Grand Prix of Valencia in Spain. American riders claimed three of the top seven finishing positions. Colin Edwards placed fourth on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine, while 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden finished fifth on the Ducati Team bike. 2009 Superbike World Champion Ben Spies finished a strong seventh in a wild-card ride for the Sterilgarda Yamaha Team. Check out www.redbullindianapolisgp.com for more race details.

Hopefully this bit of Indian Summer lasts a few more days before Old Man Winter rears his ugly head. I’ve asked my friends up in Calgary, Alberta, if they could keep their “Alberta Clippers” up in their neck of the woods this year.

I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com

Greg

Eve of the “darker half” of the year

From our friends at Wikipedia; “Halloween has its origins in the ancient celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced sow-in or sau-an), which is derived from Old Irish and means roughly ‘summer’s end.’ A similar festival was held by the ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced kalan-geyf). The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the ‘lighter half’ of the year and beginning of the ‘darker half’ and is sometimes regarded as the ‘Celtic New Year.’ The term Halloween, originally spelled Hallowe’en, is shortened from All Hallows’ Even – e’en is a shortening of even, which is a shortening of evening. This is ultimately derived from the Old English Eallra Hālgena ǽfen. It is now known as ‘Eve of’ All Saints’ Day, which is November 1st.”

OK, now that we’ve all had a bit of a lesson about the origins of the Halloween holiday, the saddest part of Wikipedia’s lesson is the part about “summer’s end” and the beginning of the “darker half” of the year. I think I’ve shared with you all a couple times that I really like riding the sport bikes this time of the year. A bit of coolness in the air and the fall colors make for some very enjoyable weekend jaunts.

After a week in Calgary, I managed to make it back to Indy Friday evening. The pilots on my Delta-Northwest flight even remembered to land in Minneapolis. Saturday turned out to be a bit damp, but Sunday started off cool but quickly warmed up to an ideal day for a ride south of Indianapolis to take in some of the fall colors.

One thing I did have on the agenda for Sunday afternoon was to watch the final rounds of the Superbike World Championship in Portimao, Portugal, and the Grand Prix of Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit. With a win in race one and fifth in race two, Texan Ben Spies wrapped up his first World Superbike title and Yamaha’s first-ever title in this series in his rookie season. At Sepang, Valentino Rossi celebrated his seventh MotoGP World Championship and his ninth title overall with his third-place finish in the MotoGP event. Check out more race coverage at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com

With Ben Spies moving over to the MotoGP series on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team with two-time World Superbike champion and fellow Texan Colin Edwards, the 2010 MotoGP season should be pretty interesting with a pair of Texans two-stepping their way through next year’s series.

2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP go on sale very soon, so be sure to get your seats as soon as they’re available. When asked why you should get them on the first day, Colin Edwards said; “The earlier you get it, the earlier you can plan it and get the party started!”

With some additional business travel the next couple weeks, it looks like the two-wheeled toys are about ready to be tucked away for the “darker half” of the year, so enjoy your Halloween festivities this weekend, and I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.

Greg