When I was a child, the weeks leading up to Christmas moved in slow motion. No amount of wishing or whining could bring the big day closer, so I passed the time ogling the Sears Wish Book, thumbing through it again and again, until the pages were as worn as old tissue paper. That glorious catalog, with its page after page of toys, was all that stood between pint-sized insanity and me.

Now, it seems, the holiday season flies by in the blink of an eye. But winter? That's another story. My bike is in the back of the garage, on trickle charger life support, and no amount of wishing or whining will bring spring -- and riding season -- closer.

There are more than 750,000 motorcyclists in the state, and most of us don't ride in the winter That's a whole lot of people waiting impatiently for spring. Maybe what we all need is some version of that old Sears Wish Book, a motorcycle "fix" to keep us sane until we can throw a leg over the saddle again.

At the big bookstores, there's no shortage of motorcycle magazines. Why not spend an hour in a comfy chair, pricey coffee in hand, choosing a few to take home?

IronWorks bills itself as "the journal for Harley enthusiasts" and contains a nice mix of bike and product reviews plus technical info (my husband is the features editor).

Appealing to both metric and European bike fans, Motorcycle Consumer News is one of the few magazines that doesn't accept advertising, so its product reviews may be the least biased.

If sport bikes are more your scene, check out Performance Bike, a big splashy rag from the U.K. It's irreverent and fun and very unlike its U.S. counterparts. (My husband subscribes, and the otherwise unflappable guy gets positively giddy each month when the mailman brings the new issue.) If you find you have a taste for the wackier British magazines, check out www.themagazineman.co.uk for lots of unusual titles that can be shipped right to your door.

Ah, Web sites. Whole days can be lost trolling motorcycle sites. I'm a big fan of www.womenridersnow.com. Editor Genevieve Schmitt has been a fixture in the women's motorcycling scene for years, and her site is informative and interesting; she and her staff review motorcycles and related products with the woman rider in mind. Ladies, don't miss it. I take a peek at www.motorcycledaily.com nearly every day.

The site has motorcycle-related press releases and is a good place to find reviews of nearly every new bike released.

If you haven't taken one of the state's Motorcycle Safety Program courses (and why the heck haven't you?) check out www.pamsp.com. The Basic Rider Course is a terrific way to learn to ride (and may save you a few bucks on your insurance) and the Experienced Rider Course is a blast -- like taking gym class on your bike. In addition to course info, the site is chock-full of useful links for Pennsylvania riders.

If you haven't yet, spend some time on www.ama-cycle.org, the American Motorcyclist Association's official site. Along with industry news and classifieds, there's a link to the AMA's Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum in Pickerington, Ohio.

Speaking of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, what better way to get your bike fix while the cold winds blow? It's a beautiful facility and a wonderful tribute to motorcycling in all its forms, with a wide range of exhibits. The museum is an easy day trip -- only a three-hour drive from Pittsburgh.

For directions and a list of current exhibits, check out www.motorcycle museum.org.

Undeniably, none of this will shorten the long winter's wait, but like that old catalog, it's all about keeping us sane until the wait is over.