In the hottest dog days of summer, do you suit up with all the gear (leathers et al) or do you go for a ride in your t-shirt and shorts/jeans?
I don’t mean a long trip, just a quick run to the video store or simply a little tour around the neighbourhood to enjoy the day and see what’s going on in the hood.
Leather in a Georgia summer? Are you insane? You’d die of heat stroke before you left your driveway. Jeans (not shorts - I want something between me and all the little rocks that get thrown up), a T-shirt, sturdy boots and a helmet. Club members usually wear a leather vest with their colors during the summer.
Yeah, even in Canada, the summer heat make full attire prohibitively hot. Even the balistic nylon type stuff with all the ventilation.
Any of the bikers I’ve ever known (and I’ve known a lot) say NEVER in sneakers or sandals, and NEVER in shorts. I saw some people wearing full racing style suits on the hottest day of the year a couple weeks back. They looked miserable, but protected.
Saw a guy today on a brand new custom harley in a tank top, shorts and
FLIP-FLOPS!
I just shook my head and thought “You’ve obviously never had road rash. I hope you first taste of it is not too extreme because of your ignorance”.
At the least, jeans, thick soled shoes (preferably boots) and a t-shirt.
I read once “Would you go sky diving in a wet suit with an airtank and flippers? Play tennis in snow ski’s? Don’t drive a motorcycle without the proper equipment and attire.”
All good points I think.
I went down the 110 freeway today and saw a kid on a Ninja wearing shorts. What a fool. A little discomfort is better than road rash, IMO. Even jeans is better than nothing.
Yeah, shorts are a big no-no for me as well. But I see plenty of bikers in t’s and without gloves. The though of going down without gloves let alone a jacket… gah!!! Gives me the chills.
When I rode, I went out with the following, as a minimum. Regardless of the temps outside.
Jeans
Hard shoes, preferably boots that cover the ankle.
Long sleeve shirt. Jacket is better, even left unzipped.
HELMET!!! (Even for a test ride around the neighborhood, even though in NH it’s legal without one.)
Leather gloves. (I fell, once, my gloves got scuffed, and saved my soft IT worker hands)
The same rules applied in Las Vegas in April 2004, even though it was over 100F the day we rode. The wife followed the same rules.
If it’s too hot to wear any of the above, I’m not getting on the bike, I have AC in the car.
-Butler
No matter how short the ride, we always wear jeans, boots and gloves – also helmets, because we’ve always lived in states with helmet laws. And good eyeprotection – I have a hard time finding wraparound sunglasses that I find comfortable, so I’m currently using Navy-issue safety glasses that a friend’s husband got me off his ship. My husband swears by RayBan wraparounds. You’ll want a pair of clear safety glasses, too – for those short rides that turn into long ones. When it’s really hot, though, we wear t-shirts or tank tops and skip the jackets.
When it comes to riding gear, we actually have a lot. We each have full leathers (chaps and jackets), and three pairs of gloves (lightweight, mediumweight, and heavy). Personally I hate the chaps (I think they look stupid), but they are very nice when it’s cold out. We also have lightweight windbreakers, which are handy for spring and fall riding, and good rainsuits, which are an absolute must. I also like to keep a loose denim shirt on hand – very good for when it’s hot enough for sunburn, but too hot to wear a jacket. Personally I have an aversion to to much ‘branding’ on riding gear – I think it looks stupid to see someone riding around with HD or BMW stamped on everything they are wearing including the hair-scrunchy and g-string. Our windbreakers and rainsuits are HD, because we bought them at a local discount run for 60%+ off. I never pay full price for HD clothing, and I can’t imagine other brands are any cheaper. My boots are 25 year old steel-toed hiking boots and I wouldn’t trade them for anything – they are broken in just right. My husband wears Navy boots he got when he was Supply Officer for the SEAL training command in Coronado.
It depends.
Most of my riding is to and from work, about 15 miles, all on the freeway. I wear my leather jacket, helmet, and boots gloves, every time, no exceptions.
On the weekends I often head out and hit the back country roads at a fairly high rate of speed. In these cases its ALL of the gear. Full leathers from top to bottom, helmet, gloves boots. This is regardless of weather. Full leathers in hot weather is not that bad actually, if the humidity isn’t insane. You just have to keep moving!
On the track, at insane speeds, I add a spine protector to the above.
There are some occasions where its very hot and my distances are very short. In those cases I MIGHT leave the jacket behind. In no instance will I ever not wear a helmet and gloves. Road rash to my arms, legs or torso would suck, but it still sucks a hell of a lot less than damaged hands and brain injury.
Full face helmet and gloves 100% of the time.
I always wear a jacket, which one depends on where I’m going with who. With the guys tearing around all day, it’s the leather with armor in the hips/elbows/shoulders. To work or the store it’s the aerostitch Darien jacket. It’s a waterproof nylon jacket worth every penny. It too has armor in the right places, and wonderful vents that I can wear it when it’s 90° out. When it’s cold it has a zip in electric fleece liner. I’ve been out in 35° cold and happy.
I see the shorts, tee shirts and $400 helmets and don’t know weather to laugh or cry.
My husband refers to that attire (shorts and t-shirts) as “California leathers.” We see so many people around here riding like that. Very foolish, IMO.
We never go out without being fully suited – leather pants and jacket, back protection, gloves, riding boots and full-face helmets. I’d rather be hot than dead.
If it’s too hot for full gear, it’s too hot to ride.
The only time I swing a leg over a bike without full gear is loading/unloading from the trailer. And this is in Houston.
Full gear, all the time.
On the sportbike…armored leather, kneepucks, boots, armored ballistic nylon jacket, Kevlar gloves, full-face helmet.
On the cruiser…full black-leather biker regalia, full-face helmet.
Dress for the crash, not for the ride…
I wear a First Gear Mesh-Tex jacket over a henley shirt over a t-shirt most of the time. I may throw on a light fleece vest in if it’s a little cooler or the mesh-tex over a t-shirt if it’s absolutely roasting, but always the mesh-tex. Jeans, hiking boots, gloves, helmet complete the ensemble.
When I waterskiied in the winter (Wait… I promise this is relevant) I used a system in my boat that pumped warm water into my wetsuit. Has anyone ever produced a system for bikes that could pump cold air into your biking gear? Seems like a good idea. You could ride with all the protective gear and still be comfortable.
Just curious.
FTR: I don’t ride; And know next to nothing about motorcycles.