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Springtime Riding Gear

Fri, 06 Mar 2009

For a motorcyclist, waiting for spring is as tedious and frustrating as watching paint dry. With all the anticipation of a kid waiting for Christmas in July, I have grown bored of the usual distractions that normally keep my attention away from the fact that I am not able to ride. Day dreaming of sunny days and future adventures for months now, I am determined to hop in the saddle the first time the roads are clear. Chilly temperatures or not I will be out there.

Since my current riding gear was purchased in the summer months, my priorities for riding attire were equal parts styling, protection and ventilation. While sitting in stop and go traffic in the summer in full gear can be sweltering, that is a long way off. I figured it was time to get some inclement weather riding gear.

Weather in March through May can be volatile from one hour to the next, so even if you set out under sunny skies and favorable temperatures, conditions can turn on you faster than when you called your wife the wrong name in the bedroom. I would need gear that would keep me warm and dry, without making me look like Bib, the Michelin man.

I figured nobody knows more about biking in bad weather than the Brits, so I contacted British Motorcycle Gear for some new riding attire. After surveying their site, I decided to go for the Belstaff Mercury jacket, British Motorcycle Gear Pioneer pants and Rapido gloves. The texture and quality of the materials used are top notch, while the designs prove that they were constructed by people who ride. Little things like subtle reflective patterns and zipper flaps that will keep the wind and rain out mean that I’ll be able to ride further, safer and longer. Both rugged and good looking, the jacket, pants and gloves are also free of ostentatious branding and logos but are however filled with protective padding in the unfortunate occurrence of a tumble. Now I have everything I need to get out on the road at the first sight of spring….except for the cooperation of Mother Nature.


By Dustin Woods