It’s Summer here on the east coast of Australia. That means we are facing the mass of riders heading out on the roads wearing minimal clothing. Thongs on their feet, shorts, T shirt and helmet is de rigeur. No you know my insistence of All The Gear, All The Time so I thought I’d go through what I mean by that just so you’ll know. Bear in mind that, on both occasions that I had a major accident, the doctors told me that I would not have survived if I hadn’t been wearing all my protective gear. So, top to toe, here’s the list.
Quality helmet. Now, let me add a caveat here, if your helmet is approved, it will be OK. Having said that, you should always spend as much money as you can afford to spend on a helmet because there are factors of fit, comfort and features that come into play here. Stick to the known brands and don’t let your mates tell you what you should buy because they will always have different-shaped heads than you have and, just because their helmet fits them doesn’t mean it’s going to fit you.
Helmet shopping should be done in person. Yes, you can buy a helmet online but, for reasons that are obvious, you can’t try one ON and that is the most important factor. There is a general rule of helmets that you either have an ARAI head or you have a Shoei head (try them on and you’ll know what I mean). Of course, now that there are so many more brands, the need to try before you buy is even more imperative.
And, please, don’t go to your local shops, try on lots of helmets and then buy the one that suits you best online. There is a degree of dishonesty here.
Make sure your helmet has a Pinlock (fog-free) visor and try to get it thrown in as part of the deal. Believe me, the first time that yiur visor fogs up when you’re out on the highway you will wish that you had done so.
Back protector.
Your head (helmet) and your spine are your two most critical body parts so they need to be looked-after. Now I know that all jackets have a neoprene back protector built into the lining but it’s more cosmetic than functional. Buy a proper one as above (they are not that expensive) and wear it every time you ride. Again, my doctors’ comments are relevant.
Quality jacket.
There is a plethora of different styles and functions of jackets. I usually have three, a summer jacket that is vented and comes with a water-resistant lining. A middle season one that is a more “beefy” version of the above and a winter weight jacket whose design and features are obvious. Most textile jackets are more than suitable. Yes, you can wear a leather jacket but often the look is more suitable than the function.
Try to buy one of each and try to ensure that each one has internal pockets for crash-resistant armour in the shoulders and the elbows. Remember that, it doesn’t matter how good it is, a jacket will usually only protect you from abrasion injuries but not impact injuries. Buy the most expensive jacket you can afford and look for vents, removable lining and pockets.
Gloves.
The importance of gloves cannot be stressed enough. As humans, we put out our hands to protect us when we fall and the consequence of crashing when the hands are not protected is too obvious. Just think about all the things you do every day, both simple and complex, important and trivial, with your hands. Now, imagine how you will be inconvenienced if you can’t do them because of hand injuries.
As with jackets, I keep three different types, summer, middle season and winter. It’s easy to determine the uses of each and why it is necessary to have a selection. Most modern gloves are fitted with carbon fibre coverings to the knuckles and fingers and you should look at a glove that has a tw0-part fastening at the wrist. If you wonder why this is necessary, remember the scene from “On Any Sunday” where the rider crashes at the end of the banking at Daytona and his gloves comes off his hand and flies up in the air. Yuck.
Pants
Again, there is a plethora of choices but, at least choose kevlar-lined jeans with inbuilt pockets for hip protectors and knee protectors (as seen in this picture.) You can also buy leather jeans with similar features but they can be a bit hot in Australia’s summer. And, no, a “normal” pair of jeans will NOT protect you in an accident.
Some riders prefer two-part leather suits and they have a lot of the advantages of the above but can have a lot of dis-advantages also. Horses for courses, as usual.
Boots
As with all the other items of protective gear, the choices are endless. I usually stick to an all-purpose pair and have a waterproof pair tucked away for winter riding. Here is another case (like the rest of them) where you MUST try before you buy. Depending on the sort of riding you do, you can buy boots that are specialised for one style, so look around and buy the most expensive and comfortable pairs of them you can afford.
Now the matter of cost/benefit has a risen often here and I have stressed that you should try to buy the best value that you can. However, as a rider whose buying habits have been constrained by a limited budget, I can tell you that you DON’T have to spend a fortune to get good protection.
I am not going to go into other non-safety-related items like balaclavas, ear plugs (though they probably ARE) and others like them, you can figure that out for yourself. But, someone is going to ask the following,
“SURELY YOU’RE NOT GOING TO TELL ME THAT YOU WORE ALL OF THOSE THINGS EVERY TIME YOU WENT OUT TO RIDE?”
My answer is, YES, I did, and that’s the reason why I am here.
Till next time.
