Spring 2013 Gear Preview + Importance of Riding Gear

You may have a classy new motorcycle, but if you’re riding in crappy riding gear (or no gear!), you look like an idiot (or worse, a squid!).  I’m sorry, but that’s the truth!  Good riding gear is a crucial accessory to your bike.  Wearing gear shouldn’t be a chore to put on, but it is if your stuff doesn’t fit well or cramps your style.

Good riding gear actually enhances the riding experience by keeping you more comfortable than you would otherwise be without it.  These days, products have liner systems to specifically address a broad range of changing weather conditions from extreme heat to freezing cold. I think that maybe some of you just haven’t experienced quality gear yet. Once you do, you will realize it is even more important than the bike because it affects what you can do on it, what conditions you can comfortably and safely ride in.

Do we even need to mention the safety benefits here?  Nobody wears full protection all the time, but you NEED to be wearing as much as you can in a given situation. This means helmet, gloves, mesh jacket and riding shoes in most inner-city situations. If you are going out on a ride outside of the city, you should shoot for helmet, jacket, gloves, boots and pants.  The street is the most dangerous place to ride (as compared to the track, because of so many uncontrollable variables like moms on cell-phones in SUVs turning in front of you). You need to be acutely aware of what parts of your body you are leaving vulnerable.

The bottom line is that whether it comes to style or protection, pairing inadequate gear, or nothing, with your Triumph or Ducati is simply UNACCEPTABLE.  And if the pavement doesn’t stop you, then the fashion police will.  In this article I’m now going to present to you some of my favorite pieces of new 2013 REV’IT gear that I ordered for YOU for the coming spring.

Galactic Leather Jacket

We have been selling REV’IT’s Ignition 2. This builds upon the success of that jacket and takes it in a more sporty direction, at the same price point of $499.  Here, you have full leather in all the impact areas with a mesh chest and stretch arms with a race-style cuff. The liner is a waterproof/windproof hydratex liner with no thermal warmer.  And, perhaps best of all it comes in white to keep you cool in the summer heat!  I love the simplicity of this jacket as compared to the Ignition 2, especially in the cuffs and liner system. It’s offering excellent hot weather performance in a safe, sporty package, perfect for your Monster, Superbike, Street Triple or Daytona.

Levante Textile Jacket

Here is the answer for all of you everyday riders, commuters and tourers who want a highly perforated jacket with more touring functionality. This jacket has an extremely breatheable outer shell with tons of mesh, but also includes a waterproof/windproof hydratex liner and a thermal liner. The cut is 5/8, which will go down a little further than the typical waistline cut. At $299, this is a hell of a lot of functionality in a jacket that was practically designed for the deep south climate.

Stellar Leather Jacket

When the weather gets mild enough that we can wear our leathers, this is the jacket to pair with your Ducati. It’s full protection with dual-comp sliders in the shoulders and elbows, and a sport cut. The look is sporty but not aggressive, which is perfect. All this in a jacket that’s $629, which easily compares with Dainese product in the $800 range. It can also be paired with the Tarmac pants during track days to make an top level two-piece suit for under $1100. This is nice because you are getting functionality of this jacket on the track and on the street, and saved yourself the cost of a track suit.

Chevron Summer Gloves

A refined, sporty perforated leather glove for $109. This is the best bet to keep your hands cool and protected on a sportbike next summer.

Stellar Summer Gloves

This is going to be the match to the Stellar jacket. It’s a sporty, highly protective, track inspired full leather glove with less than a full gauntlet, that can also do track duty on the weekends. It has the dual-comp hard slider found on their top of the line MotoGP gloves, but this one will only set you back $189. Minimum perforation on this glove, so it will fit in when you need the best protection or when weather turns more agreeable in spring/fall.

Hunter Track Suit

We will have this new race suit available for order, and can size any customer. This suit fits right in between the basic (yet very adequate) Bullit suit ($999) and the MotoGP inspired Stingray suit ($1499). It’s giving you the best of combination of comfort, cost and protection, at $1299. Basically, we aren’t competition racers and this suit is made for the real world, for the weekend warrior doing track days who wants something with the latest safety features without going overboard.