How much protection do you use?

[Dr. Freak]

Originally Posted by monkeyninja

It's settled. I'm buying the best protection I can possibly afford. I am not taking any chances whatsoever. My life is too precious.

Agreed. Just take the idea away that all cars are trying to kill you, whether the driver wants to or not. Wearing proper gear with that ideology will hopefully keep you on the road on two wheels for many years to come!

[Rex1585]

Originally Posted by Dr. Freak

Agreed. Just take the idea away that all cars are trying to kill you, whether the driver wants to or not. Wearing proper gear with that ideology will hopefully keep you on the road on two wheels for many years to come!

Another point to add to this.


Just because the person is making eye contact with you, doesn't mean they are looking at you or see you. All cars are evil. All drivers are evil. Keep this thought and you WILL enjoy many miles of happy and hopefully safe riding.



Also, birds are not fun when they dive bomb you...

[Kostik]

Originally Posted by caferacermike

While many jackets and such do provide CE armor, it does not good if the stitching tears away as soon as it hits the pavement.

I wear a mesh-and-textile jacket most of the time with elbow and shoulder padding, and a back protector in the back pocket (Dainese Shotgun and Air-Tex jackets, Wave G2 back protector).

I am concerned about how much the armor will move around if I hit the pavement. The back protector in particular is held in a thin nylon pocket that cannot possibly hold together when stressed.

Is anyone recommending one of those neck-to-tailbone back protectors that strap around your waist with big stretchy-velcro straps? Or chest protection? I have not gone as far as that.

I live in hot, humid Bangkok and I need to have some airflow.

[Rex1585]

Originally Posted by Kostik

I wear a mesh-and-textile jacket most of the time with elbow and shoulder padding, and a back protector in the back pocket (Dainese Shotgun and Air-Tex jackets, Wave G2 back protector).

I am concerned about how much the armor will move around if I hit the pavement. The back protector in particular is held in a thin nylon pocket that cannot possibly hold together when stressed.

Is anyone recommending one of those neck-to-tailbone back protectors that strap around your waist with big stretchy-velcro straps? Or chest protection? I have not gone as far as that.

I live in hot, humid Bangkok and I need to have some airflow.

I took a fall on friday avoiding a deer, and my jacket has no signs of tears anywhere (50mph fall and little drop in speed before I fell). I am wearing a Joe Rocket Blaster 4.0 jacket. My jacket was slightly over sized (I am a 40 and it is a 42). It moved around a little bit, but with both shoulders (individually) and back making contact with the ground, none of my upper extremeties had any bruising or damage at all. (right hip and both knees are a different story with minor bruising and scrapes that my jeans didn't protect me well enough) When looking over the jacket the padding was in exactly the right areas.


Personally, I wouldn't be to worried about the gear moving around to much as long as it is sized/worn properly and that it is of decent build.

If you would like, I can snap some photos of the gear

[AZ-Monster]

Originally Posted by Kostik

I wear a mesh-and-textile jacket most of the time with elbow and shoulder padding, and a back protector in the back pocket (Dainese Shotgun and Air-Tex jackets, Wave G2 back protector).

I am concerned about how much the armor will move around if I hit the pavement. The back protector in particular is held in a thin nylon pocket that cannot possibly hold together when stressed.

Is anyone recommending one of those neck-to-tailbone back protectors that strap around your waist with big stretchy-velcro straps? Or chest protection? I have not gone as far as that.

I live in hot, humid Bangkok and I need to have some airflow.

I hear you on the air flow. I live in Arizona and it is way hot even in the mornings of the summer. A jacket is all I can handle.

[Boydie]

Originally Posted by Kostik

I wear a mesh-and-textile jacket most of the time with elbow and shoulder padding, and a back protector in the back pocket (Dainese Shotgun and Air-Tex jackets, Wave G2 back protector).

I am concerned about how much the armor will move around if I hit the pavement. The back protector in particular is held in a thin nylon pocket that cannot possibly hold together when stressed.

Is anyone recommending one of those neck-to-tailbone back protectors that strap around your waist with big stretchy-velcro straps? Or chest protection? I have not gone as far as that.

I live in hot, humid Bangkok and I need to have some airflow.

I just got one of these: http://www.bikersgearaustralia.com/p...6f91d517600e0b

Back, chest, shoulders, elbows and a kidney belt as well. Good hard protection that is far and away better than the thin stuff that comes with most jackets. Excellent quality, but make sure you really tighten the bolts on the shoulder straps.

Surprisingly easy to get on and off - took about 10 minutes to adjust all the straps.

Perfect for touring. Had several days hard riding in it last weekend that included a 2 x 4 hour highway trips and did not notice any discomfort.

Plus, you feel like a Roman centurian when you put it on.

Of course, you have to remove the armour in your jacket.

As it is mid-winter here, I can't say much about how it will go in the summer. It certainly was no warmer than jacket armour. My suspicion is that it would be comparable to existing armour in the jacket. But, hey, riding in the tropics in the summer is always going to be hot work.

I combine the armour with a Collins Manx style full leather jacket (mesh/textile in summer), 5 racing gloves, Rossi boots, Shark helmet and (when on long rides) leather racing pants with hip, knee and shin protection.

[emperormoto]

As the old guys say, "Dress for the slide, not the ride." Spine protector, boots, gloves, Arai helmet. Aerostich suit on the street, leather suit on the track. Second to the helmet gloves are the most important thing.

[beezwiz]

Scorpion Jacket -elbow, shoulder, and back armour - Bell Helmet - Vanson Gloves and Kevlar jeans.

[tex-mex]

Shoei X12
Gargoyle sunglasses
Held Gloves

Everyday Riding
- Tourmaster Jacket/Pants
- Sidi Adventure Gore Boots

Sport Riding
- Vanson Jacket/Pants with full MotoGP Armor
- Sidi Vertigo Boots

The Tourmaster gear is very comfortable and fairly water resistant. It's adequately warm during the winter. The pants fit over my jeans and are easy to put on and take off. The jacket has plenty of pockets. The two main pockets are easy to access with my gloves on. The fit on the Tourmaster gear is not as snug as I would like it to be compared to my Vanson gear. The fit on the Vanson gear is excellent. The armor stays in place. My Vanson kit is meant for summer riding, I will freeze my ass off when it's cold, but I'm very protected.

[Bully]

Leather jacket with shoulder, elbow and back armor; armored gloves; icon leg armor; puma street boots (all perf in the South)

Shoei RF-1100 helmet