Summer Woes coming.....

[Francois_Dumas]

I'm an ATGATT freak like most of us here...... BUT... I also sweat 'extensively'. Even just warming up with tennis, or sanding a window sill, will get me all wet !

 

I remember last year when Nina and I rode to Normandy and we had the 'luck' of having yet another untypical Dutch heat wave early on in the season. Frankly I don't know how I survived.

 

My BMW Tourance jacket (all-season) clung to my naked arms and my back was as wet as having taken a shower. VERY uncomfortable.

 

So, on some later rides I wore my jeans and a leather jacket.......

 

Dillemma's !!! What do YOU wear when temps go over 25 C (which to us 'Northerners' is HOT ).

 

Francois

[Whip]

Joe Rocket Reactor.....With the liner and Widder vest I ware it in the winter too...it's a good mix of leather and mesh...

 

http://www.kneedraggers.com/details/Joe_Rocket_2006_Reactor_2.0_Jacket--521-JR-1.html

 

 

 

Philby has some cool vest gear....sounds real good too.

 

Whip

[Boffin]

I'm an ATGATT freak like most of us here...... BUT... I also sweat 'extensively'. Even running just warming up with tennis, or sanding a window sill, will get me all wet !

 

I remember last year when Nina and I rode to Normandy and we had the 'luck' of having yet another untypical Dutch heat wave early on in the season. Frankly I don't know how I survived.

 

My BMW Tourance jacket (all-season) clung to my naked arms and my back was as wet as having taken a shower. VERY uncomfortable.

 

So, on some later rides I wore my jeans and a leather jacket.......

 

Dillemma's !!! What do YOU wear when temps go over 25 C (which to us 'Northerners' is HOT ).

 

Francois

 

I wear either a sports shirt - the kind made from synthetic fibre with a mesh construction - my favourite is the 'Rossi' shirt seen in my end-2-end report, or a Paramo 'directional material' long-sleved shirt under my jacket. Both of these carry the sweat away from your skin before evapourating it off, that way you stay dry and cool(ish).

 

The paramo gear is available from hill-walking/climbing shops (do they have those in Holland?) and is excellent if a little expensive. They also do long-john type underwear which oddly will help keep you cooler.

Take a look at their wicking clothing.

No affiliation etc.

 

I have BMW 3-Phase gear for the hottest months - it is niether wind nor water-proof, but that aids cooling and the jacket is vented. I also have ankle-length riding boots which help a bit.

 

Andy

[Francois_Dumas]

Whip, I looked at that equipment... but I think it would look silly on my ... ummm..... rather extensive upper body ...

<grin>

 

Thanks Andy, good idea about a 'shirt'... I have (of course!) my hill walking gear but never thought of wearing it under my Tourance.

 

I still think I'll need to invest in some protective jacket with more ventilation though...... 3-Phase you say !? Could be too expensive for a budding entrepreneur..... but I know the quality will be excellent.

 

Thanks for your replies !

 

[Turbodog]

Know what you mean about summer woes Francois. Here in south Louisiana, summer is not a good time for riding. Temps in the upper 90's and 100% humidity combined with random instant thunderstorms. Mesh gear is the only way you can go if you want any gear at all. While you're moving you get some cooling effect but the heat and humidity is so high that even then it's limited. Give me winter in the (American) south for good riding weather! Cool temps! Dry air! Heaven!

[Lawman]

I use this. Take out all the really hard stuff..I find it cooler than shirt only..The mesh keeps the sun off my skin and the air flowing through the mesh is cool when sweating....Probably not much protection but better than nothing...

 

 

http://www.kneedraggers.com/details/Joe_Rocket_2006_Phoenix_4.0_Textile_Jacket--521-JR-10.html

 

And the pants work better than the jacket!

[Miriam]

Same solution as Boffin, sports shirts. Sod looks! Besides they come in all shapes and sizes so you should be able to find one at Perry Sport or Decathlon that looks good on you. The one thing that makes high temperatures uncomfortable is wearing anything cotton under your jacket!

[RichEdwards]

Francois,

Come visit us in Florida in July. We'll give you a hot-weather gear fashion show.

[Francois_Dumas]

 

That's what my niece keeps saying.... but I still kinda like our northern 'bad weather'...

[TMH]

I've just completed the annual circuit of riding gear, going from textile jacket with liner, then without liner, and now to my mesh jacket. Engineered clothing is the best solution for hot conditions. My personal favorites are a Patagonia Capilene undershirt (see here, on a US site, for reference: http://www.backcountry.com/store/PAT0191...tml?id=d7UFI3kh ) and a Teknic mesh jacket. While mesh jackets in general don't provide the same level of protection, the one I have at least has ballistic nylon down the full length of the sleeves, as well as elbow, shoulder and back CE armor. The Capilene shirt allows wicking of sweat to its outer surface, and the mesh jacket allow enough airflow for evaporation. I've found it to be pretty effective.

 

One additional level you could try would be to use a cooling vest: The type that you soak in water, wring out (mostly), and then wear under your mesh jacket. Here is one example from another US web store: http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/item.aspx?style=15317&department=122&Division=1

 

I wear one of these when it is going to be really hot, and find that it is effective (at least for a time, until it drys out). Maybe you have to stop more often (to re-wet the vest), but they do lead to a more comfortable ride.

 

Good luck,

Tom

[WeirdHarold]

Dillemma's !!! What do YOU wear when temps go over 25 C (which to us 'Northerners' is HOT ).

 

I sweat.

 

I live in Houston, Texas, where both the humidity and temperature are high. The average high temperature in Houston for the month of May is 30 deg C. The average high in July and August is 34 deg C, with the record being over 40 deg C. (See chart.) The average humidity varies between a daily high of about 95% and a daily low of 50%. I used to live in The Hague, and I don't believe that it ever got that hot during the 3 years I was there.

 

I don't own a car, so my only transportation is my RT. I typically put do 25,000 km per year, most of it commuting locally in the Houston area. This means that I spend a fair amount of time at low speeds in traffic.

 

In addition to the usual gloves, boots, and helmet, I ALWAYS wear my Darien HiVis jacket and black pants over normal street clothes. Even if it's just a five minute trip to the grocery store. (The clerks are used to seeing me wander around their store in my gear, and my side cases can hold several bags of groceries. The big packages of toilet paper are bungied on the rear seat.)

 

Yes, it's hot. But I'd rather sweat than bleed. And I'd rather sweat than spend $20,000 on a car for those few days when it's hotter than I'd like. And I certainly don't want to have to find the extra garage space for a car that I'd use only rarely.

 

I find that it helps to wear gloves with no gauntlets, so that my wrists are exposed to the air flow. (Apparently the wrist has major blood vessels close to the surface, which makes the wrist a good place to put perfume, and also a good place to cut if you want to commit suicide. ) Currently, I wear the Alpinestar SPS gloves.

 

However, my Darien gear is getting a bit tattered, so I'm considering buying a second set of gear to wear while I send my Darien back to Aerostich for refurbishing. I'm considering the Ultra Trek One Piece Air Mesh Kevlar Suit from Cycleport, but I haven't made up my mind yet.

 

Don

[Francois_Dumas]

At least I've got the gloves right.. I only HAVE short summer gloves (the winter ones I bought don't fit as well as I'd like them to.. bad buy).

 

I think 'mesh' jacket is the magic word I hear from most of you......

 

Oh, and no, The Hague would not be so hot.... until a few years ago. we've had freak weather in Holland as much as anywhere else recently.....

[GelStra]

Cortech Air jacket and pants. In extreme heat, a Cool Vest under it.

[AZBaldur]

What do YOU wear when temps go over 25 C?

FirstGear Mesh-Tex II jacket and pants, plus BMW AirFlow 2 gloves. Works wonders in the Arizona summer heat.

[Chris K]

Coolmax shirt under my Darien jacket with vents wide open. Coolmax boxers under Cycleport Airmesh Kevlar pants. Best compromise I've found for ATGATT here in Hotlanta

[johnlt]

Francios, I recommend the BMW "Venting Machine" I believe it is the best hot-weather outfit out there plus it has great protection. Wear some kind of coolmax wicking shirt under it and you're set. Kind of pricey, but you get what you pay for.

[DBrochu]

I wear a wicking base layer, either the summer BMW underwear or any sports undershirt that wickes away mosture, and the BMW venting machine suit.

 

When it's hot,it's hot. But I have worn this combo up to 100 degrees and it was tolarable while moving. When I stop I get the jacket off right way and stip to my walking shorts and flip flops for walking around. I keep a pair in the bikes side bags.

 

Below 80 degrees and the suit is actually a little cool. It was a great investment that has increase my comfort zone considerably.

 

I'm going to have to get different boots though because my feet swelter in the Contour boots.

[Francois_Dumas]

Venting Machine, wicking, CoolMax, FirstGear... wow.. I can make a whole study of this !!!

 

Sounds like I also need to make a stuusy on how to make some money to get me some of this stuff..... seems pretty pricey all of it

 

Anyone using Fjallraven clothing??

[gtfodski]

Just remember "cotton is rotton" it absorbes moisture,you need to transfer that moisture away from your skin

[TracerBullet]

I have the motoport air mesh kevlar for the bulk of my simmer riding with shorts and t-shirt underneath

[Dolph]

Mesh gear and an evaporative cooling vest. Here in Texas it gets HOT. Frequently over 37 C. With the cool vest and the mesh gear it is tolerable. Have to soak the vest with more water every hour or two.

[pipenslippers]

Francois,

I live in the UK but ride in Southern Europe a fair bit. My solution is mesh jacket & trousers with short gloves for heat and waterproof gauntlets, heated vest and thin waterproofs over the top for the UK part of the trip. BMW make good stuff, As do Airtech and Aerostitch. ATGATT. Cool.

[Francois_Dumas]

Thanks all for your replies.. learned a thing or two here again !!!