motorbikeleathers

Posts Tagged ‘Riding’

Alvin Starkman M.A., LL.B.

 

My longtime passion for riding a motorcycle took a twenty year hiatus until taking up residency in Oaxaca.  I ignored the foreshadowing and warnings. While my tale pales compared to the epic journey of Ché Guevara popularized in the film Motorcycle Diaries, there is a tale to be told, with observations and advice for those with such suicidal ideations.

 

For Oaxacans, it’s part economic necessity and part climactic permissiveness, with street logjams and a parking crisis factored in, as well as, dare I opine, a somewhat different attitude towards life and living amongst those at and below a certain socio-economic level…fatalistic.   What’s striking is the paucity of helmeted riders, and prevalence of entire families (the record number of family members seen on one bike is currently five) who take to negotiating the jammed streets on a single motorbike  often mechanically unfit, each member including young children bare-headed and unsafely dressed (no gloves, leathers, jeans, etc.).  Enforcing the helmet law and mandatory education might help.  Educators must remember to teach that the helmet is to be worn on the head, not simply slung over an arm.   Additionally, owners of deliver services such as and by example, Chuchos Tortas y Mas, should watch their couriers leaving the premises to ensure helmets are worn and not carried. 

 

For my part, I’ve been accused of having yet another mid-life crisis at 55, having recently bought a 150 cc.  Honda “Bros”, off road moto for use on the streets, complementing our car and pick-up.  Perhaps each above-well-known reason applies to me, despite main a middle course existence.

 

I sold my Suzuki 550 in the mid 1980s when my wife became pregnant.  But now, in quasi-retirement, family grown, life insurance policies kept current, I was only minimally fazed when Canadian Consul Frances May warned that she’s lost three friends to motorcycle accidents.  And compadre Pancho was in three accidents within approximately 2 years.  He once took me on a trip with some of his motorcycle buddies through the mountains to the town of Sola de Vega.  It was the first time in 15 years that I’d been on a bike.  I forgot a cardinal rule:  never brake while negotiating a turn on gravel.    I recall regaining consciousness, covered in blood, with severe knee pain, in the back room of some pharmacy, to teary-eyed Pancho, shaking me with hands on my shoulders while screaming “¡compadre, compadre!”

 

But by adopting and adhering to a number of simple riding guidelines, some of which are admittedly hard to follow, I’ll hopefully stay out of the hospital and my 20-year-ancient daughter will never “benefit” from my being over-insured. My less-impetuous and more level-headed wife surprisingly enough enjoys riding with me despite serious reservations.

 

For those unattached and in their 20s and 30s, I’ll indicate which of the following rules I’ve set for myself you’ll likely want to break and how to play down the adverse implications of so doing:

 

1)      Don’t ride at night unless absolutely essential.  Alcohol-related and other driving deaths increase when road conditions are less than perfect.  Lighting and highway markings are often absent.

2)      Whether you know that it’s likely the weather will become inclement (i.e. during the rainy season) consider another means of transportation, or at minimum dress appropriately and check your tires.

3)      Try to follow the rules of the road to the extent you can discern them, and when in doubt fall back on the highway traffic laws with which you grew up.

4)      Try to resist the temptation to weave, as hard as it will be.  Once you’re in your fifties you’ve likely lost much of your neck range-of-motion, so whether you must weave, rely on your peripheral vision and mirrors.

5)      Always use full-face helmets, appropriate footwear and leathers, gloves and jacket at minimum.  It’s better to be hot and uncomfortable than require jaw surgery and extensive skin grafting.  Leather provides that first layer of defence and it gives…cotton, wool and polyester each will simply rip, along with your skin.

6)      Never permit an unhelmeted passenger to ride with you.

7)      Whether you’re a tourist and have an opportunity to rent a motorcycle, unless it’ll be used strictly for cross-country, or you have a fantastic deal of experience driving in third world congested cities and are certain of the condition of the bike, resist the temptation.  As my father often said, “don’t be an idiot.”  It’s not worth the risk.

8)      When buying, make it a new cycle, and keep it in top condition.

9)      Don’t buy a small scooter or anything under 125 – 150 cc.  You may need power to extricate yourself from danger caused by other drivers.  The most well loved bike in Oaxaca is the Honda 125, used by a plethora of businesses.  Whether you can afford a Japanese make, or better, go for it.  Many Oaxacan friends have cautioned against, for example, the Chinese models. My off-road Honda 150 was carefully selected, even though it’s smaller than those that I’d been accustomed to riding in my former life.  It’s an off-road model given the many topes and state of disrepair of the streets.  Motor size is 150 because it’s the smallest engine I feel comfortable gets my wife and I up the steep hill to our domestic, is light and has sufficient power for defensive maneuvers.  It’s small enough so that it helps me resist the temptation to do highway touring. 

10)  Reckon twice before opting for a larger bike that you may use on the carreteras.  There’s nothing like open highway touring, but the danger increases exponentially the higher the speed of vehicles.  By contrast, while living in Toronto I always felt safer riding on the highways than in cities…more control, drivers more vigilant and experienced, and simpler to avoid potential dangers.  By contrast, in Oaxaca the highways aren’t as excellent, many motorists drive under the influence, and vehicle mechanical condition is generally questionable, main to less control by drivers. Whether you are set on touring, make it at least a 550 cc. model, the minimum power with which I felt comfortable and safe on the open roads with a passenger.   

 

Apart from organized cycling groups that meet periodically for generally weekend off-road challenges, there is at least one traditional motorcycle club in Oaxaca, Los Caballeros Templarios.  These riders are the exception to most of what I’ve indicated.  The individuals, at least when touring external of the city, follow virtually all of the rules I’ve set out.  The group is comprised of mainly shopkeepers, tradesmen, restauranteurs, and professionals such as doctors and accountants, average age being 40 something.  Their bikes are kept in brilliant condition, they dress appropriately, total with leathers embossed with club and rider name and logo, and they host and attend national conferences as well as delight in frequent local get-togethers and regional excursions of one to several days.  The camaraderie is strong, warm and welcoming.  And thus with my small Honda 150, I continue to resist invitations to fulfill the initiation requirement and join…until the buy of a larger bike, and with that a divorce.

One of the not so many things in these times which are said to be common for all ages is the cowboy boots.  Whether you try to watch several movies, magazines, videos or even songs, these types of boots is the mark for a macho impression, and exudes girl empowerment for stylish women.  Whether you still have not rewarded yourself with a nice pair of boots, then you might want to have a moment thought on it.  But whether you already got a lovely and sturdy boots, go through the rest of this article and you might want to buy another pair for you.

One of the pleasant things of owning these boots is that they give you the final protection for your feet and become fashionable at the same time.  And there are heaps of high course materials used to make them and various styles that you can choose from.  Nowadays, your boots can be made out of leather, different animal skins and intricate designs of embroidery.  They are very versatile and can even be worn in many occasions.

Even women can delight in wearing them.  They can have the traditional cowboy boots, and those that have lovely ornaments on them. The excellent thing approximately these boots is they can perfectly match any outdoor occasion you like to do, may it be for riding, hiking and a lot more.  There are so many brands that you can choose from.  Dan Post Boots is one of the well known manufacturers of durable and trendy boots.  Hence, avid riders of Harley Davidson like them so much.  Apart from their stylish feature, they are made of excellent quality leather that will final for ages and survive on poor weathers.  No matter how dusty and muddy the trail you go through, these boots will still final long.  They are indeed a wise fashion investment.

Whether you find your boots too silly and ordinary, you can try to customize them by adding embroidery, metal accessories or even play with various animal skins.  Try to reinvent them in such a way that your boots will be distinct from the regular ones.  Some can even go as far as putting gems, pearls and other stones.  Although, they can be a bit pricey but they will surely be a one of a kind piece purposely designed for you.

These boots are not just for motorbike riders only.  Anyone who wants to be more adventurous when it comes to fashion can buy one for themselves.  You just have to pick a style that you can carry it even whether you only pair it with jeans and shirt.  But whether your purpose is for riding or any intense activity, then you will certainly have to get to know the anatomy of these boots to be able to pick the right one.  Try to go online since there are sites that provide full product info for all their items.  Bear in intellect that boots must perfectly fit your feet so as to serve their purpose.  You will just waste your money whether they will make you feel uncomfortable when you wear them in any event.

So what are you waiting for, go to your nearest cowboy store or start browsing the net and look for a nice and long lasting pair of boots that you can give to yourself.

The textiles vs leathers debate is all approximately tradeoffs. Choosing which fabric to use to cover your hide with and spend your pennies on depends on how much you value individual tradeoffs and ultimately, your intended use and riding conditions. Sounds simple enough, but deciding between textiles vs leathers has had fantastic rider minds in a muddle and increasingly so over the final couple of years as the quality and versatility of both materials has improved so much! Just type in “textiles vs leathers ” into google and you will find that 90% of the results are from forums with the answer ultimately resulting in the fact that it depends on your personal preferences. The problem is that this does not help those new to the biking world who have not had the time or experience to develop their own, well-guided prefences… and so the argument goes on.

But, it’s really honestly simple whether you use the BMI (Best Motorcycle Information) textiles vs leathers test. This test takes the four most differentiating attributes of the two materials into consideration – price, maintenance, consolation and protection. Each attribute is also assigned to either leathers or textiles, depending on which fabric has the greater advantage in terms of the attribute. After reading the brief summary on each, assign a score out of a hundred to each attribute, giving those attributes that are most vital to you higher scores, so that in the end the total score of your four attributes adds to 100. Then add up the score that you gave to the leather attributes and textile attributes, and the fabric with the highest score is your answer – and best of all it will be unique to your personal preferences.

Price – Textiles

Motorcycle textiles are cheaper to buy than leathers. It is also much harder to judge the quality of leathers and so you take the risk of paying a lot of money for a suit that does not have quality stitching and interpretation. (Just beware but that it is widely accepted that your textile suit will probably only survive one crash before you have to fork out for a new pair.)

Maintenance – Textiles

This one is simple – motorcycle textiles can be thrown in a commercial washer, while leathers will need to be sent to the cleaners.

Consolation – Textiles

Motorcycle textiles have an all weather capability: vents for when it is warm, liners for when it is cold and water resistence for rain. It breathes more easily than leather, and water slides off it like a ducks back.

Leather is also much heavier than textile.

Protection – Leather

Tests are conducted all the time to compare the abrasion resistence of motorcycle riding gear materials and leather always comes out on top as the most durable fabric. Furthermore, leather does not melt from friction, it will cushion your fall more than motorcycle textiles would and it offers the best protection against a road rash. The fact that leather also lasts through multiple crashes whilst textiles will probably only final through one, says a lot approximately the difference in protection and impact between the two materials.

The textiles vs leathers debate basically comes down to protection vs everything else. It must be said but, that even though leathers offer more protection, all motorcycle textiles have to abide by EU standards and so its not like they don’t offer you protection at all. Motorcycle leathers just offers better protection – that’s all.

Whether you are a commuter, then motorcycle textiles are probably the best bet. They are more comfortable and have more pockets for storage. Motorcycle leathers are designed for performace riding so you are not able to wear many layers underneath, and whether its hot, you’re going to reach sweating – not excellent for your next promotion or that honey that you are trying to impress!

Whether you are into extreme riding, then it is unquestionable that leathers are what you need!

My personal opinion when it comes to textiles vs leathers is that skin takes a lot longer to heal than discomfort – but then again I don’t commute to work everyday, I am no longer on a budget and I have seen enough to place my safety first – always!