Protective Gear/Apparel Typical Ride
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First Gear riding pants with undies and/or shorts and/or pants all depending upon the heat & humidity; t-shirt or tank top; First Gear mesh jacket with very light armor. Sometimes a Power Trip or HD mesh jacket, but neither of those have any armor whatsoever. The liner for the jacket is always in the saddlebag. FF Helmet. Gloves.
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115 Posts
I am going to buy this
http://www.dragginjeans.com./category.aspx?categoryID=27
http://www.dragginjeans.net/productTesting/index.htm
http://www.dragginjeans.com./category.aspx?categoryID=27
http://www.dragginjeans.net/productTesting/index.htm
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13,499 Posts
Might as well fess up here, and commend protective gear.
Dumped my V-Rod on the way home last light, 1/4 mile from my house.
two 90 degree blind corners, I've met cars head on here lately, they don't have reaction time to stop after they've seen me. So looking around the corner had all my attention. I noticed about 3 rocks the size of pecans, I worry about sand or gravel, but I didn't see those few rocks as a threat, turned into the 90 degree left corner at walking speed, I apparently had 2 rocks act like ball bearings, and the 600 lb bike was slammed on the ground SO FAST I never felt it start or in progress, just WHAM, I'm face down in the road with my left leg twisted around backwards and caught under the bike.
Check out the left foot peg, folded back too far to get past the engine case w/o removing the frame member. Check out the top of the steel toed boot, and figure how far twisted left and under the left foot had to be to grind the leather curve off the toe, almost down to the metal.
I had on heavy gloves, leather chaps, leather jacket, full coverage helmet, heavy boots. I have no scratches or scuffs on my body at all. No engine or drivetrain components are scuffed or scratched, no tank, body, fender or seat damage or even a scratch. Grip, signal, windshield, and bent frame section.
Broke my left ankle and right hand, thumb bone way back high almost on my wrist.
It really SUCKS, seems crutches are almost useless if you can't use your hand for a load bearing member.
Can't get in to the orthopedist till Weds to get a cast put on, got a a lot of ouches coming till then.
Dumped my V-Rod on the way home last light, 1/4 mile from my house.
two 90 degree blind corners, I've met cars head on here lately, they don't have reaction time to stop after they've seen me. So looking around the corner had all my attention. I noticed about 3 rocks the size of pecans, I worry about sand or gravel, but I didn't see those few rocks as a threat, turned into the 90 degree left corner at walking speed, I apparently had 2 rocks act like ball bearings, and the 600 lb bike was slammed on the ground SO FAST I never felt it start or in progress, just WHAM, I'm face down in the road with my left leg twisted around backwards and caught under the bike.
Check out the left foot peg, folded back too far to get past the engine case w/o removing the frame member. Check out the top of the steel toed boot, and figure how far twisted left and under the left foot had to be to grind the leather curve off the toe, almost down to the metal.
I had on heavy gloves, leather chaps, leather jacket, full coverage helmet, heavy boots. I have no scratches or scuffs on my body at all. No engine or drivetrain components are scuffed or scratched, no tank, body, fender or seat damage or even a scratch. Grip, signal, windshield, and bent frame section.
Broke my left ankle and right hand, thumb bone way back high almost on my wrist.
It really SUCKS, seems crutches are almost useless if you can't use your hand for a load bearing member.
Can't get in to the orthopedist till Weds to get a cast put on, got a a lot of ouches coming till then.
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Nathang!!!! I am so sorry for your troubles, but am grateful to God that you are alive and able to post to tell us your story. Please heal well and fast!
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4,996 Posts
Nathan! Thanks for sharing, and hopes/prayers for a quick recovery. A very good thing you were protected. Could have been worse yes? As you note, how fast it all happened... the "WHAM, I'm face down in the road" is a reason I've gone full face helmet after years of half helmet. Keep us posted. It will be OK and you'll be fine soon.
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Ceylon... Have had two pair of Draggin Jeans for ten years now and they're still holding up. Only advice I can give is beware wearing them on hot days. That kevlar in the seat area is like sitting on a frying pan!
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115 Posts
Yes and sweaty
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1,930 Posts
i will say i usually wear full face( sometimes with sun glasses under)...ear plugs.. gloves.. jacket with armour.. above the ankel boots .. i do have bohn under armour for my bottom half but will confess to wearing it only a handful of times because i havent made it habit yet.. i get all the gear on and then remember and i am too lazy to take it all off to put on the understuff.. i do wear it on long trips where i am riding the fastest though..
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Oh HELL yes. In fact something I can't shake the impression of, is how hard the weight of the bike ground that steel-toed boot into the asphalt, I know there are people here who don't ride in boots, I can't even imagine what the effect on my foot would have been if I'd been wearing tennis shoes.
...And to each his own, I'm even feeling very lucky I choose to wear slip on heavy steel toe boots instead of tight fitting lace-up boots, I can't visualize how far my left foot got twisted out to the left, under and down to wind up upside down against the pavement, fast enough that there are sliding against the pavement under heavy load marks squarely on the top of the boot toe. I can't say being loosely coupled with the boot saved me completely, I still broke my ankle, but it's not real bad, like broken off and spun around, we even got my boot pulled off before going to the ER, I think tight laced boots would have acted like a wrench to give those twisting forces a better grip on my foot, maybe a green-tree twisting-splintered fracture up to the knee.
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429 Posts
hope the carnage posted previously heals up quickly.
in only 3 days of bike ownership, i mostly ride in my Army Combat Uniform.
i strive for ATGATT, but i'm not too concerned with earplugs. i hate silence, it just reminds me that i have tinnitus...
boots will never be a problem. the army issued me enough that i feel like imelda marcos.
i go with full face coverage because i'm on a bug-free diet
this is likely how i'll dress for a summer day ride (add gloves and FF helmet) :
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in only 3 days of bike ownership, i mostly ride in my Army Combat Uniform.
i strive for ATGATT, but i'm not too concerned with earplugs. i hate silence, it just reminds me that i have tinnitus...
boots will never be a problem. the army issued me enough that i feel like imelda marcos.
i go with full face coverage because i'm on a bug-free diet
this is likely how i'll dress for a summer day ride (add gloves and FF helmet) :
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4,996 Posts
Good thoughts and perspective Nathan. Your bike weight comment and how fast the rocks flipped you down remind what happened with my Valkyrie back in '98. Got distracted in a lefthander, went wide right onto a sandy shoulder, scrubbed off enough speed to 10mph, the big heavy bike bogged down in the sand, the handlebars slammed to the left with the bar end nailing my thigh and down the bike and I went. Picked it up and went on my way, but among the remembrances was the speed it went down, even at 10mph, and how quickly the bar hit my leg with a huge knot and bruise the reminder for several weeks.
Glad the ankle injury isn't really bad. I once broke my foot in a high school basketball game (The days of low top Converse Chuck Taylor canvas shoes when I landed on someone's foot battling for a rebound), and had the cast off in 6-8 weeks. Maybe the doctor can creatively set the ankle so you can still ride.
Probably not at the top of your priority list at the moment.
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1,669 Posts
OUCH! Heal fast, NG!
Helmet, eye protection (if it's my half-shell), earplugs (habit picked up from the track), leather jacket, armored gauntlet gloves, heavy denim jeans, construction-style workboots... with temperature-appropriate layers underneath. Leather pants (well, before i outgrew 'em) - I might just have to break down and buy another pair - they're great.
Helmet, eye protection (if it's my half-shell), earplugs (habit picked up from the track), leather jacket, armored gauntlet gloves, heavy denim jeans, construction-style workboots... with temperature-appropriate layers underneath. Leather pants (well, before i outgrew 'em) - I might just have to break down and buy another pair - they're great.
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jugger even with ear plugs you wont have total silence.. its a good habit to have if you want to hear well later in life ...
and nathang heal up bud!!
and nathang heal up bud!!
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1,804 Posts
Nathan - oh shit. Heal up easy.
The only thing I don't wear is earplugs.
After 35 years in two marriages, I'm desperate for deafness
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