Random thoughts...HEAT

[WV_Vet]

As I just walk around at work in these 90+ degree temperatures, I was wondering just how the heck you safety minded individuals ride around in black leather head to toe to finger. And, what do you do with your gear post-ride? Hang it out to dry? Clean the salt off it? Treat it in some fashion? Maybe you only ride in the late evenings. It's just so crazy hot out there.

I'm an aspiring soon to be rider so no experience in this. I know leather is better than textile so I would be going leather all the way.

Stay cool!

[primalmu]

Honestly, I don't think leather is THAT much better for general riding (if you're on the race track going 200 MPH, then yes). This is especially true when you compare a nice textile jacket with CE armor to a cheap Harley-style leather jacket with no armor.

I wear a textile jacket with air vents and summer weight leather gloves with knuckle armor. Even then I can barely stand these Mississippi summers (originally from WV, by the way... where are you from?).

[WV_Vet]

Originally Posted by primalmu

Honestly, I don't think leather is THAT much better for general riding (if you're on the race track going 200 MPH, then yes). This is especially true when you compare a nice textile jacket with CE armor to a cheap Harley-style leather jacket with no armor.

I wear a textile jacket with air vents and summer weight leather gloves with knuckle armor. Even then I can barely stand these Mississippi summers (originally from WV, by the way... where are you from?).

Thanks for the advice. I'll look into textile as well. There are just way too many options. The best I've been able to do is look at vendor sites and where they mark things like "Level 3", "armor CE", etc., I take a look.

I'm from Preston county (implant because my wife is a Prestonian, I grew up in Grafton), work in Morgantown. WVU alum. Mississippi heat can't be fun!

[Eye_m_no_angel]

I don't wear leather when it's hot, and I don't own any "armored" gear. Hot weather around here usualy calls for a tank top, half helmet, jeans and boots. Jackets, gloves, and sometimes chaps are for colder rides.

[SpitefulHam]

I wear kevlar jeans with knee/shin and hip armor (no armor in the summer, too hot on the skin), armored textile jacket, summer leather gloves and vented motorcycle "sneakers". I still sweat balls up here in MD (and I'm originally from NC). I leave early in the morning and just suck it up in the afternoon. I keep a low profile camel back in my backpack to stay hydrated on the ride. Sometimes that's still not enough and I just have to stop for a break.

[bajakirch]

For hot weather, mesh riding gear is a god-send. It's made a huge difference since I got mesh pants and a mesh jacket for this year. My new bike throws off a lot more heat than my old one, so I don't know if I could be riding in temps over 90 without it.

The only thing I don't get is that most mesh riding gear is still black, the one color that soaks up the most heat.

[ralphlong]

Although I have nothing scientific to base this on, it seems to me that my mesh jacket keeps me cooler than going in just a tshirt. It seems the mesh shades my skin and keeps me from frying.

Anybody else experience this?

[z9nine]

It depends on my mood, sometimes I ride in jeans and a my textile jacket, other times I rock shorts and a T-shirt, sometime it is jeans and a T-shirt. Always rock the FF helmet, I have putted around my apartment complex without a helmet and it just did not feel right.

[spacejunkiehsv]

Originally Posted by bajakirch

The only thing I don't get is that most mesh riding gear is still black, the one color that soaks up the most heat.

I have a white mesh jacket and mesh gloves to go with my white helmet which is my only helmet. It seems that white is being outnumbered by hi-viz options now though. They are out there, but you have a good point. I thought about the whole black/heat thing too.

To the OP: I highly recommend mesh gear for temperatures above 90*F. When you are moving, you feel almost like you're wearing a thin white tshirt, undershirt type. When you are stopped, you can't wait to get moving again!

If I could afford leather gear, I'd have some for cold weather. I'm a textile guy year-round though.

[curtis41]

I wear a yellow, hi-visibility TourMaster Sonora 3/4 length jacket for summer fall, winter, and spring. I asked a highway patrolman about riding in the buff, and he said I would surely get a ticket, so I guess clothes are not optional in my state, the state of confusion. :-) Remember guys and gals, about the heat, this too shall pass.

[DachshundUberAlles]

For the most part, I wear a leather jacket that has two front and two rear zipper vents. When in motion, they do an adequate job of dealing with the high temperatures but sitting at lights heats things up. I tend to be a "head out to the countryside" rider so I don't suffer so much as the "commuter" types might.

I also have an old (20+ years) HondaLine nylon jacket that I break out when the temperature is really hot and the ride distance is going to be relatively short. I wear full sleeve coverage because I am more venerable to the effects of the sun now and while I have never been a fan of the "t-shirt and shorts" style, I am not the type to wag my finger at someone's choice.
I would recommend that you wear full coverage gear of the highest quality you can afford. You've seen the scars you get when you stumble and fall while walking. Multiply that by the added speed of vehicular travel.

[Gereke]

Originally Posted by ralphlong

Although I have nothing scientific to base this on, it seems to me that my mesh jacket keeps me cooler than going in just a tshirt. It seems the mesh shades my skin and keeps me from frying.

Anybody else experience this?

You are correct. Also, yes you can base it on science. Read up on the physics of heat exchange.

[Ramsfan87]

I wear an olympia textile jacket. It's got zip in liners: one water proof and one thinsulate liner. It's also got armour in it. It breathes really well in the summer and as long as I'm moving I can stay pretty comfortable. Nothing though is going to stop you from sweating at stop lights. An air-cooled engine just radiates the heat up, and on a liquid cooled bike as soon as the radiator fan comes on, it practically becomes a heater :-)

Regardless, I always wear full face helmet, jacket, gloves, and jeans. I have kevlar lined riding jeans, but alot of times I just wear regular jeans. While its not the best protection for the legs, it's better than shorts. Plus keep in mind that a jacket and gear protects you from bugs, rocks, and other road debris....

[Ramsfan87]

Originally Posted by Gereke

You are correct. Also, yes you can base it on science. Read up on the physics of heat exchange.

And yup! I will second Gereke's statement, this is coming from a chemical engineer Keeps the sun from directly heating up your skin. Heat's up the mesh instead. Yes, if you stay still long enough the heat will eventually transfer from the jacket to you and the jacket will insulate some heat from your body (you will be HOT), but usually by then you've started moving, and the moving air will carry heat away from your jacket and your body.

In summary, while moving with jacket, sun only heats up the jacket, air movement carries heat from skin and jacket. While moving without jacket, sun heats body directly (which you will feel) and air movement carries heat away from skin. Thus if you are moving at speed (I'm talking about roads and high way, not stop and go traffic) you should actually feel cooler with a mesh jacket on!!!

If you've got a jacket that doesn't allow airflow to you skin, well then, you'll just be damn hot.

[distantThunder]

first off ... vented leather is a lot coolewr than solid leather for hnot weather. check it out at the dealer. BUT at some point you just gotta' can all the heavy gear. At that point I wear a leather vest, sometimes still a spine protector, and I just try to ride slower and very conservatively. Safedty depends upon your brain cells working - that ain't gonna' happen if you boil over the radiator in your own body :-)

remember to put on sunblock on your arms, or wear long-sleeve T's, or you're gonna have a bad case of sunburn after a long ride :-)

dT

[V8Thrasher]

Not going to lie...these past 2 weeks I havent been wearing my riding jacket, Ive been wearing an armored vest with under armour underneath my shirt along with my gloves, full helmet, and boots. It feels nice to ride but as soon as I stop or go slow i start cooking in the minor gear I have.

[Gereke]

Oh, and regarding what I wear in the heat..

Textile jacket, light riding gloves, pants (not always my moto-specific), full face helmet and boots. Doesn't bother me in the slightest to wear that stuff.

I've been in some extremely warm places, while wearing much more "stuff" than my moto-gear.

[sectorsight]

This heat has been brutal. I used to be ATGATT, but no more. I wear a FF helmet , thats it. I usually ride in a t shirt now. Even in my mesh I was burning up and causing major aggravation. I looked at my risks and decided it's safer for me to ride in comfort.

[chet8625]

below 80 I'll wear my hi-viz mesh jacket. Above 80 just my dress shirt. Above 95 I'll switch to a t-shirt. I'm in a lot of stop and go traffic.

[goalie]

We get a lot of humidity in Virginia when it gets hot.

Generally, once the temps are above 70, I just wear my hi-viz mesh don't-shoot-me-I'm-wearing-blaze-orange armored jacket. I've worn it on a 104 degree day this summer and when riding was actually comfortable. I rode about 40 minutes to a store. After going into the store and getting back on my bike, I was dripping with sweat. I don't see myself being any more comfortable wearing no jacket.

Be aware, though, that there are mesh jackets that have entire body panels and sleeves made of mesh with the seams and and impact points made of kevlar. There are also mesh jackets that only have limited areas made of mesh. The latter are not much good in climates like Virginia's. The former, however, can be worthless if they aren't truly reinforced with kelvar (or similar material) and heavy duty stitching. Also, you need to make sure the jacket fits so that the armored is properly positioned. The armor is no good if the jacket is so loose that the elbow armor is not truly on your elbows at the point of impact.

Below 70 (all the way down to 24 degrees) I wear my leather with great comfort.