A couple weeks ago I installed my fancy Oxford Heaterz. Since then I've went for a chilly ride with them and they performed beautifully. Check out my review and installation pictures!
Great Bag for Riding Your Motorcycle at Night
I was driving home earlier tonight and I passed quite a few bicyclists who were not only riding down a one way street in the wrong direction, but also wearing absolutely NOTHING that made them noticeable at night. Argh. I try to look out for anyone on two wheels but it's definitely not easy when they're practically wearing all black. Scary.
I love my custom Timbuk2 bag, which I specifically chose reflective material for. It's also 100% waterproof and the perfect size. If you go to their website, you can customize it based on fit and laptop size. Lots of colors and fabrics to choose from too. You can even go ALL reflective! The material is day and night reflective, and sticks out like a sore thumb at night.
Ride Safe and Reflective!
Yippee! New Base Layer Pants.
I know, what weirdo gets excited about new base layer pants? I just picked up a pair of these Forcefield Women's Base Layer Pants for warm weather riding. (I'm *very* hopeful we'll have warmer weather for a little while longer). But I know I'll wear these during the Fall/Early Winter too. So far I LOVE how they feel. Very lightweight and comfy around the waistband. I ordered a size small and they fit great, except they're a bit long in the torso which is my problem with most bottoms anyhow. There is a matching shirt but I just really wanted pants, since I like my Icebreaker tops.
Remember, baselayers like this are great under ALL of your gear, whether it's textile or leather. I promise it makes for a more comfortable ride! A fuller review to come.
Back Protector Issue
Reader Emily wrote me recently about a back protector issue she's having while riding 2-up. Check out what she had to say along with my reply:
Hi there, I live in Berkeley (I know you've decamped to Philly) and my b/f and I ride a BMW 1200GS Adventure with me on the back. We recently upsized from an 800GS. Because I found it hard on my lower back to not have no backrest, when he got the new bike he had a box put on the back with the backrest cushioning installed.
Now I am getting a bruise mid-spine from the top of the box (even though it is cushioned as well). I have a FirstGear Kilimanjaro Air jacket that I've liked but the back armor goes down just to the place where the top of the box hits. I went into the BMW dealer in SF yesterday to try their jackets and found they have the same problem. I am 5'8" and long waisted and BMW jackets for women don't come in long sizes, though their men's apparel does. Kent in the BMW store suggested I try Rev'it because they make better apparel for women then BMW (actually he suggested I start my own company making women's motorcycling appa rel).
However, I note in looking at the Rev'it website that the women's gear also does not come in long sizes. Do you know how long the back armor is in the women's jacket (I wear an 8 in the BMW GS Dry) or do you have any other suggestions? We're taking a two week trip in Montana in September and I've got to have this figured out by then or I will be be super uncomfortable.
-April
I have a couple ideas for you:
1) Rev'it Levante Jacket + Seesoft Back Protector
This combination gives you two things including a longer cut in the torso and sleeves as well as a back protector that's fairly long. It shouldn't be taller than your shoulder blades but I think it'll alleviate the issues you're having with the top box. This jacket is one of the only ones that work well for women who are looking for a jacket that's multi season (removable thermal layer with a mesh shell) and have a longer torso fit as well a sleeve length. Unfortunately you have to use Seesoft with the Levante because the pocket is specifically cut out for Seesoft. Alternatively, you could also use D3O instead, you'll just have to trim the sides to fit. To find out more about this jacket, check out my tall co-host's review here.
Keep in mind that all back protector inserts will never be higher than the shoulder blades because it's just too uncomfortable in riding position and the jacket just won't fit right. It would really restrict the driver's ability to fully turn their head from side to side.
2) External Back Protector
If the previous combination doesn't work, try wearing an external back protector underneath like this one by Spidi. I like this one because it's pretty long but really thin. You can also adjust the waist belt to your height via velcro. I think this would fit perfectly underneath the Levante as well.
