Mid-Life Rider

I seem to be on an equipment review roll. If you’ve found this via a search, the context for that remark is that I’ve just recently gotten back from a big ride and have filled pages in the blogosphere with my ramblings and musings about life on the road. I also took some new gear [...]

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I’ve been wearing cycleport gear for two years now. I bought my first jacket and pants after a low speed get-off wore holes in a fancy set of Dainese textile gear. Maybe I had the concept wrong, but I was expecting more abrasion resistance than I got. Which led me to cycleport.
After wearing all-black for [...]

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I’m a fan of Suomy helmets. I like how they fit. I like how they’re made. I like it that they’re kinder to your head in a get off than anything carrying a current Snell rating (for more on this, see my essay on helmets).
For the past year or so I’ve been wearing the very [...]

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Arai and Shoei are the titans of motorcycle helmets here in the big PX. They invest tons of money in research, materials, and manufacturing and it shows in every way. The quality is outstanding, the finish equally so. Everything fits and works just like it should.
Probably more so than Shoei, Arai helmet owners love [...]

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“So, what’s the best helmet to buy?
It’s almost a trick question; a study in ontology, metaphysics, and physics all rolled together. Still, the question wouldn’t come up so often if it were a layup. I’m either brave enough, or something else enough to bite. So here goes.
It’s not that there isn’t an answer. It’s [...]

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I found Motoport a couple of days after dumping my bike going round a round-a-bout at something less than 20mph. The roads were wet and I was dumb/unaware enough to roll on the throttle while leaned over while rolling over one of the those big white painted arrows. A bad combination.
The bike slide out from [...]

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There’s a piece in the Contra Costa Times about a company called techbargains. The site is completely overwhelming when you go there but it’s about what you think it’s about. The part that caught my eye were these tips on buying. Good advice for buying anything.

Tips from the expert
Norman Fong and his [...]

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I’ve been using Novus plastic polish all over all my bikes for the past six months. I can’t imagine why I didn’t have all three around much sooner.

Novus comes in three grades, all of which can be used safely on your motorcycle’s metal, plastic, and plexiglass surfaces. The site contains all the instructions and tips [...]

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At some point you need to think about your knees. If you don’t know it already, they’re good for more than connecting the two parts of your legs and aching as you get older. For all sort of reasons, riders want and need to get a good grip on the tank.

Going down hill
For the long-distance [...]

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A few weeks ago I reported on my first impressions of the Suomy Extreme helmet. Just to complete the record . . .
I’ve worn this lid now for about 3000 miles. I finally bought cheek-pads for an XL which solved the tight problem I was having. Everything I said before is true but now more [...]

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