Wearables

Alpinestars Stella Radiant Drystar

Thursday, 31 December 2009 02:36 |

Dragging my feet and I didn't want to get my butt out the door in a timely fashion. Finally convinced myself that procrastinating any further would make me late for work. All the while inadvertently leaving my warmest pair of gloves at home, I suffered thru the ride to work with painfully cold finger tips.

With it going to be getting colder after the sun sets I took a trip over to the bike near my place of employment and sought new gloves.

Looked around, didn't see anything at all that said "warm" to me. Helpful guy across the counter noticed I was looking for something but to no avail. Offered me some assistance and points to these Alpinestars gloves that I had overlooked. Priced at $59 figured I'd give them a shot as it they were the most functional of what they had in their inventory.

I'm rather impressed with these gloves. Honestly advertised to be wind and water proof, yet breathable so your hands do not sweat as much. Amazingly thin and pliable gloves that offer excellent dexterity. Giving plenty of feel for your controls and with such a slim profile I can even fish my keys out of my jeans with them on. Enough of a gauntlet to keep the wind and rain from going up your sleeve with a cinch strap for your forearm and another for your wrist.

Being from Northern Alabama we don't have the most severe cold temperatures. But it's been in the 20's and 30's lately and these gloves have held up well for my commute. My commute being about eleven miles. When it's above 32ºF these gloves can offer a few hours of sufficient warmth. When it gets into the mid 20's and below these gloves offer enough comfort for my short commute. But any riding in duration in 25ºF or below is not advised, around half an hour in such temperatures you do start to feel a bit of numbing in the digits.

For $59 you can't do much better for price and performance if you live in a climate that hovers around 25-40ºF.

Last Updated (Thursday, 31 December 2009 03:25)

Don't wait till it's Winter

Tuesday, 15 September 2009 03:27 |

It's going to be Winter sooner than we'd like to admit. No amount of whining and pouting will stop it's march along the seasonal front lines. Best to be prepared to ride in it. No real man in Alabama Winterizes his bike for storage.

Typically motorcycle gloves are expensive and they should be. They're made of quality materials, good workmanship and offer good protection from our nemesis and benevolent friend: asphalt. What I haven't been able to find, is affordable and ultimate warm motorcycle gloves. May just be a factor of my local, not a lot of Winter riding going on down here and thus ly not a lot of local options when it comes to Winter gear.

I carry 3 different gloves i n my saddle bags, I got my armored Summer gloves for the bulk of my riding. A pair of winter motorcycle spec gloves that are great in the Fall; but by "Winter" I think they mean in Hawaii cause they aren't good enough for when it's 35ºF out. That's where these North Face Montana gloves come in.

I ride year around, no matter how cold it is outside. Don't have a windshield or faring. It's just me against the icy wind.

All the other gloves I have, about 5 miles down the road in 18ºF weather and your fingers sting and throb. Which is a bad sign of frostbite potential. But these North Face gloves keep my hands from turning black and rotting off.

They're pretty reasonable, got mine for $49 at a local sporting goods store. May be able to get a deal on them this time of year while they're not in seasonal demand right now.

Water and wind proof, breathable fabric, has 120 grams of 3M Thinsulate. That Thinsulate stuff works great, I can ride for a few hours in these gloves in our coldest temperatures and not get any numb digits. Elastic draw cord gauntlets to keep the wind from going up your sleeves. Even pockets to drop in those hand-warmer packets.

The mobility in these gloves is better than I would have thought, they're not so thick and bulky as to inhibit your clutch and braking. The pads of the fingers and palms have a rubbery textured pattern to aide in your clasping the grips.

If your home has longer Winters, make the investment and getting the best Winter gloves you can afford. Skimping on warmth can leads to an accident. Ever been out in the cold so long that you can't work your hands to unbutton your pants, even if Megan Fox was in front of you? Well imagine the same thing, after your done imagining about Megan Fox, when you've been riding for an hour and go to pull the brake lever in. Frostbite and roadrash both suck.

But if you're down South with me, consider these North Face Montana gloves. They do a damn fine job and should be easy to find.

Last Updated (Tuesday, 22 September 2009 05:41)