Viking Cruise jacket

She wants to keep this one

A Viking Cruise model jacket recently arrived at the TWO headquarters from Motorcycle House. First thing we noticed upon unpacking was that it was a "cruiser styled" jacket in a true women's cut. Many of these style jackets for women are simply smaller versions of men's jackets.

Dry Feet and a Warm Heart

Waterproof Boots a Comfortable Solution

 

Motorcycle boots come in almost as many varieties as motorcycles. Finding the perfect pair involves shopping for boots that fit your style of riding, how much protection you want and what you feel comfortable wearing. I think a lot of people want something that offers some crash insurance, but prefer not to look like a storm trooper from Star Wars when they stop for lunch. Tourmaster's Solution 2.0 Road Boots may be what you're looking for.

The Solution is a waterproof leather boot with an oil-resistant rubber sole. I've put a few thousand miles on a pair of these and have been pretty impressed. Especially when you consider these boots have a street price barely north of a hundred bucks!

As motorcycle boots go these would be considered "touring boots." They are comfortable, easy to walk in and easy to get on or off. I like the zipper-under-velcro closure and they also have a reinforcement on the left toes to prevent shifter wear. There's a handy pull-tab on the back of the boot that can snag on your pants, but it's awfully helpful for putting them on. The Tourmaster Solutions offer some ankle bone protection and will protect your feet from abrasion in the event of a spill.

Are these the best boots out there? Not hardly. But for the price they're pretty darn good. Are they better than riding in sneakers? You bet! Are they good choice for a track day at Hallett? Not really.

For that you'll just have to get used to the storm trooper look.


 

Saving Weight, Gaining Electrons

I recently had to replace the battery on my personal ride. It was time. The original gel cel, lead acid type battery that came with the BMW was just over 6 years old and I was surprised it lasted as long as it did. I attribute it's long life to constant use. Sitting around, slowly discharging is hard on a battery of most types and my bike doesn't do much "sitting around."

When shopping around for a new one, I looked up the type and size and started checking around. One option I found, was one of the new Lithium Ion type. This is the newest, yet tried technology for auto/motorcycles and I couldn't find any downside to using one.

After deciding that it would work in my bike, I went down to my local shop of choice (Kinetic Playground) and ordered up an 8 cell EVO2 Ballistic battery to fit. When it came in the next day, I was very happy with the choice.

Riding in the Heat

Does it actually get too hot to ride?
I ride year round. That may not sound like a big deal to someone that lives in Southern California, but here in Oklahoma, it can be a challenge. I have ridden in temperatures ranging from 16 degrees to 114 degrees. And I'm here to tell you that it is completely possible to do. In fact, that is probably nothing compared to some of the more hard core riders that I know are out there (looking at you, Mr. Gonzales). In fact, if you have seen the episode of us traveling down Highway 20 through Claremore, it was filmed in the chilly temperature of 16 degrees. Trying to talk to the camera was a whole different problem, but that is another story.

Komodo Gear moving to the street market

Gloves now made with more Awesome-ness*!
Although Komodo's Pro Racer gloves are not the most inexpensive glove on the market (nor the most expensive), I think they should be filed in the Awesome category after trying them.

I am constantly amazed at how far the whole gear market has progressed since I have started riding a motorcycle. Not that many years ago, you wore a pair of plain leather gloves, with sometimes minimal padding on the back and hoped that they were at least black, to look a little cool. If not, you wore the same heavy leather gloves that are very similar to what you would see now in the garden department. These are not those gloves. Fast forward to 2012 and this is what a company can build to protect your hands when riding a motorcycle.

Komodo was started in 2004 and is still owned by those same two guys in Texas. They only sell direct from their warehouse and stand behind everything they make. They even discounted all of their pricing when the economy took a turn, because they knew that everybody else was struggling, racers included. As well known as they are around the racetrack, they are now ready to take on the street market.

Pro Racer model in white

These latest gloves from Komodo are their top of the line, track oriented glove. They are made with hides from a few different sources and designed to work both riding the motorcycle and in the case of a fall. No glove can prevent injury in every case, but these sure make a good effort.
The main body of the glove is built out of kangaroo hide. This allows it to be just as strong or stronger in abrasion resistance as cowhide, but using a thinner material to give you more feel at the bars. They go on to cover the scaphoids with padded sting ray hide, which truly laughs at things like a 100 mph slide on pavement, with Kevlar on both the palm and sleeves and carbon fiber on other impact areas. This model uses a full gauntlet with a Velcro closure underneath and another protected strap around the wrist to make sure the glove stays on your hand. All of this is stitched up with Kevlar thread.

Empty Your Pockets

Who doesn't love a challenge?

Today I came across an interesting post on another motorcycle blog about buying new riding gear. The author was struggling with the transfer of "stuff" from old pockets to new. If the new pockets are smaller you may have a problem.

Then she asked, "What's in your pockets?"

Dallas Day One

Dallas International Motorcycle Show: Day 1

Rubbing elbows with old racers, drooling over cool prototypes and yes, we like Ike.

We made the drive to Dallas today and stormed the Convention Center with cameras blazing. Attendance at the show was light for this first day, but the overcast skies and occasional drizzle probably kept many riders away.

But for us, the first day of the show was pretty darn busy. We got to meet Superbike legend, Scott Russell, talked trials with the Smage brothers and got the scoop on several new motorcycles that are new to the American market.

Brad interviews five-time Daytona 200 winner
and AMA Hall of Famer, Scott Russell.

As Seen on TV:
Smage Brothers, finalists on
America's Got Talent

Fun day? You bet.

Stay tuned.

Bell Star: the comeback

My helmets have now come full circle.

Back when I was a wee tot at the age of 4, I wore a yellow Bell helmet while riding my little pull-start minibike. We were always taught to wear a helmet by our father, who was constantly running one of his three sons to the emergency room for one reason or another. Once we started riding motorbikes he didn’t want any head injuries added to the usual ordeals.

I can still hear him, “Dammit, I don’t have time to stop everything and take one of you to the hospital just because you’re doing something stupid."

TWO Does Dallas

2010 International Motorcycle Show in Dallas

For this year’s International Motorcycle Show held in Dallas, Paul at Brookside Motorcycle Company offered me a chance to ride a Kawasaki Concours 14.

The Concours 14 during a stop in Wetumka

It was going to be a four-day trip with a passenger and we needed the luggage room. The Kawasaki fit the bill perfectly for this trip. Much better than the bike I usually ride!

The big Kawasaki always seems to rank right at the top of the class in all of the riding comparison tests, and it seemed to fit my needs perfectly. It falls in the Sport Touring class of bike, not in the big class of touring rigs, like the Gold Wing, the BMW LT, etc. It gives enough long distance comfort and still returns a sporty and usable ride when the road starts to curve. The 14 is a good place to be for extended hours in all kinds of weather with the electrically adjustable windshield, adjustable rear suspension, near perfect riding position and eerily smooth drivetrain.

Review: Venture Air Mesh Pants

I was hoping to find some mesh riding pants to survive the Summer heat. The Venture Air pants from Tour Master looked like a good choice- a full Armor-Link mesh shell with adjustable CE armor in the knees, and the choice of standard, short or tall lengths. You also get a removable two-stage liner.

The specs sounded great- then I tried them on. These aren't really advertised as overpants, but with a full-length zipper/Velcro opening up the leg they certainly look the part. And speaking of looks... ouch.

First Gear Mesh Tex Jacket

New Mesh-Tex is Best Version Yet

Damn it's hot.

I've muttered that to myself more than a few times during rides through the Oklahoma heat. As tempting as it might be to disrobe when the mercury tops 90, I prefer not to. Exposing my bacon to the searing sun, 70 mph junebugs or, God forbid, baking hot asphalt is no way to end the day. Fortunately there's a compromise between sweaty black leather and riding nude. It's called mesh.

Mesh riding gear allows cooling air to pass through the material. The better gear offers reinforced areas or armor to protect you from road rash, not to mention shielding you from the baking sun. Most riders agree that, up to a point, you'll actually ride cooler wearing a mesh jacket than without. The Firstgear Mesh-Tex is a great example of a mesh jacket built for surviving an Oklahoma Summer.

Tourmaster Sonora Mesh Jacket

On our ride to Roman Nose State Park (episode 5) I was wearing a bright yellow/green copy of Tourmaster's Sonora Air Mesh jacket. They call it High Visibility Yellow- and boy howdy, is it high visibility!

You will definitely stand out in a crowd. But the color isn't the only unique feature of the Sonora.

Diamond Gusset Riding Jeans

Ever wish you had some riding pants that didn't look... well, like riding pants? 

You may have noticed me wearing blue jeans on some of the shows. Every once in a while I get asked about riding in jeans by fellow motorcyclists, "Don't you ever feel uncomfortable just wearing jeans?"

Yes and no. The jeans I'm wearing are Diamond Gusset Defenders and are reinforced with Kevlar. The Kevlar provides more abrasion protection than denim alone can offer. While they don't have the protection of full-on motorcycle pants, I feel they're safer than riding in regular blue jeans.

Five Gift Ideas from Two Wheel Oklahoma

Gift Ideas for Two-Wheeling Oklahomans

Every once in a while some poor soul asks us for advice on buying a gift. So with the holidays quickly approaching, now seemed like a good time to list some of our favorite gift suggestions- not just motorcycle stuff, but also cool gifts with an Oklahoma slant. So with no further adieu....

Gift Idea No. 1
Two Wheel Oklahoma Stuff
I'll be blunt. You really should buy our stuff.

Cortech GX Sport Jacket

Advanced Jacket for Three Seasons

You may have seen me wearing this jacket in a couple of recent episodes. It's a comfy textile jacket with lots of pockets and includes a quilted liner. The Series 2 GX Sport is touted for its advanced ventilation system, but even with all those vents it doesn't make this a summer jacket.

Under that 600 Denier Carbolex® shell and reflective piping is a waterproof liner. Unfortunately it also blocks a good deal of airflow- even with every vent wide open. Now that might not be a problem if we lived in Seattle, but if it's August here in Oklahoma you do have a problem!

On the downside, the zipper can be maddening. It catches much too easily on the outer hem or the inner rain flap. After a little fiddling I discovered hooking my thumb inside the zipper as I pulled it up helped. I also found the Shock Cord feature (a system to hold the shoulder vents open) difficult to deal with while wearing gloves.

Tourmaster Flex 2 Jacket

The Only Jacket You'll Ever Need
You may have seen Brad wearing Tourmaster's Flex 2 jacket on a few episodes. It's a unique jacket with a versatile design.

But is one jacket really all you ever need?

That's what Tourmaster is shooting for with their Flex jacket series. Off the rack you see a waterproof textile jacket. But unzip a few zippers (make that several zippers) and the outer shell comes off to reveal a full mesh jacket. But wait- there's more! Yes, that's right. There' s also an insulated liner underneath all that. The liner also uses more zippers and a few buttons with loops.

If that sounds like a lot for one jacket, it is.

Tourmaster Transition Jacket

Versatile Jacket for All Seasons

I often wear a black Tourmaster Transition jacket on the show. So far this has been the most usable jacket I have ever ridden with. It works in almost any weather condition, except extreme heat. But that kind of versatility is what makes the Transition a really great bargain.

The current version is the Transition II (right). It's s a 3/4 length jacket made mostly of 600 denier polyester with a water-resistant coating and clever reinforcing panels that are reflective. For protection you get a foam backpad and removable CE armor in the shoulders and elbows. Included with the jacket is an insulated zip-out liner. The main zipper is a heavy duty "double zipper" which means it's made to unzip from below for comfort when seated. You also get a pants zipper to attach this jacket to riding pants (they even throw in the pant side of the zipper).

Gear Selection

After receiving a couple communication devices that we could use from bike to bike, I thought we were doing great. They worked great, came through crystal clear and really made our job easier while filming. We even did a review on the Cardo Scala Rider Q2 here. What could possibly go wrong?!?

I found out exactly what could go wrong a few weeks ago while out road testing a bike on some country roads. Coming around a left hand corner at approx. 30mph, I lost the rear end, falling on my left side. First assessment: things hurt, I couldn't stand up, let alone walk and had the wind knocked out of me. Shouldn't be that big of a deal. In my 40+ years of riding experience, I have had my share of exciting get-offs, breaking a few bones along the way. To be honest, at that point, I was more worried about the bike than myself. I always wear the correct gear and this time was no different.

After getting checked out, I later discovered that I had shattered my left collarbone into many, many pieces, cracked a left shoulder blade, cracked my left hip/pelvis and broke a bone in my right hand. Hmmm... It seems that I can slide down the track at 100mph, but was not very good at this "falling over going slow" maneuver.

Road and Ride Tests

Checking out the Moto Guzzi Norge in Osage CountyLast week we began working on a new segment we hope makes the final cut. It will be a series of road tests of various motorcycles- new and used. We want to know what bikes you want us to shake down!

I realize there's nothing new about road testing a motorcycle- lots of magazines and TV shows do it. But we hope to put a different spin on it.

We had originally glossed over the idea because of the lack of "local content." But then we realized that road tests could be presented in a way that might add a little local flavor. Put a local spin on things that might be lacking from the Mainstream Media. Lemme'splain...

Scooteristas

There is an old saying with motorcyclists that have been around for a while. "There are two types of riders. Those that have crashed and those that will crash."

With the current rise in gas prices, I am seeing more and more people using motorcycles and scooters for their daily commute and general running around. I think this is great to see. The two-wheeled version of gettin' around is much easier to navigate through traffic, making your commute quicker, easier on the wallet and great for the environment. I welcome all the new riders to our two-wheeled "community". I honestly don't understand why more people don't choose the two-wheeled way of getting around.