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Dress for the weather, dress for the ride.
16 July 2026
Dress for the weather, dress for the ride.
We make no apologies for banging on about motorcycling protective gear.
Such kit is essential, not a luxury.
Whilst we riders make the most of sustained sunshine and dry roads, it’s important to dress both for the weather and the ride.
Not like the buffoon on the left.
What do you call a moving swell of water that has caught fire? A heatwave.
Sorry. No, a heatwave is actually defined as a prolonged period of excessively hot weather that lasts for more than two days.
We’re in the middle of one and it’s the perfect weather for riding motorcycles.
However – there’s always a however – some of us are dressing for comfort to the extent that we look like we should be going to the beach and not, in actual fact, anywhere near a motorcycle.
Riding BMWs’ S1000RR wearing a t-shirt and a pair of cargo shorts surely makes the rider a contender for a Darwin Award?
Light dressing
PPE can make the difference between swearing about a damaged bike or acquiring a life-changing injury – or worse.
Claiming that the correct clothing is too heavy is nonsense.
Companies such as Knox – the Urbane Pro or the Tor (pictured right) – and Alpinestars – the Troop Air Pro – make kit that is specifically designed to be worn on the best of days.
Both are fully ventilated and because they sit on a mesh body both can accommodate an air vest from any brand.
Dainese also make theirs, the Pro Armour Safety Jacket.
All feel like wearing a t-shirt, or even something lighter.
As you ride the breeze created simply flows through the garment.
Hot head
A lot of body heat is stored up above in the head. Take a look at your helmet.
If you wear an Arai, or similar, you’ll notice that it has a diffuser on the back of it.
Open the vents on the jaw, in the visor and on the crown of the lid. Then open the ones on the back of the helmet under the aforementioned diffuser.
The air flows in through the front of the helmet. Because the diffuser is tilted up and away from the lid it creates a gentle vacuum.
Once the rear vents are open this will ‘pull’ the air out of the helmet and create an ever-so-gentle airflow across the wearer’s head.
This adds a significant cooling effect when riding in the warm weather.
Shop talk
MotoKingdom in Kerry carry the Knox range, Megabikes the Alpinestars ones, and BikeWorld the Dainese stuff.
Kennedys in Drogheda stock the Arai range as do Megabikes. Wearing ‘All the gear all the time’ makes for a safer and happier rider and allows you to get on with riding your bike.
Crashing is expensive, smashing yourself to bits even more so and the other option doesn’t even bear mentioning.
Dress right. Live longer.
