When all the kit just works
Discussion
I've been doing a lot of winter miles over the past couple of months - much more than I anticipated back in the autumn mainly because of some family stuff and the fact that the family in question live in south Oxfordshire while I'm the North West.
I came back to biking last summer after a 20+ year break and after a load of thought & research went for a 1250 GSA - maybe a predictable choice but i went through a fairly exhaustive selection process and it was the best fit for my needs and expected usage.
When I bought the bike I also needed a decent set of all-weather textiles, so these, plus some Bumot soft panniers got added to the shopping list (bike was second hand and came with a BMW top box).
Before the family stuff raised it's head I'd already decided I'd be using the bike to some extent through the winter so in November I bought some Keiss heated gloves and a Keiss heated jacket.
The bike's garaged at home but I wanted to use it for all sorts so I bought a Pragmasis chain and lock for the occasions it needed to overnight somewhere else.
My trips to and from Oxfordshire have involved as little motorway as possible, so one route involves Peak District / rural Leicestershire / Fosse Way / rural Oxfordshire another one goes through Shropshire and Gloucestershire and when I'm feeling really indulgent there's a 7 hour job that involves quite a lot of Wales. All made much easier with a combo of BMW's navi unit and my phone stuck on a quadlock mount as back up.
I've done the trips in every conceivable weather condition, sometimes pottering and sometimes making progress, usually fully laden.
The family stuff means this has been a properly difficult time for everybody close to me - but the bike and kit, oh my god, it's just been brilliant.
Warm & dry after hours riding through rain and wind in <5 degree temps; weeks' worth of personal crap swallowed by the luggage and also kept bone dry & secure with no discernable impact on the bike's performance (& it's all the performance I'll ever need for the road); 30 litre fuel tank meaning zero mid-trip fuel stops required; bike's ergos meaning zero stretch stops required mid-trip.
I'm not here to advocate any of what I've chosen as being the right answer for anybody else, but - like everybody else I guess - having had plenty of times in my life when purchases or collections of stuff fails to live up to expectations or don't adequately do the job you need them to do - it's just good to celebrate when all the kit just works brilliantly and brings you pleasure as a result.
I came back to biking last summer after a 20+ year break and after a load of thought & research went for a 1250 GSA - maybe a predictable choice but i went through a fairly exhaustive selection process and it was the best fit for my needs and expected usage.
When I bought the bike I also needed a decent set of all-weather textiles, so these, plus some Bumot soft panniers got added to the shopping list (bike was second hand and came with a BMW top box).
Before the family stuff raised it's head I'd already decided I'd be using the bike to some extent through the winter so in November I bought some Keiss heated gloves and a Keiss heated jacket.
The bike's garaged at home but I wanted to use it for all sorts so I bought a Pragmasis chain and lock for the occasions it needed to overnight somewhere else.
My trips to and from Oxfordshire have involved as little motorway as possible, so one route involves Peak District / rural Leicestershire / Fosse Way / rural Oxfordshire another one goes through Shropshire and Gloucestershire and when I'm feeling really indulgent there's a 7 hour job that involves quite a lot of Wales. All made much easier with a combo of BMW's navi unit and my phone stuck on a quadlock mount as back up.
I've done the trips in every conceivable weather condition, sometimes pottering and sometimes making progress, usually fully laden.
The family stuff means this has been a properly difficult time for everybody close to me - but the bike and kit, oh my god, it's just been brilliant.
Warm & dry after hours riding through rain and wind in <5 degree temps; weeks' worth of personal crap swallowed by the luggage and also kept bone dry & secure with no discernable impact on the bike's performance (& it's all the performance I'll ever need for the road); 30 litre fuel tank meaning zero mid-trip fuel stops required; bike's ergos meaning zero stretch stops required mid-trip.
I'm not here to advocate any of what I've chosen as being the right answer for anybody else, but - like everybody else I guess - having had plenty of times in my life when purchases or collections of stuff fails to live up to expectations or don't adequately do the job you need them to do - it's just good to celebrate when all the kit just works brilliantly and brings you pleasure as a result.
Similar but different story here.
High speed accident, autobahn, helicopter medivac, trauma team, CT scans, spinal stretcher etc etc.
The gear I was wearing, without doubt, saved my life, along with a HUGE pinch of luck. Only damage was a broken wrist, and shoulder/love handle gouges.
I walked out the day after, being kept in for observation, when the guy in the bed next to me had been in for 10 days, and was in for 10 more days, from twisting his ankle putting the bins out!
CE Level 2 back protector, just £40, and bought two days earlier, saved my bacon. It was melted, grooved, gouged and dented afterwards, and i was fine.
Good gear, that does its job, is amazing.
Now running CE AAA stuff, with CE Level 2 armour everywhere lol
High speed accident, autobahn, helicopter medivac, trauma team, CT scans, spinal stretcher etc etc.
The gear I was wearing, without doubt, saved my life, along with a HUGE pinch of luck. Only damage was a broken wrist, and shoulder/love handle gouges.
I walked out the day after, being kept in for observation, when the guy in the bed next to me had been in for 10 days, and was in for 10 more days, from twisting his ankle putting the bins out!
CE Level 2 back protector, just £40, and bought two days earlier, saved my bacon. It was melted, grooved, gouged and dented afterwards, and i was fine.
Good gear, that does its job, is amazing.
Now running CE AAA stuff, with CE Level 2 armour everywhere lol
Just did a 1200 mile tour from Reading, Yorkshire Moors, Glasgow, Glencoe, Lake District and back home again. Bering Balistik worked faultlessly as usual as did my Gerbing gloves, socks and ancient vest. Only thing that went wrong was me losing the gerbing charger somewhere near Glencoe! VFR performed faultlessly as always albeit the front tyre is VERY squared off now due to motorway miles. Nice to have kit and a bike you can rely on. Have been considering the Oxford Hinterland but I just don't need it.
ker, that gets old very quickly.A slightly different take... but I do have to agree, despite probably only spending what some of you would think of as the cost of a pair of gloves.
Having ridden bikes for the past forty years or so, and never having had any proper kit but for a couple of cheap lids (first one was £6, and the more recent Davida was £100), last year I bought a Merlin jacket. Impressed? Certainly. What a difference it makes to everyday blatting about. Not just in keeping me dry and warm, but also as it doesn't flap about, inflate, ruin the handling and render the mirrors useless, and it has decent length sleeves that fit inside my gloves (so the wind doesn't go whistling 'round my back), loads of useful pockets (not that I can think of anything to put in them)... and straps... and fasteners Not seen so many straps and buckles since the days of Killing Joke - if it came with a tartan skirt, it'd be like going back to 1979.
For someone who has always had an old "from the market" leather jacket and jeans, or more recently, a flying jacket, it's a real eye opener, a luxury... and feels like I've won the lottery.
Might have to buy some modern gloves next...
That said, the new jacket probably cost the same as, or more than, all my other kit added up over the years... the price of proper kit. Worth every penny? If it lasts, "Yes".
Having ridden bikes for the past forty years or so, and never having had any proper kit but for a couple of cheap lids (first one was £6, and the more recent Davida was £100), last year I bought a Merlin jacket. Impressed? Certainly. What a difference it makes to everyday blatting about. Not just in keeping me dry and warm, but also as it doesn't flap about, inflate, ruin the handling and render the mirrors useless, and it has decent length sleeves that fit inside my gloves (so the wind doesn't go whistling 'round my back), loads of useful pockets (not that I can think of anything to put in them)... and straps... and fasteners Not seen so many straps and buckles since the days of Killing Joke - if it came with a tartan skirt, it'd be like going back to 1979.
For someone who has always had an old "from the market" leather jacket and jeans, or more recently, a flying jacket, it's a real eye opener, a luxury... and feels like I've won the lottery.
Might have to buy some modern gloves next...
That said, the new jacket probably cost the same as, or more than, all my other kit added up over the years... the price of proper kit. Worth every penny? If it lasts, "Yes".
Same, did the predictable, bought a 1250gs
Revit mesh gear for summer which was ace as temps hit close 40c in Croatia, Montenegro and southern Italy
Bike runs much cooler under the saddle than my previous Ducatis. Used an air mesh cover on the seat which was not only cool but very comfortable
Did 8000 miles all round Europe over 9 weeks not a mile of motorway. Sunny for all of it bar 0.5 of a day of rain in Spain.
Tyres Dunlop trailmax missions. Superb 50/50 tyres both on and off road in the hot temps. Definitely less so good in cold and wet, but longevity wise still going strong after 10k
Nav was a combination using BMW connected Nav, Google maps and Calimoto using my phone in the Nav cradle
Back in Blighty I’ve used it all winter in London and Oxford , revit Goretex laminated and macna heated clothing -
The combination has all been faultless.
Bloody love it!
Revit mesh gear for summer which was ace as temps hit close 40c in Croatia, Montenegro and southern Italy
Bike runs much cooler under the saddle than my previous Ducatis. Used an air mesh cover on the seat which was not only cool but very comfortable
Did 8000 miles all round Europe over 9 weeks not a mile of motorway. Sunny for all of it bar 0.5 of a day of rain in Spain.
Tyres Dunlop trailmax missions. Superb 50/50 tyres both on and off road in the hot temps. Definitely less so good in cold and wet, but longevity wise still going strong after 10k
Nav was a combination using BMW connected Nav, Google maps and Calimoto using my phone in the Nav cradle
Back in Blighty I’ve used it all winter in London and Oxford , revit Goretex laminated and macna heated clothing -
The combination has all been faultless.
Bloody love it!
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