Thanks, Terry! Got your PM and will follow up. Appreciate it!
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R1200RT - Riding Gear for Hot Weather
- Thread starter jbtex
- Start date
Thanks, Terry! Got your PM and will follow up. Appreciate it!
Thanks, Jay! I really appreciate it! I just had surgery this last week and doctors orders are to stay off the bike for two weeks. So the rally sadly is out. Would have loved to meet up at the rally.
You're a bit taller than I am, but it would still be good to actually see the jacket(s). Perhaps a trip out to where you are at after you get back?
One of the things I am curious about is the wind flow to the arms. Already mounted a short Aeroflow windshield to the bike, which improved flow to the upper body. The arms still are getting very little flow on the inside, so I am curious how that can be improved with a different jacket.
Is the Motoport Air Mesh fully mesh along the arms?
Please PM me and we'll meet up after I return from the rally. Terry is a great guy, you should meet him if you can.
The entire suite is Mesh, the quality is superb. I watched a guy have a get off in a corner in a brand new Motorport Air Mesh, his GS was a mess but he was fine the suite showed zero signs of going down. The arms of my suite may be long on you but may be worth taking a ride. I'll follow up with your when I return.
Hope you get the feeling better soon
Jay
pappy35
New member
Here's another approach to hot weather RT'ing, resize the windshield!
I got this shield from someone on here for next to nothing (thanks!) with the intention of doing to it what I did to my '05 FJR: make it shorter to increase airflow on really hot days (like all of July through September around here). Took it out for a run today (yes, it was rough-cut and covered with making tape) and can report remarkable success. I can still get a very quiet bubble but when fully retracted I get great airflow. The wind noise is even better in that it seems less turbulent with much less buffeting.
I did this with a bandsaw and a couple of French curves to draw out the lines. Next step is to polish-up the edges with sandpaper and it'll look like a factory-made accessory. Not bad for 20 minutes work. I might even open up a couple of rectangular holes near the base to let more air in (really to increase the pressure behind the shield in order to smooth out the flow even more) but I'll wait for a while and see how it works day-to-day first.
I got this shield from someone on here for next to nothing (thanks!) with the intention of doing to it what I did to my '05 FJR: make it shorter to increase airflow on really hot days (like all of July through September around here). Took it out for a run today (yes, it was rough-cut and covered with making tape) and can report remarkable success. I can still get a very quiet bubble but when fully retracted I get great airflow. The wind noise is even better in that it seems less turbulent with much less buffeting.
I did this with a bandsaw and a couple of French curves to draw out the lines. Next step is to polish-up the edges with sandpaper and it'll look like a factory-made accessory. Not bad for 20 minutes work. I might even open up a couple of rectangular holes near the base to let more air in (really to increase the pressure behind the shield in order to smooth out the flow even more) but I'll wait for a while and see how it works day-to-day first.
I have cut down a lot of windshields for my bikes and others. I learned the hard way to make sure you tape off the entire shield before you start cutting or sanding. The shavings are the same hardness as the shield and wiping them off the shield will create scratches that cannot be buffed out.
pappy35
New member
I got this shield for $35 so I wasn't worried about scratching it (though I didn't). This is good advice though for any of you adventurous types out there that might want to try trimming your own shield.
ncpbmw1953
Member
At 6'4" tall I find the OEM screen perfect for me in any kind of weather I find myself in. We took the fabulous SR168 out of Big Pine, CA over to 95 south and past LV on the way to St George, UT and had a hellish 110-112F for about 4-5 hours. I used a $21 Hyperkewl vest and it was fabulous. Besides making the ride very bearable it reduced the need to hydrate internally, though of course we did. We stopped about every 90mins and drank fluids and re-soaked the vest and off we went. Arrived in St George in good shape, though I wondered when the tires would start melting! Can't imagine what the pavement temp was in direct sun.
For those 88 to 95 temps for shorter rides just keeping hydrated is enough and I won't use the hyperkewl unless I'm going to be riding a long time at those temps. I love the amount of wind I get w/ the OEM screen all the way down and I always run it down around town unless it's very cold, or when riding the twisties as desired.
I use a Olympia Motosport vented 3-season jacket year round now. I started w/ an Olympia 4-season version but just don't need it. If it's wet the waterproof shell from the 3-season gets put on the outside of everything, and if it's cold and wet I put the other shell w/ insulation that came w/ the 4- season. Good 'nuf.
Quite frankly I'm spoiled by my '16 RT as I never owned any bike as lovely, but then again I've only owned 4 others. It has everything required to make it fantastically capable and comfortable on any kind of pavement. I'm very happy w/ the bike essentially stock and foresee putting 150K on it God willin' n' the creek don' rise
For those 88 to 95 temps for shorter rides just keeping hydrated is enough and I won't use the hyperkewl unless I'm going to be riding a long time at those temps. I love the amount of wind I get w/ the OEM screen all the way down and I always run it down around town unless it's very cold, or when riding the twisties as desired.
I use a Olympia Motosport vented 3-season jacket year round now. I started w/ an Olympia 4-season version but just don't need it. If it's wet the waterproof shell from the 3-season gets put on the outside of everything, and if it's cold and wet I put the other shell w/ insulation that came w/ the 4- season. Good 'nuf.
Quite frankly I'm spoiled by my '16 RT as I never owned any bike as lovely, but then again I've only owned 4 others. It has everything required to make it fantastically capable and comfortable on any kind of pavement. I'm very happy w/ the bike essentially stock and foresee putting 150K on it God willin' n' the creek don' rise
Wonderful write-up on your experience. Thanks!
I agree with your last statement there. We stepped up from two Honda CTX700 as first bikes to '18 RTs and I can't imagine a better bike to make that move to. As a German, I've seen the boxers around all my life, but never imagined I would own one.
As for the riding gear, we've settled on the combination of mesh jackets and cooling vests, although I'm still looking for the perfect mesh jacket and of course the vests. Having your input on the Olympia jacket and Hyperkewl vest is valuable. I'll look at those as well. I'm contemplating a Motoport mesh jacket. A couple of MOA members have offered to let me see theirs before making the decision. We'll see how that one is.
Temp range
I've been following this thread with interest. I lived in AZ for awhile, and later owned a home there while I lived in CO. I have tried the cooling vests under my mesh jacket, and find them useful on the hottest days. Before they were invented, when riding in AZ, I would wear a T-shirt under my mesh jacket. And every 100 miles or so, I would stop at a gas station and buy two bottles of water. I would drink one, and then douse my cotton T-shirt with the other. That works pretty well, actually.
I do a lot of longer distance riding, mostly in the mountain states. And the related problem is that I need to bring gear that will work when it is hot... and also work when it is really cold. So, the calculation is how to bring the right gear, and still have room to carry anything else. My compromise solution is to carry two layers in addition to my mesh riding jacket. I have a water-proof quilted liner for the jacket that works for afternoon thunderstorms and morning (or high elevation) chill. And I have a heated jacket liner that I wear underneath the water-proof liner when it gets really cold. Finally, I have a nylon long-sleeve T-shirt that acts as a wind barrier, and packs up into almost no space. So, I can ride all day, and go up and down in altitude, and have enough layers with me for whatever happens. I do also carry a soaking-vest, but rarely use it.
Cap
I've been following this thread with interest. I lived in AZ for awhile, and later owned a home there while I lived in CO. I have tried the cooling vests under my mesh jacket, and find them useful on the hottest days. Before they were invented, when riding in AZ, I would wear a T-shirt under my mesh jacket. And every 100 miles or so, I would stop at a gas station and buy two bottles of water. I would drink one, and then douse my cotton T-shirt with the other. That works pretty well, actually.
I do a lot of longer distance riding, mostly in the mountain states. And the related problem is that I need to bring gear that will work when it is hot... and also work when it is really cold. So, the calculation is how to bring the right gear, and still have room to carry anything else. My compromise solution is to carry two layers in addition to my mesh riding jacket. I have a water-proof quilted liner for the jacket that works for afternoon thunderstorms and morning (or high elevation) chill. And I have a heated jacket liner that I wear underneath the water-proof liner when it gets really cold. Finally, I have a nylon long-sleeve T-shirt that acts as a wind barrier, and packs up into almost no space. So, I can ride all day, and go up and down in altitude, and have enough layers with me for whatever happens. I do also carry a soaking-vest, but rarely use it.
Cap
zenwhipper
Member
Looks nice. I wonder how that jacket does in the Texas summer heat with easily upper 90's and beyond...
But black??
Swap out that black for a silver/light gray and you will be surprised at the difference.
That jacket is actually the best thing I've ever put on, it felt amazing... Sadly their largest size was about a 1/2 size too small which was super depressing. If you can afford it, it is expensive, I think its hands down the best full protection summer jacket you can get.. The thing just felt absolutely amazing, even with it being 1/2 size small lol
Going to be buying it again next spring, already down almost 50lb, so by next year my big butt should fit in it.
Doesn't seem to make sense, I agree. However, the riders who have a black jacket would need to weigh in. Anyone with the color option able to comment?
Looking it up, there is a light grey color option, which I am interested in checking out.
alegerlotz
Member
Light grey is infinitely cooler. I have jackets in different colors and black or charcoal grey absorbs a lot of heat.
I have run mesh with black on the sleeves and I could definitely feel the heat from the black areas. I even replaced a slightly used jacket for that reason. Bought one that was all silver/gray, much cooler.
85 year old father in law, that is awesome. Your a lucky guyNever understood black as a summer gear color?
I wear all tinfoil, I mean silver. It is hard to find good gear in silver. I even bought my Aerostitch in Gray instead of black. Why I wont buy MotoPort as it is black and the yellow fades to black.
And since I do ride a GS there is a difference of how much air and where I get hit with it on the GS versus the RT.
Those jugs are still sitting there shaking and baking you in traffic though just like a RT.
Cooling vest and humidity? NOT going to work. You can not evaporate water if the air is as saturated or more so then what it is being blown over.
Here in the Eastern USA we can not use Evaporative Coolers or Swamp Coolers because of our humidity. You need dry warm/hot air. If you have doubt look it up. A cooling vest here in PA when the humidity is 75% and it is 95 degrees a cooling vest is just hot condensation hanging on your body.
"Evaporation – The process of conversion of liquid water into vapor form is called evaporation. It occurs constantly in nature as water from water bodies like lakes and rivers vaporize and become part of the atmosphere. There are many conditions that govern the amount of evaporation that occurs in a given location. It is dependent on the amount of water present, wind, the temperature, and the amount of water vapor that is already present in the air".
"Relative Humidity – The amount of water vapor in a given volume of air divided by the amount of air in that volume is called humidity. It depends on the temperature as higher temperature can increase the rate of evaporation and thus the amount of water vapor in the air. At a given temperature, there is a maximum amount of water vapor that air can hold and when the maximum capacity is reached the process of condensation begins".
Love Science.
I say it is like everything else, EVERYONE is different with different levels of tolerance to heat and pain.
EVERYONE just use common sense, stop for gas, stop to drink and look out for each other
I mean I ride with my 85 year old father in law on his RT. He is ex motorcycle policeman. We rode 700 miles last year on our fist day to the BMW Rally! We will be in Lebanon this year! We like to move and we make good time but we do the 100/100 and it works. Ride 100 stop for water and a bio break, ride 100 stop for gas and a bio break. It is a 10 or 15 min thing that makes you feel better and keeps you safe and in eye contact with other riders. I guess I am in my 60's so I do need to bio break more then I used to
Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk
Realshelby
Addicted to windshields
Really? Cycle Port and Moto Port are the same company!
You might have 94% humidity in the morning, but that won't be the case by late morning and the rest of the day. Unless you are in rain. So by the time the day heats up, your humidity will drop. Regardless, even "high humidity" conditions such as 65-70% the evaporative vest helps. But you would have to use one to know that. Putting one under a Stitch with no airflow might not work well either.
I don't care what one chooses to use. I just hate seeing posts that tell people to NOT do this or that because some report said something. BS. There is too much variation to how that works. What kind of bike are you on, do you sweat a lot, is it loose or tight mesh, windshield or not, riding at speed or locally, and on and on.
My overnight stop tomorrow is 788 miles. It will be 81 degrees at 4 am when I pull out. 98-100+ degrees in the afternoon. I have ridden these conditions before. With mesh and evaporative vests. I know from experience that the evaporative vests make a worthwhile difference at speed. Pull over and take one off, then get back on the road. You will stop to put it back on sooner than you might think. I know they work because I have thousands of miles using them in all conditions.
Hi North Texas, congrats on the new bikes, I ride a 09 1200rt I bought lasts year in Aug, I had not ridden in 35 years and had to re-learn how to operate the throttle then I was in heaven.
I rode through the winter for the first time in leathers down here in south Texas, I'm in between Houston and Galveston and right now since June it's been really hot, the heat is 90 and the humidity is 78 to 80, I'm not wearing a mesh jacket with armour yet, I wear a white T and rolled up sleeved thin white winter shirt, jeans became way too hot real fast so I wear much thinner but still denim work pants and sort of heavy cotton socks with leather winter hiking boots. I started sweating badly in my full face helmet so went to a shorty, the type a lot of Harley riders wear and all my riding gear would likely change drastically if I ever went down but I don't know about that either. I've ridden dirt bikes but that not much you can do if a car turns left in front of you, I would really want to hit some one badly but would not. I do wear white mesh gloves and I've been through two hard rain storms I rode through I sure wish I had some place to get under to stay dry but kept riding, NO rain gear, need some badly, I had to lay down on my gas tank to be able to see through my windshield and see the road, it was a little scary as I had not been in rain like that in 40 years. Back in the 70's there was no real motor cycle riding gear, leather jackets, pants, boots and helmets and Ok gloves and that was it. I ride early in the morning till about noon and later in the evening, I'm retired but do not look that age at all, good genes from Mom. My rt looks black and light grey but the black is really very, very dark grey with metal flake, I found a site with the help of some on the forum that sold very bright yellow stick on strips of different lengths so I am seen and car people do take notice, wish the bike was Artic white.
Enjoy your bikes and stay cool if possible this time of year.
I rode through the winter for the first time in leathers down here in south Texas, I'm in between Houston and Galveston and right now since June it's been really hot, the heat is 90 and the humidity is 78 to 80, I'm not wearing a mesh jacket with armour yet, I wear a white T and rolled up sleeved thin white winter shirt, jeans became way too hot real fast so I wear much thinner but still denim work pants and sort of heavy cotton socks with leather winter hiking boots. I started sweating badly in my full face helmet so went to a shorty, the type a lot of Harley riders wear and all my riding gear would likely change drastically if I ever went down but I don't know about that either. I've ridden dirt bikes but that not much you can do if a car turns left in front of you, I would really want to hit some one badly but would not. I do wear white mesh gloves and I've been through two hard rain storms I rode through I sure wish I had some place to get under to stay dry but kept riding, NO rain gear, need some badly, I had to lay down on my gas tank to be able to see through my windshield and see the road, it was a little scary as I had not been in rain like that in 40 years. Back in the 70's there was no real motor cycle riding gear, leather jackets, pants, boots and helmets and Ok gloves and that was it. I ride early in the morning till about noon and later in the evening, I'm retired but do not look that age at all, good genes from Mom. My rt looks black and light grey but the black is really very, very dark grey with metal flake, I found a site with the help of some on the forum that sold very bright yellow stick on strips of different lengths so I am seen and car people do take notice, wish the bike was Artic white.
Enjoy your bikes and stay cool if possible this time of year.
One other thing I want to add to the above post is that I drink a lot of water before I go riding and pee just before I leave, I thought I might have to stop and pee while out but no i'm sweating instead and started carrying one other real cold bottle of water wrapped in a heavy towel and drink it while out and hoped in the beginning of the summer I wouldn't have to stop and pee. Nope, I sweated instead, riding in a T when it's real hot, I've not used mesh yet and have not been on the main hi way down here in south Tx. I was thinking about my torso protection, at times I've thought about wearing my leather jacket unzipped but it's way too damn hot so the armoured mesh will have to work. I would feel safer with it.
