The No Gear Good Old Days!

[BMARC153920]

I wear a HELITE Air Bag vest myself - best safety investment I made, next to my full-face helmet!

While I do not over-relax behind all that personal protective gear, as if I'm now some invincible Road-Knight, I'd feel vulnerable without it. Don't miss the ignorance of my early riding years.

I have the Hit Air brand but like you it has given me a much more confident feeling of safety when riding. Not to the level of taking risks or false sense of security but rather I just feel safer with it on.

I also have the optional CE chest and kidney pads in my vest which also lend to the secure feeling.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[greenwald]

I have the Hit Air brand but like you it has given me a much more confident feeling of safety when riding. Not to the level of taking risks or false sense of security but rather I just feel safer with it on.

I also have the optional CE chest and kidney pads in my vest which also lend to the secure feeling.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Good for you!

Considering that a helmet should be replaced every 5 years, roaming in the $300 - $700 range, a once-in-a-lifetime purchase of a $600+ air bag vest is a smart investment in safety!

Here's a link to the article I wrote:

http://www.helitemoto.com/blogwingw...irbag-technology-in-the-february-2016-issue-/

 

[AKsuited]

ATGATT to the mini-mart? Every time.

Be honest, were you ATGATT all the time you were a motor officer? Besides the CHP motors, the few motor officers in New York are dressed much like CHP, except maybe leather jackets at times...

Harry

 

[greenwald]

Be honest, were you ATGATT all the time you were a motor officer? Besides the CHP motors, the few motor officers in New York are dressed much like CHP, except maybe leather jackets at times...

Harry

Harry - Absolutely NOT. My choice was to dress inappropriately or not ride the motors.

I chose the motors, and had to adhere to department policy. So it was short sleeves in summer, and a half-helmet Spring, Summer and Fall (very unsafe - not even allowed in MSF courses on any Wisconsin technical college campuses).

I often reference those days to my current students as an example of how not to dress, but I don't regret the 7 years I spent on the road on two wheels as an LEO. Amassed volumes of training and experience that serves me well to this day.

Many European LEO's dress more intelligently than we do here in the states. Full jackets (in Spain and France, usually an air bag-integrated garment!) and full-face helmets.

My reference to ATGATT reflects my personal riding and professional instructing.

 

[dandeldesierto]

Waaaay back in the day...

I remember (like many of you guys) when there really wasn't any motorcycle gear, except for leather jackets and sh#&^*y helmets. I used to carry trash bags and duct tape, could make any kind of rain gear from leggings to hoodies. Hiking boots were riding boots. Nylon or poly ski bibs were the greatest thing ever (until they brushed up against the exhaust), ski jackets were the warmest thing out there.

I really don't miss that part of the old days...

 

[36654]

Hiking boots were riding boots.

They aren't? Darn, screwed-up again........

 

[BCKRider]

I thought I was an ATGATT rider (almost always) until I read this thread. Ashamed to say that I DON'T have an air bag vest - and after reading Kevin's review, it does seem like a good idea. So does the ATGATT bit go out the window if you don't have an inflatable vest?

Kevin and others might be amused about my story of how NOT wearing all my gear saved me from a speeding ticket. I was just riding into town 4 miles away to fill up the tank on my bike for a longer trip the next day. I put on all my gear except for the riding pants. Funny, but when you are used to riding with all your gear, one piece missing seems a little scary. So I rode a little slower. When I hit the 50 kph stretch just before town (a ridiculously slow speed since this stretch of road is straight and flat and driveways are totally visible) instead of going my normal 70+ kph, I was just over 60. RCMP officer, hiding behind a tree, had me on his radar gun and pulled me over. Hey, he had me dead to rights. I waited for maybe 10 minutes while he consulted his computer and likely found I had not had a speeding ticket for over 20 years. "I am issuing you a warning." "Thank you." Then the conversation got interesting.

"How long have you been operating here?" "About one and half hours." "How many vehicles have been exceeding the speed limit?" "All of them. The reason I'm giving you a warning rather than a ticket is that your motorcycle was the slowest vehicle yet."

I DON'T think the moral of my story is to not wear all your gear, whatever that may be. Rather, when entering or exiting a small town, get your speed down to a little above the posted limit unless someone ahead of you is going faster. If speed enforcement (however misplaced) is happening, let the other guy be the one who gets the ticket.

 

[greenwald]

I thought I was an ATGATT rider (almost always) until I read this thread. Ashamed to say that I DON'T have an air bag vest - and after reading Kevin's review, it does seem like a good idea. So does the ATGATT bit go out the window if you don't have an inflatable vest?

Kevin and others might be amused about my story of how NOT wearing all my gear saved me from a speeding ticket. I was just riding into town 4 miles away to fill up the tank on my bike for a longer trip the next day. I put on all my gear except for the riding pants. Funny, but when you are used to riding with all your gear, one piece missing seems a little scary. So I rode a little slower. When I hit the 50 kph stretch just before town (a ridiculously slow speed since this stretch of road is straight and flat and driveways are totally visible) instead of going my normal 70+ kph, I was just over 60. RCMP officer, hiding behind a tree, had me on his radar gun and pulled me over. Hey, he had me dead to rights. I waited for maybe 10 minutes while he consulted his computer and likely found I had not had a speeding ticket for over 20 years. "I am issuing you a warning." "Thank you." Then the conversation got interesting.

"How long have you been operating here?" "About one and half hours." "How many vehicles have been exceeding the speed limit?" "All of them. The reason I'm giving you a warning rather than a ticket is that your motorcycle was the slowest vehicle yet."

I DON'T think the moral of my story is to not wear all your gear, whatever that may be. Rather, when entering or exiting a small town, get your speed down to a little above the posted limit unless someone ahead of you is going faster. If speed enforcement (however misplaced) is happening, let the other guy be the one who gets the ticket.

Doug -

I did enjoy your tale of woe that ended well for you. Glad the officer had the empathy to issue a warning - you're certainly NOT the problem rider we all see every day when we're out on the road.

As for your question about "Does ATGATT go out the window if not wearing an air bag vest?"

The simple answer is NO. While an air bag vest is now very affordable, lasts a lifetime (unless badly damaged saving your life - insurance may very well pay for a replacement), and is simply worn loose over your favorite riding gear, it may be out of financial reach for some - not stylish enough for others - to each their own. We all decide how much our bodies are worth when we suit up.

It DOES represent a significant raising of the bar in personal protection, and glad your read my article. I put a lot of miles, research and testing into that eventual endorsement. I own two of them, as the SO deserves equal protection as well.

Ride often and ATGATT!

 

[daboo]

I'll add another strong recommendation for an air bag vest. I opted for the Hit-Air vest. It was a little less expensive than the Helite, but seemed to do the job as well from what I could tell.

What got me looking into one, was an accident by a forum member (different forum). He had a lot of experience riding, yet for some reason, he went straight when the road turned. His riding gear protected him from any road rash just fine. But...he ended up with 17 bones broken in his torso, a cracked vertebrae and a crushed vertebrae. He almost lost his life. Yet, if he'd had one of these air bag vests, he probably would've walked away from the accident.

It seems expensive, but if you think of just one day's cost in the hospital, that's a drop in the bucket. And that doesn't even count the cost of the pain as you heal, sometimes for months.

After 30,000 miles of riding my other sport-touring bike, I finally dropped it. I was pulling out onto a busy intersection where the light had just changed. I had time to get ahead of the long line of traffic that was just starting to move, so I looked and started to pull out...just as a teenager stepped in front of me with his skateboard. I jammed on the front brake...and promptly hit the ground. As I'm laying there, I realized I didn't feel any impact to the ground. The air bag vest worked. And I had hit a curb as well.

The air bag vest doesn't just protect your ribs, but when the vest inflates, it also blows up a portion that protects your collarbone and neck, plus the tailbone area. And this is all before you can hit the ground.

If you do something dumb like I did, it'll cost you about $20 for a new CO2 cartridge. If you're concerned about it inflating because you start to walk away from your bike without disconnecting it, don't worry. It takes more than 60 lbs of force to inflate the CO2 cartridge.

Chris

 

[henzilla]

I remember (like many of you guys) when there really wasn't any motorcycle gear, except for leather jackets and sh#&^*y helmets. I used to carry trash bags and duct tape, could make any kind of rain gear from leggings to hoodies. Hiking boots were riding boots. Nylon or poly ski bibs were the greatest thing ever (until they brushed up against the exhaust), ski jackets were the warmest thing out there.

I really don't miss that part of the old days...

My first helmet was a Bell around '71...it was a solid heavy helmet. Very heavy compared to current offerings...It was a condition set by my mom when she finally relented on bike ownership...thru the years I went back and forth on usage as the laws went back and forth as well and I was in that rebellious age bracket. Now, it's a ...wait for it...a no-brainer to help protect it.
I wore the Bell but often was wearing Birdwell Beach Britches and Chuck Taylor high tops in the summer running on the beach and oyster shell roads of west Galveston Island ( county back then, not in city limits)...lot's of early lessons learned But the Honda 90 Scrambler was still a chick magnet Good times
Crashing on compacted oyster shell taught us to not do that again!But it happened. Riding gravel is way less hazardous than oyster shells!

My buddies often wore those down filled puffy jackets when we moved up to 750cc and larger bikes( I prob was in a Levi's denim with several layers of long johns)...the one buddy on his Kawa 500 triple I always provided first aid to as I typically found him horizontal after a sweeper ...well, one day I see clumps of cotton on the road as i came around the corner..yep, his puffy jacket had exploded...but he was once again still getting back to his feet...luckiest guy I knew...no more puffy jackets!

I still wear hiking boots or heavy leather 'lineman's " boots on occasion...they are heavier and thicker in places than some of the specific riding boots I have...prob will continue to do so at times.

Gloves what were gloves? Took me about 15 years to get that memo.

The air bag vest looks promising...don't buy in to anything being "lifetime" however...the years will tell for the current generation.

MOGMOT , ATGATT and on occasion NMG...we understand the risks with decisions made.

Watching the huge crowds running out here during ROT Rally this past weekend with passengers in denim daisy dukes, no helmet and bikini tops did cause me to wish them well...They are in the operators control of what can happen...sadly. Ignorance is bliss they say.

 

[AKsuited]

My first helmet was a Bell around '71...it was a solid heavy helmet.

My first helmet was an "HA" from that time period. I believe it was a very early Arai, since the founder's name was Hirotake Arai.

By the way, Arai just replied to my email inquiry: yes, Arai helmet face shields do block UVA and UVB, from 97 to 99 percent of both UVA and UVB. I've had skin cancer more times than I care to disclose, and this is good news.

Harry

 

[markaz]

My first helmet was a Bell around '71...

Mine too, an orange Super Magnum. I still have it. It was Snell 1970 approved, even. I mail ordered it from an ad in Road & Track. It was especially cool because some of the Grand Prix drivers wore them. IIRC it cost about $50 which was a respectable sum in 1971, at least for me. I wanted the full face Bell Star but it was out of my price range. I had a brand new Honda CB350 that I commuted about 50 mile/day on. Except for a denim jacket when it was cool, the helmet was all the gear I had. I never rode in flip-flops but I did ride in shorts & tennis shoes now and then and have the burn scars on my legs to prove it (mostly from touching the exhaust pipe while refueling...ouch). I have all the gear now (no air vest, tho) and always wear it. My wife (who often rode pillion on the CB when she was only a girlfriend, also with only a helmet) has remarked about how different it was then.

 

[jolev55]

Air bag vest

How much of an adjustment is it being "tethered" to your bike with the Air nest? I read the article in the ON: 60 lb test, easy to reload etc. .

Doug -

I did enjoy your tale of woe that ended well for you. Glad the officer had the empathy to issue a warning - you're certainly NOT the problem rider we all see every day when we're out on the road.

As for your question about "Does ATGATT go out the window if not wearing an air bag vest?"

The simple answer is NO. While an air bag vest is now very affordable, lasts a lifetime (unless badly damaged saving your life - insurance may very well pay for a replacement), and is simply worn loose over your favorite riding gear, it may be out of financial reach for some - not stylish enough for others - to each their own. We all decide how much our bodies are worth when we suit up.

It DOES represent a significant raising of the bar in personal protection, and glad your read my article. I put a lot of miles, research and testing into that eventual endorsement. I own two of them, as the SO deserves equal protection as well.

Ride often and ATGATT!

 

[BMARC153920]

How much of an adjustment is it being "tethered" to your bike with the Air nest? I read the article in the ON: 60 lb test, easy to reload etc. .

Not much at all. Becomes second nature after a few rides. A simple tug like getting off the bike and forgetting it is connected WILL NOT set the airbag off. You need significant force to set it off.

Even if you manage to do so, it's a simple job of replacing the c02 cartridge for about $20 and 5 minutes work to make the vest armed and ready for use again.

Like Doug I spent the better part of the winter researching airbag vests and jackets. I went with HitAir for a variety of reasons but either will do the job well.

I see an airbag vest much the same as airbags in cars, they work with and compliment other safety devices like seatbelts and crumble zones. On a bike an airbag complements good abrasion resistant gear with good impact armor and a good helmet, boots and gloves for true total protection as best you can.

Nothing will protect you 100 percent in 100 percent of all crash scenarios but if I can increase my odds of avoiding injury or death by even a fraction of a percent for a few hundred bucks and a few extra seconds of gear management I could not see the justification not too.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[daboo]

Agree. It's just part of the habit I have of getting on the bike. I've walked away from the bike three times...and been promptly jerked back. It hasn't gone off, except when I dropped the bike.

Chris

 

[greenwald]

Agree. It's just part of the habit I have of getting on the bike. I've walked away from the bike three times...and been promptly jerked back. It hasn't gone off, except when I dropped the bike.

Chris

Similar results. While researching for the article I wrote, I went thru 5 cylinders testing various "unintentional deployments." You would practically have to run away from the bike to get it to fire, but if ejected, the HELITE would deploy every time!