gear for hot weather

[buduski]

Anyone have recommendations for vented jacket and pants for HOT weather? I live in the mid Atlantic region, and weather here gets hot and humid in the summer. I love my 1 piece Roadcrafter suit, but it's just too hot in the dog days of summer!

[cmartin]

I have a Olympia Bushwhacker Jacket and vented pants that I use in the summer. Matter of fact, I have not worn my Darian since I got the Bushwhacker jacket. I think this may be a year round riding gear for Texas.

Check it out: Olympia

[StuWG]

I don't know wether they import to the US, but Richa do a fully vented jacket called a Scirocco. (UK importer link.)

It's mostly mesh, it also has 5 peice CE armour (elbows, shoulders & back).

It has to be hot to wear it (needless to say I hardly get a chance to wear mine in the UK!!!) But have ridden in 40C plus and it was bliss.
They also do trousers as well, but I found with warm air coming over a pair of hot pots and then blasting up vented trousers, the Family Jewels were verging on Medium Rare , thank god for jeans.

[Pastor Passum]

Buduski, check out Olympia's Airglide 2 pants and jacket at http://www.olympiamotosports.com/airglide/airglide.htm
I purchased their Airglide 2 Jacket prior to my trip to the Canadian Rockies in July following the national rally in Wisconsin. I love it. We traveled in temps varing from the low 40's to well over 100. The waterproof liner kept me dry in several hours of hard rain and the price is right at just over $200. I can't vouch for the pants but the jacket is hard to beat.

Jim

[buduski]

Thanks for all responses- all very good ideas. I'll check them out! I'm getting too old for the tee shirt riding. People seem to be concentrating on everything else but driving as they're wheeling that big SUV down the road.

[JimVonBaden]

Olympia is good stuff!

BTW You are only about 70 miles from me. I actually ride up that way after work for dinner occasonally!

Jim

[buduski]

Jim- I knew you were close. My uncle lives in Triangle. I was doing a test ride at Morton's last week and will be going by Bob's Monday for a ride. If you are going to be in the Charles Town- Harpers Ferry area anytime, give me a call and we can meet for coffee or lunch or whatever. 304-725-1116. My name is Hugh.

[Hankster]

CYcleport/Motoport ventilated kevlar. Not cheap, but I bought mine specifically for riding here in Southern CA. Sold my leathers cause this stuff is more protective and more comfortable.
http://www.motoport.com/

[The Veg]

I live in the Dallas TexSux metro area, where summers can be real thermonuculer saunas that last half the year.
For the last three years my hot-weather suit has been a Cortech GX Air jacket with Marsee mesh pants. They look close enough that most folks think that they're the same brand. The mesh flows air well enough, but I do have one gripe with the jacket: the sleeve-linings. The sleeves are lined with a very fine-textured synthetic fabric, and if I have short sleeves on underneath, that fabric sticks to sweaty skin in a most unpleasant way. I can somewhat alleviate the problem by wearing a long-sleeve moisture-wicking shirt under the jacket, but unless I'm going highway speed I wind up feeling a bit warmer.
These garments have survived a crash and countless machine-washings and dryings, but next year I think they may be due for replacement. I'll probably wind up getting Olympia, based on everything I've heard about them.
For gloves, I've been using the Cortech GX Air. These are mostly leather with mesh around the sides of the fingers and on the top of the hand. They seem to be well-made and they flow air pretty well too. I have not crash-tested them. These gloves also dry out pretty quickly after a good rain-soaking. I have since learned that when it rains, as long as it's not cold the best bet is to leave the mesh gloves on and accept the wet hands as the mesh gloves will dry faster than anything out there as long as I keep riding.
For boots, I can report two things. I used to ride in Hytec Magnum combat-style boots, which are lightweight, waterproof, very breathable, and four-season comfy, plus being super for walking around off the bike. The addition of lace-in zippers made them even better. The downside was the bulky sole, which made the area around my airhead's shifter a bit cramped.
A couple of years ago I got a pair of Prexsport boots, which are the usual sleek and trim motorcycle boots and are waterproof and pretty comfy overall for under $200. But in the hot and humid summer, they SUCKED. But then I replaced my cotton socks with good moisture-wicking hiking socks and they have become MUCH more comfy, although still a bit hot.

[Vys10fooks]

Originally Posted by buduski

Anyone have recommendations for vented jacket and pants for HOT weather? I live in the mid Atlantic region, and weather here gets hot and humid in the summer. I love my 1 piece Roadcrafter suit, but it's just too hot in the dog days of summer!

I wear the Olympia Recon jacket and pants. I live in Arizona and ride everyday. Humidity is lower that your part of the country but when it hits 110 plus in Aug. and Sept., (think standing in front of a giant heat gun on full blast), the Recon keeps me cool and actually blocks some of the heat. I even close the face shield on my Arai XD helmet to block the heat.