Summers here! (for a day.. in the UK)

[siplumb]

Well, that strange orange glow in the sky has been out for most of the day and it got me thinking.. I never ride my pcx125 without the full protective trousers and jacket but feel a slight pang of jealousy when I see someone whizzing around in shorts and t-shirt.. Now, are they being the idiot risking losing most of their skin off their body if they come off, or am I being too ultra careful after 18 months riding (no deaths) and missing out on the sun on my arms? Discuss.....

[Alibally]

I'm the same. You just never know. I would rather be a bit warm for the 30 mins my journey takes but I wouldn't like to come off at 60 mph in shorts and sandals. Mind I wouldn't want to come off at all.

[lactic]

Got knocked off my bicycle by a car a couple of months ago at approx 25mph wearing shorts and a long sleeve top, I can confirm it f***ing hurts a lot when you slam into the tarmac and the loss of skin is a real pain in more ways than one, so my advice GEAR UP

[maddiedog]

I whizz around in shorts and a t-shirt for short rides, but I gear up for long ones. It's a risk vs convenience calculation that varies with each individual and their perception of how dangerous riding is.

I don't wear full gear when I mountain bike, road bike, or dirt bike either. Road rash sucks, but the comfort and agility of not wearing full gear is worth it for me, especially when dirt biking. Mind you, I do ALWAYS wear a helmet and ALWAYS wear riding boots when dirt biking. When I was a kid, I got BAD road rash from street lugeing with no gear. It HURTS.

In my opinion, if you ride defensively and follow road laws, any accident you will have is going to involve someone hitting you directly. The amount of crushing injury will far outweigh the road rash in my opinion, especially at scootering speeds.

[Alibally]

I suppose it depends where you travel. I use mostly country roads with reasonably high (for a pcx) speeds but if your doing 20 mph in a big city the risk is different.
I value my skin and although no gear can made you invincible, I think its not worth it.
It's the Lycra posers on the bicycles that get me. I've seen a few guys in a big mess when they have come off at relatively low speeds.

[ScooterKim]

It's hot here in Pennsylvania. It's been in the 90's for about a week now. not an excuse to wear shorts but in a way it is. I put a bike down in April with jeans and sweatshirt on. I got banged up but no road rash. You'd think I would learn from that and wear protective gear but I mainly ride around town, 10 -- 15 mile trips one way. I wear shorts, T top, sneakers, always my fluorescent green T shirt over the tank top, always my gloves and helmet. It's a matter of personal choice. I choose the shorts but I also choose the helmet. Now, the question to ask is how many people do not wear a helmet???

[logepoge1]

I sorta had a small accident in a gravel parking lot. Really was just a scraped knee and hand. I decided since then I would ride at least with jeans. A week later and I am back to shorts and a tshirt. You really can't wear much more in louisiana where the current temperature here is 90, which is lower than normal as we have been having record lows all week. I have to wear pants though when I ride to my summer job since they require black dress pants so I have that small protection and my full face helmet, which is neat and has built in sun glasses that pop down with a switch on the side. I love my pcx and its nice at only 100 a month on loan and 40 on full coverage progressive insurance for a 17 year old driver

[GeezyRider]

I made a promise to myself when I got my MC license that it would be ATGATT for me. I rode today in 95 degree heat and my wife asked me if I was miserable. I was actually pretty comfortable. My mesh riding jacket is vented nicely and works really well at keeping me cool. If my shirt under the jacket is the least bit damp, it actually feels as if I am riding in AC when the bike is moving.

[ScooterKim]

didn't know what ATGATT meant. isn't google wonderful??!! I will seriously consider it, GeezyRider.

[logepoge1]

In north louisiana it is usually too humid to wear too much gear

[kramnala58]

Here in Bangkok it is hot all the time. In 14 months of living here the coolest it has been is 72°F/22°C ... and that was the overnight low. I live in the center of the city so I do exclusive city driving. Running to the end of my street I don't wear a helmet, but I always do when riding off of my street. As far as clothing/gear beyond that, it is typically jeans and a t-shirt, but sometimes it's shorts. Most motorcyclists here wear a light wind breaker type jacket, but it is mainly to keep the sun off their skin.

I find it interesting to hear that many of us gear up for longer trips but are a little more casual closer to home. I heard a report a few years ago when I was living in Canada that the majority of accidents (including fatalities) happen within 5 miles (8 kms) of home. I think that this is only the natural result of driving the majority of our miles/kms closer to home. Thus it would seem that the most important time for ATGATT is when we are close to home. Just yesterday I was sitting on my bike in the parking lot at my office talking to someone and the person parked directly in from of me decided to back up before pulling forward and clipped my front fender even after I hurriedly pulled the bike back 3 or 4 feet and was literally screaming at her to stop as she was backing up. Fortunately the damage only ended up being a scuff on the fender. But had I not been able to get out of the way she would have pushed me back the 3 or 4 feet.

The other thing is the scare factor. We see a bad accident and we start to be more cautious, whether it is a commitment to ATGATT on the bike or seat belts in the car, but within a short period of time the scare wears off and we are back to the old habits. I guess we each have our own standard. Some are safer than others, but in the end, a leopard doesn't usually change its spots, so lets not get judge each other about what do or don't do — offer friendly advice and share our personal practices, but I don't think getting on each other's cases is going to make much difference.

Happy and safe riding everyone!!

[Mel46]

Well here is an area that I know a lot about. When I was young a foolish I lived in West Texas where it is really hot in the summer and really cold in the winter. There are no trees to block the wind. For my first year I rode fully clothed and just about died of heat stroke. Now they have jackets that allow you to cool off while riding. Unfortunately a lot of local riding is stop and go, and there is no cooling in that kind of condition. I raced out there and did all sorts of other stupid things, fully dressed. By the end of the day I had lost a ton of weight in sweat. Then I moved to Dallas and had the same situation but kept full gear on because of the traffic. Then I moved to New Orleans and the world changed! It was like being in a bowl with the humidity at 95%. Off came the coat. Jeans replaced leathers. I was still very, very hot but that was as far down the list of clothing I would go. Then I moved to Hawaii, and forget the jeans and boots, and gloves. Now I live in Atlanta and spend most of my time riding without a jacket, but I always wear at least one of my pair of boots...one being heavier than the other. I always wear my helmet and gloves, and wear at least my jeans no matter how hot it gets. I have also lived in Alabama, Florida, California, and a bunch of other states....all but Alaska. My advice is based on lots of experience and a few accidents. Always wear gloves, helmet and boots. Jackets are good but balance that with health issues that heat can cause. Safety is good but be realistic.

[logepoge1]

I probably will need to dress more when I go to college though because those are real crazy drivers. I have ridden by schwinn bicycle for the past two years on a college campus where I went to a public boarding high school and we had to share the roads with the college drivers, but we werent allowed to drive our own cars, just walk or bike( which meant my mustang only gets driven twice a month). So I will definately be prepared this fall