Aeostich Womens Roadcrafter

Does anyone have any Aerostich riding gear? Aerostich now has Roadcrafter suits in women's sizes. I've been looking into getting one of these for a while but without the ability to try to them on (plus the cost) I just couldn't really justify it. Now that there come in women's sizes, it might be worth a trip to try one on.

I've been wearing Olympia gear for a while now. I have winter gear and summer gear. My summer gear is getting quite worn. I'd like to get some new pants and a new jacket. But, keeping in mind my interest in the Roadcrafter suit, I thought I'd wait until I really needed something new before buying more mesh gear. I just looked up the cost of the Olympia gear to compare it to the cost of the Roadcrafter suit. My two sets of gear from Olympia would cost about $1,200 to replace both. The Roadcrafter women's suit is $897 (currently on sale for $807 - 10% off). I think I'd need to go there and try one on. It would be a nice 16 hour or so trip. Maybe for our next anniversary road trip. :-)

Not much between here and there. But, I'm sure I can find something interesting along the route. :-)

I'd love to get a hi viz yellow one with black ballistics. :-)

Quick Update

Not motorcycle related, directly anyway...

So, after I got laid off, many people were quite upset. Turns out, some of the folks who fund my salary, were not happy. I am paid by at least 3 different grants. One of them decided they couldn't continue to pay my salary. They neglected to inform the other grants or get their input. Those other folks were not happy at all. So, I am currently still employed. Basically, my lay off has been postponed for another 6 months to give me time to continue working on these other projects and to try to come up with a longer term plan for my position. In the meantime, I'm looking for a more stable job.

The good news is, I've been riding a lot more. Riding always makes me less grumpy when I get to work. It's been quite a challenge to remain positive and professional on the job. Motorcycling helps a lot. It also saves me some money being cheaper at the gas pump. And, I'll need to do more of that while my future employment is in question.

The GS went over 22,000 miles last week. My warranty runs out September 12th. I had some stuff checked out after our vacation. I got my clock and odometer fixed. It was a blown fuse. The bike looks great according to the certified BMW techs. :-)

I also added a new sticker to the GS. I took off this sticker from the rear left side panel.

I replaced it with this sticker that I'd been saving since 2009, waiting for the inspiration to come to me as to the best location to place it.

 The Forester just rolled over 17,000 miles yesterday. :-) Oh, and did I tell you that my lovely hubby got rid of the dead Bronco in our driveway? I can now park the Forester in the driveway! Woo hoo! We are down to three cars in front of our house (that's down from 5). Our pseudo son-in-law has been using the small truck since the grandbaby came. We've just learned that he is skilled at tile work and plumbing tasks. We may have a chat with him about exchanging some of that work for the truck. We've got lots of projects in the hopper.... Could be a win-win for everyone. :-)

The hubby and I had our first official co-babysitting night last night. Little Ava has hit a constant crying stage it seems. She screams more for her mother (of course) than for others. Her mother is quite exhausted. Here she is, as cute as can be, while she's not crying. :-)

Happy trails folks!

Carhartt Quilt-Lined Waist Overall

I found these fabulous overpants at TJMaxx for about $30. They are currently in the Carhartt online outlet store for $48. The women's quilted waist overalls come in dark brown and sandstone. (They only had sandstone at TJMaxx.) They also come in various lengths. At the time I hadn't considered these as riding overpants. I was just buying them to throw on when I needed to shovel snow. (My hubby's thinking, "When you shovel snow??) I would have selected the longer length if I had but they work well on the bike too. I wore them for the first time this morning over my draggin jeans. I wish I'd considered this option before I bought new winter Olympia pants.

So far they are very comfortable on the bike. They didn't bunch up at all during my morning commute. They blocked the wind very well too. The material is pretty heavy duty as expected from Carhartt. There even seems to be room in the knees if I had some armor in my pants (which I don't). I bought my "true" size and they still fit well over my jeans. By true size I mean I didn't purposefully buy a larger size in anticipation of wearing them over my regular clothes.

I should probably not pass judgment until I've put a few miles on them but so far so good.

Spot Personal Tracker

I've heard lots of motorcyclists talk about the Spot Personal Tracker device. It uses satellites to track your location, create maps of your routes, send emergency alerts if needed, calls selected personal phone numbers in non-life threatening situations, and other things depending on the unit. I've always liked the idea of being able to track my route because I have such a terrible memory. Those I-wonder-where-this-road-goes trips are especially difficult to put down after the fact. So, when I happened to find this:
on the 70% off table at the Eddie Bauer Outlet Store, I couldn't resist. I haven't subscribed to the satellite service yet so I can't tell you anything about it. But, this link tells you all about this particular unit. It looks like the basic service is about $100 a year plus $45 a year for the tracking service. I can't wait to try it out. :-)

Invisible Rider

The other day I drove to work and this motorcyclist was in front of me. As I followed behind, I couldn't help but notice how invisible he looked. He was on a black motorcycle, had black saddle bags, a black jacket, and a silver helmet. We were on a black asphalt road and as we traveled along the barely sloping road, he would literally disappear when the road ahead was as high as his helmet. When he needed to brake, his tail light lit up but beyond that, it was hard to see him. And I was right behind him and was looking for him. I took a photo of him with my iPhone.

I've seen this phenomenon before. The first time it was a silver motorcycle, silver gear, and the guy also disappeared as he traveled on the silvery road. At that time, I was on a silver motorcycle, with silver pants and a silver jacket as well. It was startling to know that I was just as invisible as he was. It was shortly after that I started buying hi-viz gear and also had my hubby add more lights to my motorcycle. And I already love stickers to I added some reflective stickers as well.

Today I ride a black motorcycle. I still have my silver pants but do wear my hi-viz jacket. And when I wear my silver warm weather jacket, I wear a hi-viz vest over it. I haven't had any extra lights added on just yet but it's on the list. I also have a yellow top case and yellow tank saddle bags. My side cases are a dark army green but I have lots of reflective stickers on them including large yellow panels on the sides. (The plastic side cases weren't the right kind of plastic to paint them.) And I'll always wear a white helmet, unless I find a hi-viz or yellow one that fits.

As the days get shorter I try to keep in mind all of these things. I am of the better safe than sorry crowd so will continue to add more to myself and my bike to make myself more visible. If I could get to the Aerostich warehouse, I'd probably invest in a hi-viz Roadcrafter suit. But there is no way I'm spending all that money without trying one on. Hmmmm.... sounds like a road trip might be in order....... In the meantime, I'll probably stick with the ladies Olympia AST Jacket and Promax pants. From Motogear Outlet of course.

Shiny side up everyone!!

Velcro Brush

Here is the velcro brush I mentioned in a previous blog post. It's a very small thing that I bought at a local hardware store in Boulder (McGuckins). It isn't anything special really. I don't use it very often but it cleans the velcro pretty well. Then I have to clean the brush by picking out the lint with my fingers or tweezers. I use it the most after visiting my sister-in-law. They have 4 dogs. :-)

Questions about gear

A friend of mine, who is looking to buy her first motorcycle shortly after taking a motorcycle safety class, has been asking me all sorts of fun questions. It's great to think about how far I've come as a rider and how much fun it still is to ride. It also helps me to think about all the stuff I still have to learn. Today we talked about gear. I'd been thinking about gear and the question of whether or not the gear has a shelf life or mileage life span even before she and I started this conversation.

For example, I've had my boots since August 2008. I think when I bought them I was told three years was a good long life for them if I only wore them on the bike and not for walking around in or at work all day. I do wear them at work but not very often because they are so hot and bulky. They are pretty scuffed up and most of those scuffs I really can't explain. The toes for some reason are quite scruffy looking. Is that from debris on the road?? I can't think of any other reason they'd get that way.

I've also had my mesh Olympia jacket and pants for a long time. The pants I've had since at least September 2007. The jacket since April 2008. The jacket is in pretty good condition. But I don't wear it year round like I do with my boots and even the mesh pants. The pants are looking a bit worse for wear. I've had one of the belt loops repaired and now another has come undone. The piping on the side of the legs is wearing thin. There's a hole in one of the front pockets. Oh, and they are stained and pretty filthy looking. But, by using a velcro brush that I bought recently, they still function just fine.

I'm planning to buy some winter pants this year. I'd also like to get a new Olympia winter jacket but my Tour Master still works just fine. It fits a bit tighter than I remember for some reason. Mostly I like the Olympia gear and I can get a hi-viz color too.

So, dear readers (I think I'm up to three now), how often do you buy new gear? Assuming no unexpected get offs, will gear wear out?

Reflectivity

I took this photo this morning before heading off to work. I was trying to capture my winter riding gear. Although, this morning is was pretty warm compared to earlier in the week. So, I had on fewer layers. My rain pants weren't needed to block the wind. I didn't realize how fabulously reflective I am. That was a pleasant surprise. I strive to be conspicuous on the motorcycle. I am glad I bought this Olympia vest to wear over my Tour Master jacket. I've even worn it over my mesh hi-viz jacket in the evening because of the large reflective patches. There's a large one on the back as well. The piping down my pant legs works well too. It is very narrow piping so I am never convinced of it's effectiveness. But, the flash from the camera certainly lit it up. There are also reflective strips on the tank saddle bags. I think I'll add more reflective stickers to my helmet. There are two reflective fleur de lis on the sides toward the back. Time for more!

Cold mornings, warm afternoons

Rode to work yesterday and today. The mornings are still pretty cold, in the mid 20s. In fact, this morning, as I walked out to load up the moto, my neighbor was scraping ice off her windshield. But, the high today was close to 60! Of course, I'm sitting at my desk when those temperatures are happening. But, it does melt more of the ice that still lingers on the side streets and in the parking lot.

Yesterday morning, leaving my driveway, my rear tire slide out a bit on the ice that was still in the street. The block still has enough ice to make the street bumpy in places. I slide out a little as I drove away as well, yesterday. But, coming home, the melt had happened and most of those spots were just wet. Still some chunks of ice but I could avoid them and drive on the wet spots. When I got to work that morning, the parking lot was mostly a sheet of ice. The moto parking spaces, which used to be the snow plow point, were pretty clear. But, the entry into them was a sheet of ice. So, I pulled in head first, and waited until 2:00 when the ice melted, to turn the bike around.

This morning, leaving the driveway wasn't a problem. But, the parking lot at work is still a bit scary. For some reason, the parking lot had been plowed again. There wasn't any more snow but instead there were long lines of raised ice, the trail of the plow, running parallel to the curb. I was able to carefully back into the spot this time. As I was leaving however, I did hit a chunk of ice edge that pushed the back end quite a bit, enough to catch me off guard. (Actually, I just wasn't paying attention.) And, instead of taking the left to exit the parking lot, I took a right to go through the parking lot. As I came to the stop sign in the lot, the ABS kicked in as I tried to stop on a sheet of ice. That was a bit freaky. I wasn't expecting that either. So, after those two near misses, I decided to just head home the way I came in, on highway 93. It was dry and uneventful.

The good news is the days are getting longer. It was still light out at 5pm. Who hoo!

I think I'll get one more riding day before the snow flies again on Thursday. It's been nice being back on the GS again. And, I am quite comfortable even at 25 degrees with the sun out. The heated grips are awesome. (I learned today that I can feel the heat a lot better without my glove liners on.) I'm wearing my long Smartwool ski socks, fleece lined tights, my Olympia airglide mesh pants with the quilted liner, and my rain pants over them, a short sleeved t-shirt, long sleeved t-shirt, long sleeved turtleneck, Tour Master Transition jacket, Olympia hi-viz vest, silk glove liners, Olympia all season gloves, and a fleece balaclava under my helmet with the Respro foggy liner in the helmet. All of that keeps me very comfortable in the morning. I wear it all on the way home as well since the temperature drops pretty quickly when the sun goes down.

I get a lot of air inside my helmet which is really nice in the warmer months. In the cold, not so much. But the Respro and the balaclava keeps my chin warm. The air seems to blow right on my eyes though. And with my sun glasses that isn't so bad because they wrap around pretty closely to my head. My regular glasses though, don't help much. I may check into getting some clear lens sport glasses.

Shiny side up! :-)

Two in a row...

But I think tomorrow there will be snow. Maybe, maybe not. It will be colder than today was. The sun came out briefly today but for the ride home, it was cloudy and windy. On the way in this morning the roads were a bit shiny. But, turned out to be nothing to worry about.

There's all my gear hanging in my office - boots, helmet, mesh pants with the liner in, rain pants to go over the mesh, winter (i.e., not mesh) jacket, and hi-viz vest over the jacket. :-)