riding/safety gear!!

[pantablo]

yeah but don't you think Rossi could pretty much get a free helmet from anyone he wanted?

Well he could. But I'm a sponsored bicycle racer and let me tell you that if he's sponsored by AGV helmets he can't wear anything else in public. If he does he risks losing his sponsorship. Racers wear what racers are given...now if you knew for a fact that his AGV was actually a Shoei with AGV stickers then you could say Shoei is a great helmet because he chooses to wear it (and he still saves face to sponsors-this type of stuff actually happens).

[mrslush50]

look.  obviously I don't know how sponsorship works in world class motorcylce racing.  but I would have to assume that Rossi could get sponsorship from anyone he wanted.  Arai, Shoei, Shark, Suomy... they'd all kill to have Rossi whereing one of their lids.  But he chooses AGV.  That tells me something.  mostly it tells me that they're way to freakin' expensive for me.  but it also tells me that AGV most likely makes a product that is right up there with the best of them.

(pantoblo, I think that most likely we are in agreement here and are just arguing over semantics.   )

[pantablo]

actually we're not in agreement but I'll say this for clarification and leave it alone...if his helmet sponsorship is a team sponsorship the quality of the helmet is secondary to the 'deal' the team makes with sponsors (i.e. product for racers+cash for x amount of exposure,personal appearances and podium finishes or something like that).  He doesn't choose the sponsoring company, he just wears it like he's told to (and sells it like he's told to as well).

Some racers have personal sponsorships (Lance Armstrong is personally sonsored by Nike, not the whole Postal team, for example). If it is a personal sponsor then you could say he believes in the product and it is likely an exceptional product, but not necessarily if its a team sponsor.

I'm sure AGV is as good, if not better than many of the top line products out there but to say it is because a racer has it is erroneous.

[/thread hijack on my part over]

[mrslush50]

well his teammate, Nicky Hayden, wears an Arai.

if it was a team sponsorship, don't you think AGV would insist that Nicky also wear an AGV?

[glenn9171]

And maybe they do like everyone else should do and wear the one that both is proven to protect in an above-par manner AND fits well.  Not all helmets fit all people's heads.  I tried on every make and model that I saw on store shelves and found that ONLY the HJC CL-12 fit me like a helmet is supposed to fit.  I couldn't have worn an AGV or Suomy if I had to.  The CL-12 fits me like their engineers custom fit it to my head personally.  So what if it may be a little less quiet than some others?  I have worn it for several hours at a time and it is not uncomfortable in the least.  Yet it does not move at all when I shake my head around vigorously.  DOT and SNELL aproved.  $115 dollars.  Solid metallic royal blue.

[mrslush50]

my point exaclty.  

if Repsol Honda told Rossi, "You have to were a Suomy." but Rossi didn't like Suomy (for whatever reason) Rossi has a secure enough position as a world champion to say, "No way.  I'll wear whatever I want."

[fuzzymemory]

Are Draggin Jeans "hotter" then regular jeans in summer?

I own a pair of black Draggin Jeans.  They are slightly warmer than my light-blue Levis, but not enough to disuade me from wearing them on a 95 degree day.  I've heard that Draggin sells pants (chinos and cargo pants) for the same price as the baggy jeans, but the products are not listed on the USA website.  Shoot them an email on that one...

[vegbiker]

The Canadian distributor of Draggin' Jeans sells cargos and chinos: http://www.dragginjeans.ca Don't know why the US site doesn't have 'em. Just remember that the prices on the .ca site are in CDN dollars, so don't have a heart attack when you see them

[shep_bannister]

The newest Sport Rider reviews the AC-11.  They call fit and comfort excellent, noticeably improved over the AC-10.  They also say it's "one of the quietest we've tried."  In fact, they directly compare it to the Shoei X-11 and Arai RX-7 and claim the AC-11 is quieter than both.  As a tradeoff, though, the AC-11 is a step down from both of those in terms of venting.  

Finally they claim that solid colors can be had for $154.99 on the internet, though my searching has yet to turn up anything cheaper than $189.00 for solid colors.

[bob]

Here's another $0.02 worth (we're up to, what, about $0.36 so far here?)  

Forget the Levis or other jeans.  I've gone down on the street in Levis & I might as well have been wearing swim trunks for all the protection the Levis gave me (wanna see my scars?).  Maybe I woulda been better off with the swim trunks - at least then I woulda KNOWN how vulnerable I was.  Any pants or jeans, except for Draggin Jeans, are basically no better than swim trunks.  If you can't bring yourself to wear leathers on the street, at least get Draggin Jeans - or at least be aware of how little protection your jeans provide.  BTW, I highly recommend leathers.  Ask any of the other racers here - they've each "performance" tested their leathers & can tell you first hand how well they work.  Cows are amazing animals, I'll never understand how they're so well prepared to take high speed slides on pavement   .

I have an HJC CL-12 & I like it.  It is not the most high-end lid by any stretch, but I bought it because they made it to fit my nut.  The key is to try on lotsa helmets & see which one(s) fit your head the best.  We all have different shaped noggins & some helmets will fit great & some won't fit at all.  It's just how your head is shaped.  Go try 'em all.  The wind noise thing is an issue with my CL-12, but I always wear ear plugs & am used to 'em, so that's not so big a deal for me.  Wind noise has a lot of high frequency content & can be damaging to hearing even at fairly low levels if exposure is long enough, so I use ear plugs no matter what I'm wearing.

Sorry if this actually works out to more than my allotted $0.02.  Next opinion I offer will only include $0.015 worth so it'll eventually average out...  

[paui]

wow i started this thread a long time ago......(or so it seems)

[BigRedMonkeyButt]

I agree and disagree with some of the above comments.

I disagree that you should rule out HJC, KBC, etc.   If 2 helmets are Snell certified (roughly equal protection), both fit well, and both are made well, but one costs 3 times as much as the other, why would you buy the expensive one?  Cause the cheaper one is a little noisier??      Or is it just for the image?  "Look at me - I paid $500 for my Arai!"  

I just bought a KBC VR-7 helmet from  www.imotorcyclestore.com (good prices on helmets).  A very good helmet, on closeout for $100.   It is a very good quality and Snell Certified, though somewhat noisy from what I've heard (too cold to try it out), but I can afford ear plugs for years for the difference in price between that and even the cheapest Shoei, Suomi, or Arai.

At the same time, you do (often) get what you pay for.  I bought a Bieffe RTX helmet for around $100.  I hate it.  It is also the same helmet as the Bell Star 2.  Do some research, and never buy a helmet online that you've never tried on.  

As far as other gear goes:
I've heard a lot of good stuff about AGVSport stuff.  I was also looking at the Viper, but couldnt find any opinions on it.  So, I bought the (all black) Teknic Lightning jacket  from www.newenough.com (should be arriving today) for $140.    Cheaper than the AGVSport, and a regular price tag of $300.  It's probably a better jacket than the Viper.

Gloves:
Joe Rocket Pheonix gloves are warm weather gloves for cheap (again - check newenough).  I have some and like them.

Boots:  Sorry, cant help there.  :dunno:

Pants:  Sorry, cant help there either.  :dunno: