In case the Anti-rain dance doesn't work.
As someone with little to no experience riding in the rain; I have a Fieldsheer Air Tour Mesh Jacket and Pants which has to have a "waterproof liner", full face helmet and leather Sidi boots, basic leather gloves, and am wondering "how wet will I get"? Been think about getting Frogg Toggs, but it may be too late to order. I do have another set of Fieldsheer gear that says is waterproof, which I used last winter, but I'm wondering if it will be too hot. I've been looking at temps in Johnson City but I'm thinking we may be riding in higher (cooler) elevations so it may be ok.
What's the key to staying dry?
Before SFO, I typically avoided riding in the rain. But, being on a mondo road trip, I didn't have any choice in the matter, and it friggin' poured. I'll offer you some thoughts.
First, if all you have is mesh gear, get yourself Frogg Toggs. There were several guys at SFO wearing 'em who stayed dry.
For me, at SFO, all in all I stayed mostly dry. My riding pants - Aerostitch AD1's - kept my legs 100% dry. Even in the crotch, which seems to be the area where most gear fails in the rain.
My jacket - Fieldsheer Aqua Tour - kept my arms and body 99.9% dry. After riding 600-ish miles in the rain, my arms were just starting to get damp. Or that may have just been perspiration. The rest of the trip, that jacket kept my upper body bone dry. All I got was an occaisonal drip of water down my neck. No biggie.
Boots - Sidi Tepor. My feet never, ever got wet. Ever. Through TONS of rain. They have proven to be worth the investment.
Gloves - well, these were the letdown. The gloves I wore on that trip - Scorpion something-or-others, IIRC - were supposed to be waterproof. Part of the whole Tepor membrane jazz. My hands were soaked. By the time we got to the SFO hotel, after riding 725 miles, mostly in the rain, my hands looked like prunes. Complete fail. All they did was make my hands smell "funny."
However, I recently got a pair of Harley's FXRG gloves, which have a GoreTex lining. Coming home from our trip on Labor Day weekend, we hit some heavy rain and my hands stayed dry, so there is hope.
One thing I do highly recommend more for safety than anything else - treat your helmet visor and your windshield with stuff called Raincoat from
Motosolutions - Clicky. It's like RainX, but safe on plastic. This stuff really works. Usual disclaimer ... blah blah blah. I'm just a satisfied customer.
Once you get used to riding in the rain, it's actually kinda neat, if you ask me. Being in the weather, but staying dry... There's just something that's really cool about it.
Or just hang out at the hotel and drink. :drinks:
See ya there...
BG
