Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I recently got my first motorcycle last month, found this article pretty dead-on....

http://www.cracked.com/blog/4-insane-things-nobody-tells-you-about-riding-motorcycle/

The PPK has taught me that #3 is incredibly true. Also this scares the shiitake out of me:

What did you get? (pictures?)

I got myself an extra or summer jacket from "craigslist" today.

I have this one, which is a two layer system (waterproof coat with removable padded liner), but after two years I can't get the yellow clean anymore and probably cause it's size M, the back part crawls up a little bit. When I ride with my real back protector instead of the standard back foam, the jacket feels a little bit too tight. The jacket has a zipper to attach it to the pants.
(photo from catalog, not me)


Now I bought the next model up the range from some one who wore it twice and then figured it didn't match his blue kawasaki motorcycle....online price is 200-230 euro's and I bought it for 120 e.

This jacket is a three-layer system and I wonder how that will work in reality.
- coat, removable water resistant layer and removable padded liner.
This is a size L and feels better around my belly but could be slightly too big for me, except for the sleeves. I think I might have a big M torso with XL arms



What I didn't know was that this coat does not connect to the pants I have.
This one uses a "g-string" system to keep the back of the jacket down.
It might take me a few times to get used to pulling a band from the back, between my legs and to connect it to a ring on the front. On the other hand it seems a good, logical system.

Unfortunately I injured my hand playing sports less than a week after I got it and can't currently ride it -- parked in a friends garage for the time being and I don't have many pictures. I've got this one I took of it so I'd remember the street sweeping on the block I parked on....It's a 2009 Kawasaki KLR650.

I got a new front tire last week. My bike had 2 rear tires (the previous owner put them on). It handles much better with a proper front tire. Of course, it's been raining a ton lately so I haven't been out on it much to break in the new tire.

It's starting to get cold here in central IL, but I still need to get to work, and MBM still needs to get to work. So if it's not wet, I'm still riding. This morning, the temperature was around 35 F (2 C), and it was forking frigid. I dug out some old Army winter gloves (which weren't much better than my summer riding gloves), and I wore a nylon thermal suit underneath, which also did nothing. I am in desperate need of some lined riding pants, and much better gloves. On the plus side, with the liner in, my riding jacket is working out nicely!

I'm still riding, but it isn't that cold here yet. I wore my long underwear under my jeans under my riding pants the other day and was toasty. My jacket liner is awesome, I froze during a few rides until I found it!

I'm trying to sell my bike (I'm moving) and it's not a good time for that. I'll probably end up shipping it to my parents house in the middle of the USA and then dealing with it in the spring. Luckily, they both ride so they can keep it in good shape and sell it for me if needed. I might pick it up and do a mid-USA to Vancouver ride next year though!

When it's really cold I'll also use a cotton long john, and I'll wear something over that too.
So that's either jeans, or the kind of thermo underwear that's meant to keep one warm like something made from micro fleece.

I have a (two layer) jacket with a liner in it, that seems to be a bit warmer than the three layer jacket (coat, rain liner and thermo) liner. I have a pair of gloves (2nd hand leather) that are quite big so I can wear cotton work gloves in them for extra warmth.

I have plans to ride as often as I can this winter, and bought a "winter bike" so I won't wear out or damage my normal bike.

It was relatively cheap but needs maintenance; carbs need cleaning cause it runs on only 3 of 4 cylinders and new tyres.
(1991 Yamaha XJ600, 31,250 miles on it, I'm probably the 4th owner)

Nice winter bike! Mine is in storage now as I'm travelling for 3 weeks, then it will be cold, then I'll be gone for at least another month. I don't have anywhere secure to keep it when I'm away so it is easier to just store it during the winter. I prefer riding when it is cooler out... I'm good down to freezing temps as long as it isn't wet out! I do need warmer gloves, I only have a summer pair which isn't enough when it gets near freezing.

Plus, I don't have health insurance right now (I'm sorting out which I'll have, but since I quit my job 2 weeks ago I'm technically uninsured) and I'm hesitant to ride without health insurance. So winter storage timing works great as I'll be all set with everything by the time I pull it out in the spring!

Still riding, I ride all year depending on ground conditions. I do not mind the cold and have ridden down to 2 degrees F. Though only for a short distance.
My winter setup:
Double layer of sucks and Sidi boots (only part that gets cold)
Base layer, jeans, First Gear over pants with winter liner in it.
Electric heated liner and Olympia AST Jacket.
Heated grips with hippo hands over them and medium weight gloves.
Also a neck warmer and I am good to go.

Wait wait wait...that's legal? I need a new mode of transportation!

Lane splitting is only legal in a few states. California is a big one. It's not legal in Illinois, and I've read enough horror stories about it that I'd be extremely cautious if iI were to try it.

Idiots try it in DC sometimes. Scares the fork out of me. Drivers here have never heard of such a thing. I've actually called the traffic violation line to report it.

All it takes is a careless swerve because some jackass checked a text message, or someone stopped in traffic opening their door.

I ♥ lane splitting.

Do it somewhere nobody expects it and you'll probably end up dead sooner or later.

I've done it in California cause I knew it was legal there.
I do it in the way it's legal in my country, which means you can do it when the speed of the other traffic is below 30 mph and the difference in speed between the motorcycle and other traffic should be less than 8 mph.

Not like the one that overtakes me at 0:30 (for me it was an adventure/tense to move a rented electra glide so close to the cars)
http://youtu.be/b0O1raSVZ2M

This is the Netherlands http://youtu.be/fYPK5MgYndQ

Yikes. I um...wouldn't do that if I were you. But then I'm not from the Netherlands and I am a fan of bicycle helmets.

I don't want this thread to turn into a safety argument. All I was trying to say is that it doesn't happen on the roads I'm riding on, so I don't do it. I'm not particularly experienced, so I'd be super careful if I were going to attempt lane splitting, as I would doing anything unfamiliar. I didn't mean to speak for all cyclists, nor did I mean to imply that lane splitting was any less safe than riding in traffic to begin with. Eric has a lot more skill than I do, and his videos looked perfectly safe to me.

Moving on, my winter gear arrived! I got an Arctiva balaclava, a pair of Sidi H2Out gloves, and a pair of Tour Master Caliber riding pants! Now maybe my commute to work won't freeze me to death under 40 deg F.

Yeah, lane splitting in areas where it is legal is totally different than doing it somewhere nobody does it.

Brian, get heated glove liners! They change everything.

After I posted I realized I shouldn't be chiming in on this thread because I don't know anything about motorcycling, so I apologize. I just worry for people.

So maybe riding to work this morning was a bad idea. It was about 29F when I left. Even my jacket wasn't all that warm on the inside, but the pants were comfortable. My right hand almost froze off, and I think it has to do with my grip. By the time I get up to speed, I'm beyond knuckles up, I'm almost at fingers up. I should probably adjust my crampbuster so that I'm closer to knuckles flat, but that might end up with me being all cranked up on the throttle at idle. Regardless, for some reason my right hand gets colder than my left hand and it's awful!

At least the temperature will be in the mid 40's when I leave in an hour. That might be comfortable.

Heated glove liners.

Nope! I will continue to suffer with cold hands until April, at the earliest.

Heated gear is good.

I recently and reluctantly bought heated gloves (partially leather), but it's important that it fits snugly.

I have an L size glove that's hard to get my hand in, but I can still move my fingers a bit freely and don't feel so much heat from the gloves.

I know have:
- grip covers
- heated gloves
- heated jacket (awesome!)
- heated insoles

ETA: I see heated gear partially as a safety item. Having cold hands till the point that it hurts is one thing, but if that means I have problems using my hands for braking cause they are stiff from the cold can be dangerous.