Are leathers really a necessity

[Mikey408]

everyone i talk to says i should get a pair of leathers and go to willow springs and do a track day.... Thoughts is it worth it?

[austexjg]

Do it - it will change you life.

[ForceofWill]

I bought leathers as my first set of gear. I feel they're worth it for the abrasion resistance you get. Plus, I didn't want to buy a second set of gear just to be able to go to the track. Mine are non-perf, but I don't mind being hot for protection.

[Mikey408]

how much were they?

[Rexbo]

Going to the track to improve your riding skill is invaluable.

Wearing leathers at the track is not only required, but unless you REALLY like road rash, a good idea. If this is your idea of a good time, don't wear leathers: http://arniebakercycling.info/pubs/F...Rash%20ABC.pdf

[ForceofWill]

You can get leather gear in a wide range of prices, to fit almost any budget. Mine were pretty high toward the upper end, $700 for jacket and $420 for pants.

["A"]

Originally Posted by Mikey408

how much were they?

How much is your skin worth to you??

[austexjg]

I bought some Frank Thomas XTi II leathers from Cyclegear for $200 with a "special" coupon. The quality is decent for the price - I had them custom tailored for a better fit around the wrists and ankles. There were quite a few other guys in the same suit on the track. Not having a "top" brand might be a bad thing in some minds, but as for me, I am okay with it for now. That doesn't mean that I wouldn't buy a better "name brand" if the price was right - but it rarely is.

[Bunker]

flip flops and shorts are all you really need. Skin was meant to protect you... let it do its job without any interference

[pjed]

Do it...it's one of the most awesome things you can do and it's legal!

[Joule]

We never wear any protective kit here.
Heck i didn't even wear any helmet in my 5.5year riding experience. Nah i don't feel proud about it. It's just common here.

I will buy a helmet with ninja but i will only wear it when i wanna ride fast and when i wanna wash my hair LOL. Yeah i love my hair And hairstyles.

Let the flaming begin !

[ForceofWill]

Originally Posted by Joule

We never wear any protective kit here.
Heck i didn't even wear any helmet in my 5.5year riding experience. Nah i don't feel proud about it. It's just common here.

I will buy a helmet with ninja but i will only wear it when i wanna ride fast and when i wanna wash my hair LOL. Yeah i love my hair And hairstyles.

Let the flaming begin !

Your life man, do what you want to. But don't kid yourself thinking that just because you're not, "riding hard" or, "trying to race" that it's gonna be fine. Come off the bike at 55mph just cruising easy on the highway cause of some other cager. You might change your mind, although it might be too late.

[Joule]

Originally Posted by ForceofWill

Your life man, do what you want to. But don't kid yourself thinking that just because you're not, "riding hard" or, "trying to race" that it's gonna be fine. Come off the bike at 55mph just cruising easy on the highway cause of some other cager. You might change your mind, although it might be too late.

Thank you for your concerns.
But riding bike in india pretty much got me used to other people making mistakes. I ride carefully according to road conditions,traffic, and location

[alex.s]

do it.

take your 250. they are way too much fun on the track

[csmith12]

Do it! Even if you only do it once, you will remember it for the rest of your life. The skills and riding confidence you will gain, directly transfer to the street. Besides... it's just plain fun!

Now, about the leathers. Quality and well fitting leathers will not only add to your confidence on the bike but they look good and will certainly save you some skin in case you get off. $250 for clean/cleaned, tight leathers is not that bad either. Keep an eye out on the WERA boards for great deals on top of the line stuff.

You only live once... DO IT! and don't look back. You will not be sorry you did.

[Rexbo]

Also if you post up looking to borrow a suit I'm sure you can find one somewhere. Almost every racer I know has at least two suits so I'm sure you can find someone in your area who will let you borrow one if you're just going to try it out
Posted via Mobile Device

[csmith12]

Don't forget about leather rental as well.

[backinthesaddleagain]

do it, but be warned, its addicting

[spooph]

Mikey,

Look at your skin, now look at the suit,
its you, sliding down the track butt ass naked,
now back at the suit, then back at your blood spurting limbs, then back at the suit.
Now look at your bike,
your going down the straight away,
heavy on the brakes and ease into the corner,
look at the suit, and it's knee pucks dragging at 60mph on asphalt,
then back at your naked knee, grinding down bone as you carve.
Now back at the suit. You're sliding along unhurt.It's ready to take more.
Now back at your skin, all you see is muscle and tendons.
Now look at those who care for you, now back at the suit,
they gasp and yell, and you can walk to meet them and assure them you're OK,
now look at your skin, and now back at the suit.

Once a track junkie, always a track junkie. "Faster and faster...until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." - Hunter S. Thompson.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by Mikey408

everyone i talk to says i should get a pair of leathers and go to willow springs and do a track day.... Thoughts is it worth it?

A lot of tracks require leathers. So its not an option. You should check with them to find out what their requirements are because there are different grades of leather and they might not allow cheaper stuff. I heard that most don't allow mesh or textile.

But for everyday use, leathers protect primarily against road rash. They will not stop you from getting killed in an accident. So the answer is NO they aren't absolutely necessary for road riding, but you'll wish you had them if you go down.

[HKr1]

Leathers are worth the money.... As for going to willow. When I lived in SD, I had more fun going out Palomar & Laguna areas. Just wasnt worth the effort/return heading out Mojave way for a td.. Iam pretty lazy

[blink]

If you like your skin and body; yes.

[wandyhee]

You don't need leather suit if you do 15mph on straight road...







but to ride hard on track or twisty road, it's like a bonus.. some more, you can drag your knee with full of confident



and I bet 90% of those who don't wear leather suit or leather pants with knee slider don't have a chance to do this trick

[NathanUc]

Yes. Leathers = protection and confidence. You'll need as much as you can get of both on the track.

People think I'm crazy for wearing full leathers when I go out on aggressive rides, but a guy I know who had a lovely GSX-R600 recently went down with only a textile jacket on and it did him little to no good at 60mph.

His hospital bill was about $2,500 which could have been negated (most likely) if he had a set of leathers. My set cost me about $700 for comparison.

/minirant


@wandyhee
That's a lovely bike for the record. :thumbsup:

[Vampyre]

I bought full leathers for my group rides which are pretty aggressive. I am fine with jeans on my commute, but feel much better in leather on the hard driving stuff.

[Havok]

Originally Posted by Mikey408

everyone i talk to says i should get a pair of leathers and go to willow springs and do a track day.... Thoughts is it worth it?

Skip willow springs and do either streets of willow, chuckwalla or buttonwillow to have some fun on the 250. The big track at willow is kinda meh from what I ear for the 250.

In c group you can get away with textile gear but I would not advise it. If you look around you can put together either a decent 2 piece or a one piece set of leathers for not to much money.

I have a set of leathers that is a two piece set that you are more then welcome to borrow for a track day depending on what size you are, the pants are dainese track pants and a dainese perforated jacket that I had a 360 zipper put in to match the pants, the jacket is more of a street jacket then a track jacket in style but is still very protective and good for c group track days. I used it them on the track till I got a killer deal on a full suit.

[nickjpass]

Do you like hospital bills?



Leather Suits

[setasai]

This thread has "useless flaming" all over it. I mean, has anybody ever given the slightest suggestion that leather (being a requirement for many tracks) is not worth the investment? I'm just not sure why it is even a question.

[Havok]

The one question that you have to answer is do you want two sets of gear (one track one street) or one set that can do both? If you want one set for both a two piece set up is the way to go. One piece suits are not comfortable off the bike at all, they are not designed to be and will be a pain in the ass for street riding/committing or day to day riding. A quality two piece can do both be good for the track (unless you want to race) and be convenient/comfortable enough for street use.

I have a couple of sets of gear currently, a one piece for the track, two piece leathers for street/fun riding and a sport touring textile for commuting. Gloves/boots and helmet are double duty right now and sadly I use my work pants for commuting.

[Sailariel]

If you are going to do track days, renting a leather suit makes a lot of sense. Road riding, a one piece suit is a PITA. I like leather. I have leather pants and a leather lacket. I also have a leather vest (Colors) which I wear over my jacket on club rides. Leather is certainly abrasion resistant--but so is fabric. The textile jackets and pants made by Tourmaster, Rocket, Olympia,and ICON, are hard to beat for abrasion resistance and comfort.

Being an avid bicyclist, I know a lot about Road Rash. I hope you never have to experience it.