My Favorite Riding Suit

Hi viz where you need it

Dead sexy it’s not. But I’m closing in on my third decade wearing the all-weather Roadcrafter by Duluth-based Aerostich.

The new lightweight suit is a big improvement over my old standby of more than 15 years. The redesigned zipper finally means it’s closing in on waterproof. And the built-in galoshes are the bomb in a sudden downpour.

BMW manuals list rider equipment as mandatory gear. That means you shouldn’t be on one of their Guggenheim-worthy moving artworks without a helmet, boots, gloves and a protective suit.

In my family, with its four-generation motorcycling heritage, we’re dead serious about this rule. No matter what you ride.

I’m the sort of person who likes taking my moto to the Guggenhiem, so two-piece suits have never really worked for me. Who wants to sit through a film, stroll the grounds or meet friends for dinner wearing knee pads and day-glo ballistic nylon trousers?

I like to ride to the destination, take off the gear, swipe the lipstick, run a comb through my hair and enjoy the evening. To me, that’s civilized motorcycling. The Roadcrafter is designed to be worn over street clothing. It slips on over boots. Both my suits, sizes 36 and 38, can be stored in my system case after removing the hip and spine protectors. That makes it the best choice I know for bobo commuting.

(Bobo commuting: motorcycling’s glamping equivalent. It’s a cultural allusion to Bobos in Paradise, the entertaining book by David Brooks.)

Details like the snap-back, magnetized collar
 make all the difference in hot weather.

But I’ve also ridden this gear across the country and through its share of wild weather. This suit works.

Riders I meet on the road are having equally good luck with the Lombard suit by Teiz. I like the softer hand on the Teiz suit. And it’s priced considerably lower.

If your heart’s really set on looking dead sexy on a motorcycle, you’ll want leather. Of course you will. Which means you won't be needing a one-piece. As shown below.

Leather is bulky, heavy and much too hot in the summer.

The issue with leather is four-season comfort. You'll arrive in leathers for the movie in a sweat with your hair plastered to your head. It's definitely a look.

You'll also want custom leathers for the track. As you can see from the vintage photo above, plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. Leather's still the best rider protection available, outperforming synthetics in wrecks by a wide margin. 

Whatever works for you, get kitted up and get rolling.