The Christmas season is very generous to me. Not only do I receive gifts for Christmas, but my birthday falls within the twelve days of Christmas, so I now have two new Rev’It riding pants and new Klim gloves.
For Christmas I was given the Rev’It Factor 4 thermal lined waterproof pants. These come with knee protectors and a removeable thermal liner to keep me warm on cold, winter rides. On my birthday I received the Rev’It Ignition 3 pants which combines leather with breathable mesh for protection and air flow. These pants also have a removable liner, but they are for warmer rides. Both pants fit me way better than the Klim riding jeans which we did get in a larger size than I needed.
Now that I was better geared up, we headed out on a beautiful sunny day in the low-50s. I wore the Ignition 3 pants, and I also tried my new Klim Adventure GTX short gloves. Bill gave me these gloves as a moderate weather glove because my Rev’It gloves are for really cold wintry rides and my other Klim gloves are perforated for summer air flow. I did find myself putting on the heated grips on low with these new gloves.
As for the pants, they will certainly need some breaking in. I have to get used to the snugger fit which I found made mounting the bike a leg lift exercise. I also need to adjust the knee pads. Throughout two-thirds of my ride, my left knee was under pressure from the knee protection. It was so uncomfortable, I thought for sure I’d have a bruise on my knee after the ride (I didn’t). l finally managed to get the protector adjusted by kicking my left leg out straight.
The ride itself was fantastic. The sun was bright but, because we headed out earlier in the afternoon, not shining into our eyes. Most of the Christmas decorations had been packed up, thought there was a cute inflatable of Santa in a car still waving at us. We passed a snowy egret and two ducks chilling in the lake near the road. Overhead, turkey vultures were lazily circling about. No crazy squirrels in the road on this ride. And, when I ignored the pants, I realized how wonderful a motorcycle the R Nine T is to ride.
For starters I easily found first gear which was helpful as my mind was distracted by the feel of riding in the new pants. I realized how wonderful the Daytona boots are as I had no trouble shifting or braking wearing the boots with the new pants. I’m very pleased with that as the Daytona’s have a one-inch lift which will help me flat foot the BMW R 1250 GS later in my riding career. I also realized how easy the clutch is out on the road. When we were practicing our slow turns and braking out of a curve, I could easily manipulate the clutch. With the BMW G 310, I often stalled on slow speed drills. The dry clutch really is fun.
Yet, the motorcycle did mess with me a little. We were parked and chatting about how the ride was going when Bill suggested he film a short video of me riding in my new pants. Now I should have warned him that I hadn’t found neutral when I stopped my bike. Restarting the ignition, I tried to find neutral as Bill walked away to start filming. I never saw neutral, but I did believe I had shifted into first. Nope. I started riding toward Bill and the engine cut off on me. Since I was struggling, I let Bill hop on and play with the clutch. I was in third gear which is a surprise as I never leave first gear during my slow speed practice. So I still have quite a bit to learn about using that dry clutch.
I don’t mind more to learn as that’s another reason to ride. Not that I need any more reasons because riding motorcycles is a total blast.
Flutterby Biker 