Post up your gear that you don't leave home without or good deals that come up every so often.

My first is:

http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/productDetail.do?&navType=type&webTypeId=92&navTitle=Dirt+Bike+Parts&webCatId=19&prodFamilyId=15582

Gets my vote. I ordered this along with some TrakMasters for my DRZ the other day and figured I would use these irons to throw the tires on my wheels. The irons are advertised as 8.5 inches long, they are not as good as my modified HF prybars that I normally use while at home but they do work rather well. I am a firm believer of testing products that may be needed in a 'save Sturgell's ass situation' in a controlled environment to ensure there won't be any surprises when it comes time to use them in the field. Total time to completely R&R 1 tire and tube combo about 5 minutes of prying, definitely not too bad for an emergencies only tool. The irons make it super easy to break down the bead and lever the tire without puncturing the tube (I am super good at knocking holes in tubes during reinstallation.)

The 14.99 I spent I feel is well worth it especially since it comes with irons which would easily cost 12-15 dollars without the pack. If you follow their directions and notch your fenders so the hooks won't move then it is incredibly solid.

My camelbak........ I thought they were over priced and kinda gay untill riding on the hottest day of the year last summer and getting severely dehydrated. I decided I'd try one of the smaller ones for $30. A couple rides later I bought a bigger one and won't ride without it. I feel infinitely better during and after a day of riding.

My camelbak........

Same here.

There are so many things I use/have with me while I ride I wouldnt know how to list them in order of importance......


Camelbak for sure

On my dual sport bike XR650L I really like the saddlebags from dirtbagz. I thought they were stupid and gay when I first saw them on my friends bike. After riding with him and then sitting on his bike I realized they might be ok. After 150 miles of dirt and having an ice cold drink I came to the conclusion that saddlebags are priceless :D

1. 661 Pressure Suit (not sure exactly which model).
It has chest, shoulder, and elbow pads; a really wide kidney belt; and a huge spine protector. I have crashed many times on gravel and ice (no tarmac) and my pressure suit has really saved me. The most recent time I found myself on my back on a frozen river after a short fall, with the bike on top, I was fine, due in part to this amazing piece of gear.

2. Deuter Race EXP Air backpack (12-15L model, I think)
In conjunction with a water bladder, I bring it on almost everyride, unless it's a trip to the moto track. It is small, light, just enough room for basic supplies and has survived way more abuse than I ever expected it to. It fits me pretty good even with the pressure suit on.

Anyone ever found good gloves for cold weather riding? I'm talking below freezing. I currently use my ski gloves and they suck. I really need handwarmers.

I want one of these in KTM orange ;) Thank you very much!
http://stores.sportbiketrackgear.com/Detail.bok?no=4335

Lots of vents, zip off sleeves, hydration pack, yada yada yada. The Joe Rocket stuff is too fricken thick IMNSHO.

Anyone ever found good gloves for cold weather riding? I'm talking below freezing. I currently use my ski gloves and they suck. I really need handwarmers.

once last winter I wore some neoprene gloves that went up to elbow actually designed for duck hunting. they were super warm but were tough to dry out because my hands were actually sweating most of the time.


At work I am sometimes exposed to temps at -40f and lower. I don't spend all day in these temps, but we try a lot of different gloves. I've actually been kinda surprised with these.

http://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10101&storeId=10051&productId=130261&langId=-1

we also have some gloves made by refrigiwear. They make some that are rated for some super low temps

I would definitely go with a gauntlet style glove for riding though.

Heated hand grips! Frogg Toggs rain gear. (The Motorcycle specific type)

My camelbak........ I thought they were over priced and kinda gay untill riding on the hottest day of the year last summer and getting severely dehydrated. I decided I'd try one of the smaller ones for $30. A couple rides later I bought a bigger one and won't ride without it. I feel infinitely better during and after a day of riding.

I definately agree with this, both for street and off-road!

A good friend of mine was made a believer, not too long after I met him... Another Blackbird (CBR1100XX) rider in Indy, who was sort of new to street riding, rode out to the Arkansas Blackbird meet with me a few years ago... We ended up sitting in 80 minutes of stop and go traffic in St. Louis, with horrible 'lou humidity, and it was 100F NOT on the highway with everybody's A/C running, with side walls and no wind... My buddy only had a bottle of Mountain Dew that had been sitting in the sun for the last 4 hours... Near the end, I looked over as he was weaving a bit more than normal, and he was sheet-white... We pulled onto the shoulder, and he drank literally the remaining 2/3 of my large camel back (filled with Gatorade)... Within about 10 minutes, he was good to go... I had been sipping the whole time, and was fine...

It's also nice on road trips just anyway, because you can sip a little bit when you're thursty, and only have to stop for gas every 230 miles (3-3.5 hours)... Otherwise, you end up downing a bottle of gatorade then having to stop and pee an hour later...

Mike

Finally you reached LOL

I got the Hy-tech hydration pack from costco and love it. Holds enough water to keep me going as well as some tools, maps, and food. It will also hold 5 12oz cans on top of the water if need be:D.

Have not used it yet but just bought the EVS ballistic jersey BJ22. I have been eying it for a while and finally put down the cash. I ride dirt and have done a few solo rides as of late. This will give me a little more confidence I will make it back to the truck if I spill.

Also...good boots are a must. Do not cheep out and get the $100 specials. I did and regretted it right away. My feet were always tore up and the barely lasted a full season. I got Alpinestars Tech 7s and love them. If I could afford the Tech 10s I would be all over them. The 7s were right around $300 but have held up to 4 seasons now and barely look used. Still on all the original latches and they are far more comfortable than the cheep ones.

I got the Hy-tech hydration pack from costco and love it. Holds enough water to keep me going as well as some tools, maps, and food. It will also hold 5 12oz cans on top of the water if need be:D.

Have not used it yet but just bought the EVS ballistic jersey BJ22. I have been eying it for a while and finally put down the cash. I ride dirt and have done a few solo rides as of late. This will give me a little more confidence I will make it back to the truck if I spill.

I've got the EVS Ballistic Jersey, and LOVE IT! We used to ride down by the river a lot (wet, water-smoothed clay with 1/8" of wet silt on top of it), so I used to fall a lot... Mucho easier to get back up when wearing the EVS jersey, and hurt much less by the end of the day and the next day...

Mike

Thanks for the input on the EVS gear. Last trip riding Fissure Mtn trail and a bunch of other stuff solo at the Tin Benders Jambo put it all in perspective. :eek: Lots of rocks up there and it would not be a fun walk / ride out injured.

since i have NO gear at the moment, (hurry up UPS guy!) i have been eyeballing that evs jersey.

I have the BJ22, but the new G5 wasn't out when I got mine... The G5 has a better back protector, which I do suggest...


The Six Six One pro pressure suit is better than the Bj22, due to the back protector and one piece front protector... I haven't looked into it since the G5 came out, but the back protector on the G5 looks about as good as the 661 protector, though I have no data on that.

Mike

What I did was go to Chaparral and try on as many suits as I could. At 6'4" and closer to 300 lbs, I could not get most brands on and some I got on had such small protective panels that it looked like I was shopping in the jr section. EVS goes all the way to 4x if needed and the front panels on the bj22 extend down longer than the others (ultra). They have the ultra x that offers better shoulder protection but I struggle with putting my pack on over that style shoulder cups.

Funny, their web site does not show the g5. It looks good from what I see but I will stick to what I have tried on.

Most of the hard shell style make me look like I am wearing a bra which suck because I like a few companies designs.

With the exception of just running to the corner store, I ALWAYS carry on my dual sport: wolfman explorer lite tank bag with spare headlight bulb, brake/clutch/shifter levers, tool pack with enough tools to damned near rebuild the bike (only weighs about 2lbs), tire changing tools, c02 inflater/manual pump, slime "scabs", and a small container of stop leak. If we will be riding in the really rough stuff I will also carry 50' nylon rope, a small folding saw, folding shovel, a my .40 cal with 20 rds (incase I have to hike out in the middle of the night.)

As far as protective gear I use a Zac Speed Exotec sp-3 chest protector that has a built in backpack with 3 liter hydration pack. It doesn't offer all of the protection that some of the pressure suit do, but it is packaged together very well and I can pull it off in seconds when I stop. In the pack I carry emergency food, first aid kit, solar blanket, knife, cell phone, water purifying tablets, a bunch of zip ties and some bailing wire along with a small hardware pack.

KSL is right about boots, after more than 10 years of wearing the cheapest boots that I could get my hands on, I finally broke down and bought Gaerne SG10's and they are night and day more comfortable, and offer waaay more protection than the cheapies do.

I also wear Thor Force knee gaurds that have saved my legs on almost every trip out, I hyperextended my left knee in '07 and have worn these every ride since. These kind of meet in the middle of a $700 pair of braces and the baseball catcher style knee/shin gaurds.

And yes, I do wear all my moto gear riding through town or down the highway. People tend to notice you a bit more when you are wearing flourescent orange pants and jersey!

my .40 cal with 20 rds (incase I have to hike out in the middle of the night.)

Scared of the dark? I carry everywhere, I actually refuse to go places I can't carry by law.

I carry all of my spares and stuff in a modified fanny pack on my bike all the time, front and rear tube, electric compressor, patches, plugs (in case I come across someone riding tubeless with a flat) toilet paper/napkins/shop towel in a zip top bag, purell, about an oz of dawn dish soap, little bit of baby powder, tools, tire irons, plus some other stuff.

Scared of the dark? I carry everywhere, I actually refuse to go places I can't carry by law.



I usually only carry on multi day trips or deep backwoods kinda stuff, after all, it's not the mountain lions that scare me so much as it is the distant sound of dueling banjos:fj:

I did forget to mention that I do carry a small AA LED flashlight and a partial roll of TP in a ziplock bag.

I also wear the 661 pressure suit.

The Dualstar tank bag mounted on a rear rack on my wr450 carries way too much stuff. A set of wrenches, 8 bit compact screwdriver, tubes, tire irons, patch kit, co2 inflator, tp, shop towels, all that in just the outside pockets. Usually 2 large Gatorades in the main section, along with lickies and chewies.

Longer forays into the desert require a 1 gallon gas can strapped to the rack. Ez on and off saddlebags hold anything needed for an overniter.

I also wear a camelback, and my 40s&w on my side on a web belt.

I carry a Garmin portable gps in the camelback strap pocket, need to get a larger one and mount it to the bars.

Gene