[Lawis]

Hey All!

So my morning commute is literally less than two miles.. it's so short I wouldn't bother riding if it wasn't for the fact I'm often popping out to other sites, collectings things and heading elsewhere, never more than 3 miles away, and given it's in London, never more than 30MPH, okay maybe 40 but shssss...

I wear proper gloves a motorbike jacket, and clunky Timberland boots, but on my trousers it's just regular GAP chinos, problem is if I wear anything else it's such a faff, boots off, trousers off, keys & wallet out etc etc..

Is there a middle ground produce which makes sense.. ..Knee pads, over trousers..?

All thoughts welcome!!

 

[Toxana]

You have several options for urban riding with A and AA safety certifications that are comfortable off the bike and look good as well. Some ideas here.

 

[Skelee]

I went for a short ride once and got into minor accident. luckily i was testing some new gear. hurt my shin a bit, the rest no damage. I was doing about 50 km/h and car pulled out and hit me on the side, i then slammed into a parked car. So i would make sure you are protected. You can get riding chino or riding jeans with armor., i would upgrade to ghost armor. They were amazed at how little damage I took.

 

[StephenXSR]

Had my first and worst accident 2 mins from my home driving to my work to hand over some keys. I had all the gear and still ended up in hospital for 3 months with over a year recovery just to learn how to walk again. I was doing less than 30mph and a guy just sideswiped me outta nowhere. I was atgatt before. Now even more so. Helmet saved my life, jacket and jeans saved the road rash. wish the knee protectors covered the side of my knee and maybe I wouldnt have as bad of a limp lol

 

[Lawis]

Thansk for all the comments guys - I'm thinking some kind of removeable knee protectors might be the way forward here...

Due to my job to get through trousers pretty quickly and so using kevlar chinos Vs my regular GAP £30 ones would cost me a fourtune.

I suppose if I'm to think of it brutally, I could deal with road rash*, but I couldn't deal with a broken knee, so some good knee protection would, I think, reduce the worst of any impact.

(*It really hurts I know, but it's not life changing.. ..am I being an idiot, maybe..)

 

[frankierose]

Aerostich Roadcrafter.

 

[frankierose]

I can’t find it, but I recall a scene in which James Bond had to do some dirty work wearing a one piece coverall. He took down some villain, or blew something up, unzipped and stepped out of his outerwear, and went on his way in tuxedo.

 

[EricV]

It's a difficult choice. I've been a ATGATT rider for decades and a few 100k miles. However, I had a similar commute, distance wise, a few years back and was using my scooter to commute on. My setting was rural and I just wore gloves and helmet beyond my work attire. Never an issue and I made a point of riding less aggressively than I might in full gear. But the 150cc scooter lent itself well for that too!

Consider your environment and the threats you see when you ride. Ankles, hands, knees, etc are hard to repair and we suffer the injuries more as we age. My wife has had a couple of bad moto accidents when she was younger, and now at 65 she feels the pain from some of those injuries every day. Constant pain of any level is no fun. And her movements are restricted over pre-injury levels, making some day to day tasks much harder.

On the extreme end is the Aerostich type full suit that comes off quickly and easily, but gives full coverage and will fit over street clothes. Upping the quality of your pants will perhaps let them last longer as well. Might cost out for you.

What ever you choose, it's only worth it if you wear it. If external armor is comfortable and easy on/off so you wear it every time, great! If you catch yourself not wanting to put it on, find something else that you will wear every time.

 

[kpr1969]

i'm the same, takes longer to get the bike out and the gear on than it takes to ride to work... i wear bike jeans with removable knee/hip pads, just got some boots that are a bit wider so can leave them on at work and wear an rst jacket and gloves..

 

[Cavalier]

This is always tough. There's no right answer in how much gear to wear. I understand that it's frustrating to put on so much gear for such a short ride, but accidents don't care about how long your commute is. You're in traffic, plus the fact that your commute is so short is bound to make you careless eventually, it's human nature to get comfortable with routine.
It all comes down to your personal level of risk mitigation comfort, I don't think anybody else can really answer that for you.

 

[hombacher]

He he, when I read about the distance to ride, I would have answered, take a bicycle. Maybe something with a electrical assistent.
But then I thought about what wearing on such a bicycle...


So, my conclusion is, that I can tell everything about protective gear, but I will forget everything when I would throw my leg over a bicycle for such a short distance. Maybe have a look on manufacturers and suppliers in typical two wheel commuting countries, like Spain or Italy. They often offer nice things which can be swapped or taken off after riding. Even companies like Revit have some of such an equipment in their catalogue.

 

[UrbanMonk]

I can’t find it, but I recall a scene in which James Bond had to do some dirty work wearing a one piece coverall. He took down some villain, or blew something up, unzipped and stepped out of his outerwear, and went on his way in tuxedo.

I still can't figure out, how the Tux survived under that one piece 😜

 

[UrbanMonk]

Hey All!

So my morning commute is literally less than two miles.. it's so short I wouldn't bother riding if it wasn't for the fact I'm often popping out to other sites, collectings things and heading elsewhere, never more than 3 miles away, and given it's in London, never more than 30MPH, okay maybe 40 but shssss...

I wear proper gloves a motorbike jacket, and clunky Timberland boots, but on my trousers it's just regular GAP chinos, problem is if I wear anything else it's such a faff, boots off, trousers off, keys & wallet out etc etc..

Is there a middle ground produce which makes sense.. ..Knee pads, over trousers..?

All thoughts welcome!!

If you are riding in Summer, and it's not too cold in the morning, take a look at these-
1. Hose Eclipse - Eclipse has been out out for some time and is really good product ECE-A rating which is not the worst but better than your GAP. They also don't scream moto pants and comes in 3 colors for cheap price of 130€. Their Seesmart protectors are really good and alsmot like D3O ghost Amour. You won't even notice they are there.
2. You can try to find Revit Alpha Pants. Revit has discontinued the product but it's still available online if you look deep enough. These is as close as it gets to casual looking Moto-Pants. Protection standards are same as above. There are some good alternatives for Rokka as well but a bit expansive.

Lastly, jsut google Motorbike pants and take the cheapest one with at least A rating and you won't miss your GAPs.

PS: Revit still has some new chino/ jeans models but they are Close to 200€ range, but for sure they will last longer than regular pants and better protect you. Now I need to go and get one for myself

 

[frankierose]

It was the opening of Goldfinger.

'MythBusters' to test James Bond's 'Goldfinger' wetsuit-to-tuxedo moment

'MythBusters' to test James Bond's 'Goldfinger' wetsuit-to-tuxedo moment

ew.com

I still can't figure out, how the Tux survived under that one piece 😜

 

[dan1]

What would I wear on a 2 mile commute. I'd either buy over pants or an over suit, or riding jeans that look dressy enough for work, I'd get boots that can be worn all day at work or leave my work boots at work. All this being I'd ride the XSR. Alternatively for a 2 mile ride I'd personally consider getting a different bike instead that I wouldn't feel the need to ride fast, like a stylish bobber or something, and ride it within the speed limits with limited gear.