Motorcycle Riding Gear And Accessories - Dirt Rider Tested

Progrip7o12/6o12/4o1o pro lineTesting racewear these days is often more about fashion than function-it has to look as good as it works. ProGrip has long been one of those companies with gear many Americans viewed as too Euro to be caught dead in-until now. With the release of its '05 Pro line, the company may have discovered the flavor to sate the finicky American taste. Topping off the outfit is the 7012, a $44.95 lightweight, breathable polyester jersey with sublimated two-color printing, a V-neck and ventilated panels on the inner/underside of the sleeves and the front of the jersey to keep you cool but not exposed.

The matching 6012 pant uses Kevlar and Cordura plentifully along with soft rubber logo panels with natural cowhide panels on the inner knee and shin and no less than six front air vents to aid ventilation on the $149.95 pant. Both the 7012 and 6012 are available in two colors, red/blue and blue/yellow, with the jersey adding white to the mix. The 4010 glove received additional padding in the palm and on the outside of the thumb this year and is $34.95. It comes in five colors: yellow, Titanium, red, blue and green.

The sizing is accurate and the legs were roomy for knee braces. I never noticed the venting on the pant. With knee braces, socks and my riding shorts, my legs are covered already. However, my limbs never experienced any distress, so the vents were probably working well-we'll call this a draw. The jersey fit over my body armor with ease yet wasn't baglike without the protective gear. The venting worked well, avoiding the dirt loads let in by overly porous garments. The gloves fit snugly, with no squirming or bunching of material in the palms, and overall the entire outfit worked as advertised. The items were comfortable all day, even when soaking wet-not all gloves can boast that.

The pant's zippered pockets are impractical for anything and the pant's belt never really closed well though the snap and zipper always worked. The real downer of this gear is its limited variety with only two color options for the jersey and pant-that was the biggest gripe I could find. -Bryan Nylander

AcerbisImpact Roost DeflectorMost of the Acerbis chest protectors provide very good protection but are slightly on the bulky side-definitely not stylish by today's standards. So in trying to break that mold, the Italians invented the $149.95 Impact Roost Deflector. Not really in the crash-protection range, this lightweight goodie was designed to keep the roost from pecking your skin, and it just barely does that. The heavily styled pieces of plastic are tied together with very rubbery attachments that connect around the waist with elastic straps. The fit is adjustable, but it always seems loose, especially the back plate. The padding on the front and back plate is also minimal. There is some foam padding under the shoulder pieces, but it isn't the typical suspended netting found on a lot of front-and-back chest protectors. The trick part of the protector is a round dial in the center of the chest plate that adjusts the shoulder tension with a simple turn. We ran this at near-full tight all the time to try and keep the protector centered. Once it was set, we never played with it.