Spyder in the rain

[daveinva]

Just had to share... where I work, we get *dozens* of bikes parking in the lot on summer days.

That is, except, when it rains. Then we get maybe ten bikes, tops. Heavily weighted towards the "adventure bike" crowd-- BMWs, mostly.

Oh, and yeah: one silver Spyder. :thumbup:

Rain? What rain? I've got three wheels, bub-- I commute rain or shine. :doorag:

P.S. This week I picked up a pair of Firstgear HT Overpants to replace my now too-large HT Overpants Shell. I used to like the cheaper shell (I've owned two) but now that I own the regular overpants, I can't recommend buying the Shell alone-- the regular overpants are thicker material, they have thigh vents, AND an external waterproof pocket (plus they have the liner for when it gets cooler). They totally justify the extra sixty bucks or so.

Alas, even with the smaller, better-fitting size I still look like a cosmonaut wearing them, but I've yet to find an overpant that doesn't fit baggy. Whatever, they're not for style, they're for commuting, and they do that just fine.

 

[SpyderAnn01]

Do your pants zip all the way up the leg? I've got a pair of women's First Gear overpants that unzip all the way up which makes them easy to get on and off over your boots. The problem with them is they aren't quite long enough for me. I also have a pair of the men's which are long enough but they only unzip a short way at the foot and are hard to get on if you've got your boots on. They have the thigh vent but with the big windshield and side deflectors I haven't noticed that much air gets to them. I'm leaving on a big trip tomorrow and I'm taking the women's pair since they are easier to get on and off.

Congratulations on the weight loss. I've found some weight and wish I could lose it. :roflblack:

 

[daveinva]

Do your pants zip all the way up the leg? I've got a pair of women's First Gear overpants that unzip all the way up which makes them easy to get on and off over your boots. The problem with them is they aren't quite long enough for me. I also have a pair of the men's which are long enough but they only unzip a short way at the foot and are hard to get on if you've got your boots on. They have the thigh vent but with the big windshield and side deflectors I haven't noticed that much air gets to them. I'm leaving on a big trip tomorrow and I'm taking the women's pair since they are easier to get on and off.

Congratulations on the weight loss. I've found some weight and wish I could lose it. :roflblack:

HT Overpants: http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/firstgear-ht-overpants

HT Shell only: http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/firstgear-ht-overpants-shell

(Support your Spyderlovers vendors and buy your Firstgear stuff from BajaRon, BTW... only reason I didn't this time was I had a Revzilla gift card).

I think that both versions zip up past the knee, but they don't go all the way up the thigh. With both it's still easier to take off your boots first, but I've mastered the "foot wiggle" to getting them on and off while wearing boots (the trick is to zip open all the way, then turn your foot facing out towards the zipper when putting them on or removing them).

FYI, I'm 5'9", 5'10"ish. I've found that with both the HT Shell and the HT Overpants the Men's short size works best-- the right length and placement of the adjustable knee armor. I had a regular length back when I weighed the most and I had to add extra strips of velcro inside the legs to adjust the knee armor-- the short requires no modification.

Waist-wise, I'm a solid 35, i.e. frustratingly between a 36 and a 34. I bought the 36 pants and they fit fine. A little looser than I'd like in the seat and legs, but the waist fits perfectly, and with the liner in it's clear that a 34 would likely have been too snug. I'm a huge fan of having the velcro belt to adjust the waist, particularly in overpants-- who wears two belts? Even though they're not overpants, my Olympia Airglide mesh pants require a belt and I'm no fan of the relative inconvenience.

You're right about the thigh vent not flowing air-- I just like it simply to have someplace to allow heat escape out of the otherwise-impermeable pants. The Shell doesn't even have that much (you can zip *down* the side zippers to vent, but then you're losing protection, i.e. kinda defeating the purpose of wearing them, although it does help if you're off the bike walking around in them to just kinda flow some air under them).

Also, today was the first day I rode in the rain with the new pants, so I don't know how those thigh vent zippers will hold up in a major downpour. The shell was definitely as waterproof as they come, but again they didn't have the extra points of possible failure sitting in your lap.

A downside they both share is they have multiple small strips of velcro to secure the side flaps over the side zippers-- it'd be better if there was a full-length strip of velcro lining the entire leg, IMO.

I will say the thing I like most about these is the material-- it's noticeably thicker than the Shell's material (330 vs 600 denier). While I like Firstgear's stuff for the price, there's no denying that they make lower-end gear, and I always found the Shell's material to be very flimsy (I never damaged it, but the stuff is so thin that I never felt great thinking about what the road would do to it in a get-off.... better than wearing jeans, but not by much. No such worries with the regular HT Overpants).

 

[Bob Denman]

Being a "tweener" never makes finding stuff that fits easy... :gaah:
I'm also in that same range... I can pull 36s off quicker than I thought possible; yet I can also button up 34s if I forget about breathing for a while... :shocked:

 

[NancysToy]

Having ridden BMWs for some time, I can assure you that BMW riders never seem to know enough to come in out of the rain. :roflblack:

.....apparently not Spyder riders, either. :thumbup:

 

[Bob Denman]

A fellow that I used to ride snowmobiles with would often say of me, "Forgive him. He's ignorant and just doesn't know any better!" :shocked: :roflblack:
He rode Yamaha, and I was on a Polaris...

 

[daveinva]

Having ridden BMWs for some time, I can assure you that BMW riders never seem to know enough to come in out of the rain. :roflblack:

.....apparently not Spyder riders, either. :thumbup:

I never suggested I was smart, Scotty!

 

[revjvegas]

Having ridden BMWs for some time, I can assure you that BMW riders never seem to know enough to come in out of the rain. :roflblack:

.....apparently not Spyder riders, either. :thumbup:

As a fellow BMW rider, I resemble that remark.


....and sadly, yes it's true.

 

[boborgera]

You might get wet on 3 wheels ,But you won't fall over!

 

[NancysToy]

You might get wet on 3 wheels ,But you won't fall over!

Amen, brother, amen!

 

[mhoecker]

Just had to share... where I work, we get *dozens* of bikes parking in the lot on summer days.

That is, except, when it rains. Then we get maybe ten bikes, tops. Heavily weighted towards the "adventure bike" crowd-- BMWs, mostly.

Oh, and yeah: one silver Spyder. :thumbup:

Rain? What rain? I've got three wheels, bub-- I commute rain or shine. :doorag:

I give you a LOT of credit. I was out in that rain - in a car - and needed to turn my wipers up a speed. I don't like driving in the rain in a car, much less a bike. I guess we can take from this that REAL men ryde Spyders!!:b2b:

Madonna

 

[JJW SpyderRider]

I rode to work in the rain this week also. I had my BRP raingear on, 3/4 helmet, and the windscreen at eye level and stayed fairly dry on the outside and completly dry under the rain gear. I passed my brother at a light drying his glasses. He was wearing; no helmet, shorts, tennis shoes, and a street type jacket while riding a old Honda without a windshield and soaked to the bone in the 65 deg rain storm :yikes:. Guess which one of us got the common sense in the family?

 

[NancysToy]

I rode to work in the rain this week also. I had my BRP raingear on, 3/4 helmet, and the windscreen at eye level and stayed fairly dry on the outside and completly dry under the rain gear. I passed my brother at a light drying his glasses. He was wearing; no helmet, shorts, tennis shoes, and a street type jacket while riding a old Honda without a windshield and soaked to the bone in the 65 deg rain storm :yikes:. Guess which one of us got the common sense in the family?

Your sister, she drove a car. :roflblack:

 

[JJW SpyderRider]

Your sister, she drove a car. :roflblack:

Oh yea, I forgot I have one of those too. I think we are even though, she still drives a car when it is nice out and I have a Can-Am Spyder :thumbup:

 

[Bob Denman]

Your sister, she drove a car. :roflblack:

:roflblack:
:roflblack::roflblack:
:roflblack::roflblack::roflblack: :thumbup: