Aye, what’s good y’all? I finally decided to buy a racing suit and I have to admit this was something I was dreading. I’ve had temptations of buying a racing suit before, but to be perfectly honest they were all a bit too expensive for me at the time. It has been a great fortune that I’ve found a two piece leather suit priced at $199.00 that is race legal.

This two piece racing suit comes equipped with the standard dual density armor which makes it race legal. It has dual stitched main seams for tear resistance and YKK zippers throughout the suit. The Top Gear Racing suit has perforated sleeves as well as the sides of the jacket to keep the rider comfortable and cool if they ride in hot weather. I have not been able to test this aspect of the suit out because it is now turning cold in the city of San Francisco. But I can honestly say that it does its job well in keeping the rider warm with its 1.4-1.5mm of thick drum dyed, top- grain cowhide leather.

The dual density armor is removable just in case you decide to wear the suit without its armor for regular street riding and this is my favorite part of the suit as it proves its versatility. The suit also comes with velcro patches so that a person can take this suit to the track and drag knee. Overall, there is nothing special about this suit except for the fact it has an inside pocket in the jacket to carry a few items that you might have with you. But when you think about it, you won’t be needing many items if you plan to do some serious riding. The suit comes in several different colors and sizes that provide adequate protection as well as nice flexibility, along with the unique styling of your choice.

Another thing that I like about this suit is that the jacket is detachable from the pant so that you can combined them to any other leathers you have, or you can just wear the two separate for different occasions. The suit does not come with a spine protector, but you can definitely buy one and easily install it in the jacket. I also forgot to mention that this racing suit is unisex! I’m sure this is music to a lot of people’s ears as they find it hard enough to find clothes that fit their body type; be it man, woman, or child. To put it simply, the suit comes in various sizes that will accommodate your body type.

I have worn this suit only a few times, but I can honestly say that it bolsters my confidence. It is very basic but for a person on a budget, this is exactly what you are looking for. You want a suit that you feel will take care of you and will fit you just right. Not only do I feel confident in this two-piece leather suit, but it provides me with a good classic look. I turn heads while wearing this suit, and there is nothing like a race suit that is affordable and makes you look awesome.

Aight folks, this is Studdly signing off but be sure to stay tuned for more updates on more Essential Stuff.

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Hey what’s going on guys? For today’s session of Essential Stuff, we have a pair of riding gloves sponsored by Lee Parks Design. We had the pleasure of meeting Lee at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show last week. Very cool guy! Here’s a quick overview of the DeerSport model.

The first thing I thought when I felt these gloves, was that they were super-supple. And as I put them on, I got this “creamy” feeling from the deer skin. That’s the only way I know how to describe it in words. You definitely do not get the same feeling from typical cowhide or even kangaroo leather.

Another gripe I have with typical race gloves is that you have to break them in. Rough stitching underneath all of my fingernails is not comfortable. With the Lee Parks Design DeerSport model, there is no need for that hassle.

As I mentioned in the video, all of Lee’s products are proudly handcrafted in the United States. They are all trimmed and ironed to provide unrivaled fit, comfort and dexterity. Of course, the seamless palms are the reason for the ultimate in feel without pressure points.

The dual-duty thread provides the strongest seams and won’t cut through leather like Kevlar thread. There is a double-stitched ErgoTech palm patch on each glove that doesn’t bunch up, and provides strong abrasion-resistance. The double layer elkskin backing on knuckles also provides for additional abrasion protection.

That’s it for now. Check back in a few for a follow up review after I have worn these badboys for a while.

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Graham here with a quick update for our Essential Stuff section.

I’ve been using Sedici’s Monza jacket as my primary riding jacket on and off for about 7 months or so, and I’m sad to report that this first update is not a positive one.

The jacket’s zipper had been getting more and more finicky as the jacket got older, and it finally came apart in my hands one day, leading to a less-than-comfy ride home with my jacket flapping in the wind behind me.

Obviously, just over half a year is an appallingly short lifespan for a jacket that’s listed 300 dollars. Luckily, Cycle Gear offers a one-year warranty, even if you’ve long ago lost the original receipt as I had.

Rather than replacing the jacket, though, our local Cycle Gear store in San Francisco chose to pay for the zipper to be replaced. This would have been fine if Cycle Gear had dealt with the repair themselves. But instead, I not only had to take the jacket to the leather repair shop myself, but also pay for the 85 dollar repair out of pocket, before going back to Cycle Gear yet again to collect my reimbursement. By the time the jacket was fixed and I’d gotten my money, it had been a week. Fortunately, I have a car and don’t have to rely on my motorcycle as transportation, but for someone who exclusively rides, it could have been a real problem.

The good news, however, is that Johnson Leathers in San Francisco did a fantastic job, replacing the small, low-quality zipper that failed with a much meatier black oxide version, which not only looks better, but also is much easier to zip up.

So, in short, high marks for Johnson Leathers for their friendly attitude and great work. A passing grade to Cycle Gear San Francisco for covering the repair, but points off for how involved they made the process. Finally, I’m sorry to report, but a failing grade for the Sedici Monza jacket. Even if 300 bucks is cheap for a motorcycle jacket, it’s still far too much for something that breaks in less than a year.

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We’ve been putting our Scala Rider Q2 MultiSet Pro though the paces over the last couple months. While the device has worked great as a Bluetooth headset when paired with a cell phone, we still hadn’t tried using the Scala the way I suspect most riders will—as an intercom between two motorcycles.

But finally we managed to get three of the IPM staff and their motorcycles together in place to put the Scala to the test. The first step was to sync the two headsets with each other, which was a snap—just put both devices in “discoverable” mode, press the “control” button, and you’re good to go. (Check out the video for syncing the Scala with a cell phone for a step-by-step, the process is essentially the same.)

Once synced, we were ready to hit the road. The Scala does offer voice activation, but for this first test, we opted to leave them in “manual” mode. All it took to start our conversation was a press of the control button.

The Scala isn’t too loud. Lets just get that out of the way. Even with the volume turned up to the max, it’s far from blowing your eardrums out. While I found the volume adequate, my fellow road tester Paul struggled intermittently with the low volume, although subsequent testing will be required to determine whether it was an issue with the headset, the helmet, or operator error. One thing that did make a difference, though, was the headset’s dynamic volume, which gets louder as the ambient wind and road noise gets increases.

After riding around for hours in foggy San Francisco, we found that the Scala’s range was about one city block before the reception started to deteriorate. Range was marginally improved outside of the city, but once you get more than a couple hundred yards apart from each other, and you’ll have to press the control button again to restart the conversation once you’re back in range.

That’s all for this time, but keep it tuned here as we continue to put our headsets through their paces.

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Hey guys, Graham here with another update on our trusty Sena SMH-10 Bluetooth motorcycle headset.

When you’re in the middle of tearing up the twisties and get a phone call, the last thing you’d want to do is take your hand off the handlebars to answer it—even if answering the with your hand only takes one push of a button. But what if that call you get just as you’re grabbing third gear and blasting onto a straightway is an important one you just have to take?

Fortunately, the Sena once again has you covered, thanks to the SMH-10’s voice activation. Once the voice activation is turned on—as described in the video above—all you need to do is speak loudly when you receive an incoming phone call, and the Sena takes care of the rest.

It worked great in the IPM garage, as the video illustrates, but what about out on the road, where the constant wind and engine noise can easily throw voice control? Well, finally someone called me while I was riding with the headset on, so I got to put it to the test.

And, to my slight surprise, the voice activation worked perfectly. Ok, well almost perfectly. If you just say “Hello?” in a normal voice, like you would to answer your phone, it’s too quite for the headset to pick up over the racket of the motorcycle. But after the first “hello” did do the trick, I positively shouted it the second time. Just what the doctor ordered, it seems, as my phone call was immediately connected.

I have to admit, while using a headset to communicate between your biker friends when you’re all out on a ride is great, I was initially skeptical about needing to use my phone while I was riding—after all, many of us ride to get away from the annoyances of life.

But after three months with different headsets now, I’m hooked. Truly, I seldom answer when I’m on the road—riding a motorcycle is takes a lot more focus than driving a car—but I still love know that I’ve received a phone call or a text so that I can make sure to check it out the next time I stop for a break.

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Keep it tuned for more, not only on the Sena, but also how it stakes up to its rivals from Scala, and be sure to order your copy of the 2011 print edition of Inline Performance Magazine HERE at the pre-order price until supplies last.

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