Tnx for the info.
As I like pretty much hiking on the Pyrenees (that is where I am from by the way), I have all the layer system clothes from North Face so I guess that I will use them.
The only thing that I'll have to buy are the pants.
Then the only worry is that the North Face type clothes do not have any protection... do you reckon that i'll need them?

cheers

Alex

My passion...cycling! http://www.lifeonbikes.com

Your north face kit will work fine as your base and intermediate layer but I wouldn't recommend using your backpacking outer layer on a motorcycle. I've always worked on the principle of if it can happen sooner or later it will. Crashing on any surface would rip your North Face jacket and pants to pieces plus if there is friction involved it will melt and cause burns.

I always use an outer layer that is designed for motorcycling, back in the seventies because I was young, dumb and full to the brim with testosterone I rode in the summer in jeans and a jean jacket I have some really nasty scars that prove that.

Bob.

Yes, and then cooling is enhanced if there is enough AIR FLOW over the sweat soaked fabric contacting skin.

This was why Fenn's post puzzled me. Seems they were wearing Synthetic Winter Grade Jacket and Pants .. any bets it was BLACK? (no venting mentioned) with WINTER Thermals worn under. WRONG, perhaps dangerous?

You need some air flow to allow sweat induced cooling to happen. Right? And when you're stuck in traffic in 40C ... there IS no cooling. For this ... my riding jacket comes OFF and I'm wearing dirt bike desert racing set up only.
(Long sleeve synthetic shirt, elbow guards, back protector) Proven to work. Once moving, jacket should go back on ... Keep the Sweat inside! Keep drinking!

But TOO MUCH air flow (like with NO cover of bare skin) can lead to serious dehydration. We see this here a lot with the our more intelligent Harley guys ... riding in Tank tops and beany helmets on 40C days. They end up in the emergency room ... needing four or five IV bags of Saline.

So you need SOME air flow, but keeping sweat flowing is important also for cooling and of course in heat, constant drinking required. I learned this from Tri-Althelete friend. In 118F (47C) crossing Death Valley (which I've done dozens of times) I drink constant sips, two to three minutes apart. DO NOT run out of WATER!

Leather does breath. Not a lot, but does breath. It's the "original" breathable material. Also, some leather is perforated or has venting (like mine). So helps with cooling evap in HOT temps.

In cold, if I'm sweating inside, it's not very cold outside. If cold, air flow will evap sweat quickly, then it's time to close vents, add a layer to two. Like going from Death Valley (below Sea Level) up into Sierra and 3000 meters, which happens in 30 minutes of riding in California/Nevada.

Perhaps with hikers or Skiers, this can be a problem ... and IS after all why Gore invented GoreTex! To keep guys from freezing after exerting in super cold weather ... being frozen from there own sweat. We experienced this exact thing in Antarctica ... and GoreTex DID help us when it was brand new. (two years there)

Me too. My lectures came from British Antarctic Survey guys and Navy Seals. The BAS guys had us doing Crevasse rescue ... so we were actually out in it, doing it "on location". Seals was a different situation, very useful too.

Sexy umbrella girls and perforated leathers usually help in this situation!
Actually, it's the motors they are more worried about. Overheating, especially back in old days with 2 Strokes.

Bob is spot on. You need armor and tough fabric or leather outside to protect you when your sliding down the road. Go to Andorra. Best deals on riding gear I saw in all of EU! ALL your North Face stuff is perfect UNDER your riding jacket and pants ... so KEEP IT!

Firstly, Jeez mollydog you've a way better memory than mine and I humbly bow to your superior knowledge

Antartica, really?, I mean REALLY? Man I'm jealous.



Way back in the day I used to do a bit of club and national racing in the late 70's and early 80's in the UK.

Umbrella girls hadn't been invented, the only perforations I had in my leathers were covered with duct tape and we still bump started the bikes at the beginning of the race. Halcyon days, where did they go?