Advanced Riding Skills with Reg Pridmore

 

I know what you're thinking. But I don't need a track day. And you're right, you don't. Instead, you need Reg Pridmore. 

I loved the track day that my husband and I did last September. But as a 'Training' environment, for street specific skills and riding, I didn't feel like it was the best option.

That's why I really want to do Reg Pridmore's Class School. I feel like his homepage says it all:

 

"The friendliest and safest place to learn the riding skills we all need."

"At CLASS, Reg Pridmore focuses on teaching you how to become a smoother safer and more confident rider with instruction on more effective braking, shifting, cornering and how to avoid some pitfalls that often occur as a result of bad habits (even those you might not know you have)."

These two things are what make this kind of class totally different from a track day in my opinion. If you read through the FAQs, you'll see what the format is and how the class is set up.

My husband and I will probably shoot for the October class and by then we hop to have a different car that we can tow our bikes down to. Although, I'm still trying to convince him to ride down but, it's generally safer to drive your vehicle to a track class.. Hmmmm.

Whatever you do to increase your skills, just make sure it's a safe learning environment and not designed to outspeed eachother. There are quite a few different advanced courses out there if this is too far away for you. I've collected a few on my resources page for you.

Situational Awareness

 

I really like this article from Motorcyclist Magazine, by Ken Condon about Situational Awareness. Riding on the street is so different from riding on a closed racetrack and street riding demands your full attention.

Check it out and let me know your thoughts!

Held Women's Touch Gloves

Really good women's gloves (with adequate protection) are fairly hard to come by. That's why I'm so excited to see these from Held make it to the US!

I'm a HUGE fan of kangaroo palm riding gloves. My everyday gloves are my trusty Racer High Ends, which were discontinued long ago. I'm still hanging onto the two pairs I bought more than 4 years ago. I've always worn my Racers in warmer weather, even when it's 100F degrees out. They grip better than anything else I've worn when it's that hot.

These new gloves from Held have perforated Kangaroo palms which are going to be AMAZING in the summer!

The palm slider is constructed of SuperFabric, which has high abrasion resistant properties, which they clam is even stronger than Kevlar! These gloves also feature a touch friendly pad on each index finger, for those of you who are navigating with your smartphones. You'll also notice the patented Held Visor Wiper on the left index finger as well.

I like the multiple flex points where the accordion panels are; along the top of the wrist and knuckle, thumb and fingers. This makes squeezing your handgrips that much easier and more comfortable, so even if your fingers are reaching the ends of the glove,  you know they won't fight you as you're riding.

The sizing is numeric; 6/XSmall, 7/Small 8/Medium. If you have larger hands, then you will want to try the mens version offered from 8-12. Thank you Held for NOT dumbing down the ladies version of these gloves. We want and need the SAME protection as our male counterparts. And if you have tiny hands like I do, you'll love the size 6 option, which is one of the smallest sizes available for women. I'm hoping these have a similar fit to my Racers. Once I get find out I'll update my post!

I cannot wait to get my hands on a pair of these for Spring. I just hope they fit as well as my Racers do!

Race Gloves for Women: Racer

Racer Gloves finally has returned with true race gloves for women along 2 other options for street riding! 

High quality, protective, leather motorcycle gloves are hard to find for women riders these days. That's why I'm such a fan of Racer.  I have 4 pairs of their gloves which I acquired 3-5 years ago. As soon a I heard they were discontinuing my favorites, I immediately purchased replacement pairs. I currently have 2 of the High End (below, older version of the High Racer) and 2 of the Multitop. The High Ends are my absolute favorite riding gloves, out of the ~6-8 pairs that I have.

The first new model is the High Racer, in black and white for $219.99. Unfortunately you do not have any black options. These make for an excellent track / race glove and all around street riding glove. The High Racer, much like the older model has full kangaroo skin palms, palm And scaphoid sliders, carbon fiber protectors and an incredible fit and feel.

The second, less expensive option is the Grip, for $159.99. This glove is constructed of fully of goatskin, hard knuckle protectors and most likely a more relaxed street fit. This glove too is only available in sizes M-XL. Fingers crossed for XS, S!

The third is a lightweight, waterproof glove, the Traveller, for $149.99 isn't insulated. Sometimes you need a waterproof glove, but you may not need a warm one.

I should be getting a couple samples to check out in person. However, since I wear a XS/S, I doubt they will fit me. Who knows, maybe they will run smaller. I will update my post as soon as I receive them.

As of right now, Racer has only made size Medium-XLarge available in all these models. Those Austrians just have no idea how much we need XS, S. Hopefully they will make some available soon. I know that Racer Gloves USA is fighting hard to get us these sorely needed sizes, but for the ladies who do need larger sized gloves you now have 3 killer options.