Gawdawful hot weather, riding gear

I am looking for the mesh-y-est of mesh gear for my wife. I mean so meshy that if fishnet panty hose came with knee and hip padding, that's what we'd buy. My wife enjoys riding with me but she hates hot weather, which isn't good when you live in Tampa and it's hot and humid 6 months out of the year. So I'm looking for the coolest (temperature) riding gear that she can slip over shorts and a T shirt. It gets more complicated with her petite ladies size 4 size. If you know a solution, please chime in.

Thanks.

hot is relative. the better products including what is chosen for underlayer, definitely cool and draw away perspiration as well as can be done -- when you are moving... seems odd to choose BLACK for outerlayer though. that's not going to aid you in combating ambient heat, especially when not moving through the air at sufficient speed ; }

there are advantages to riding a [near] naked machine, as well. all the whining about this windscreen or that not making one's space as unassailed as the interior of a car with closed windows and well-designed AC... well, that seems antithetical to having an airstream passing through like a cooling tunnel on a pro power amp or a computer. the raw motorcycle is gloriously exposed to the elements and it can't simultaneously be a fully-controlled environment. dichotomy...

I wear a FirstGear Mesh Tex jacket and Rev'It Airwave pants, and its good in over 90[SUP]o[/SUP]/90% weather (as long as you're moving). The HD riders I see in t-shirts and shorts look like they are sweating more than me

I do agree one key aspect for keeping cool is the base layer. Wicking fabric works wonders and keeps you much cooler than going without (or just cotton tee shirt and shorts). I wear full length runner's compression pants, and either a short sleeve or long sleeve underarmor compression shirt. Despite being full length in pants and with the long sleeve shirt, it's still pretty comfortable. Keeps your skin from sweating directly against the jacket/pants and rubbing/chafing.

I'm always a bit concerned over abrasion resistance of the mesh gear if I go down, but that's always a trade off. I upgraded the armor in each to D3O (mostly as a psychological boost).

Dave Modisette said:

I am looking for the mesh-y-est of mesh gear for my wife. I mean so meshy that if fishnet panty hose came with knee and hip padding, that's what we'd buy. My wife enjoys riding with me but she hates hot weather, which isn't good when you live in Tampa and it's hot and humid 6 months out of the year. So I'm looking for the coolest (temperature) riding gear that she can slip over shorts and a T shirt. It gets more complicated with her petite ladies size 4 size. If you know a solution, please chime in.

Thanks.

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your lucky and we'd be lucky if we got aweek of it.

for the top, my joe rocket ego3 rocks it, with open-weave moisture wicking t-shirts with a little depth to their weave. people get into brand names an awful lot, but really it's the concepts that matter the most IMO, after trying quite a few expensive and not so expensive examples. of course, execution of the concepts also matter, but it isn't always the most expensive that will work the best...

I wear Motoport Ultra II Air Mesh jacket and pants. It's big and bulky but has very good airflow. And most important, it provides exceptional protection. Keep in mind, it's not protective gear if all it does is allow air flow. We have to give up something to ride on hot days, but for me it won't be the protection. On the particularly hot/humid days, I wear Heat Out garments under my Motoport gear which keeps me about as comfortable as I can get in 100+ heat index days.

as a Ferinstance, I bought a Carhartt FORCE high-vis shirt that was on sale for $16. It rocks for hot and humid weather, and you can click the images to look at the general garment and the weave here:

Men's Carhartt Force® Color Enhanced Short-Sleeve T-Shirt | Carhartt

Later Costco had a rebate on a $10 Fila T of the same fabric and weave with a $2 or $3 dollar at-register rebate, really the only difference was the lack of a pocket. Hald the cost of the Carhartt, and just as effective. And the Carhartt was half the price of some considered-desirable brand names that do no more, and maybe less...

Here in the Deep South I think of the dog days of summer (August) the same way people up north do the dead of winter (the benefit it is rarely too cold to ride and never snows!) I usually don't ride much except in the evenings.Its just too damn hot and mesh gear just let in more steamy air.

Have you considered cooling gear.

Cooling Vests: Air Conditioning on Your Motorcycle?

the worst of it is probably the bra. as a result i've forgone wearing one, though if i had to i'd be doing some research...

The Tourmaster Flex Series 3 has the biggest mesh holes and is the most versatile of any jacket I have ever owned. I even crash tested mined with very few injuries, I can't recommend it enough.
Tour Master Flex Series 3 Jacket :: MotorcycleGear.com

as an aid against wind noise while keeping cool i have sometimes worn a loose poly balaclava just around the neck to diffuse wind speed at the modular helmet bottom, seems to keep the air coming up around the shoulders from making it so noisy at speed while still allowing air flow...

Part of the benefit of wearing mesh gear is to provide partial shade to otherwise exposed skin. It's hotter to wear next to nothing and expose our bodies to direct sun. Think of those fine mesh screens used in window shades.

When it's really hot, like over 93-95 degrees, it's better to wear solid textile gear that vents well and keep air moving. 95 degree wind blowing across exposed skin pulls more moisture out of our skin than we can replace by drinking.

My mesh gear is Tourmaster. The jackets are the Intake model, pants are Venture Air.

Like Greenboy posted, I like to wear a microfiber gaiter around my neck. I have a couple of them made by Buff. Wetted every so often it works amazingly well at cooling our bodies by evaporative cooling the very vascular neck area.

I live in Tampa too. Nothing I've ever worn has kept me cool in August. Maybe someday somebody will make CE level 2 rated ice packs, but until that happens I'll stick to my Klim Overland jacket with the vents open or my Coretech Air mesh jacket. Chance of rain being the deciding factor as the mesh is a little less miserable.


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I wear a Firstgear Contour Mesh Jacket. It is very effective in heat, so much so that I find it chilly in temperatures below 75 degrees. It is fairly cheap, and it has one huge flaw in that the sleeves do not have cinch down straps. I do worry that if I go down, the elbow armor won't be in the right spot. Otherwise, though, it's kept me comfortable in temperatures near 100 degrees and high humidity. I'm a believer in keeping your skin covered in heat. I am always more comfortable in my mesh jacket than the bare armed, vest wearing cruiser guys I ride with.

To (hopefully) answer your question: My wife wears a Fly mesh jacket. It's gray and white, super-duper open material, and armored at elbows, shoulders, and back. She's also a size 4, or _maybe_ 6 depending upon exactly what brand or item she's wearing. The Fly jacket fits her well, and you're gonna struggle to get more airflow. Never crashed it, so I can't comment on protection.

Joe Rocket has always seemed to make durable mesh jackets, too. (EDIT*** Sorry, I had inadvertently put the men's line name here, but have now changed it to the women's mesh line name) The Cleo line is the name of the current women's mesh line. We recently picked up a couple Joe Rocket mesh jackets that came with a bike, but I haven't (and probably won't?) worn the mesh yet. They're super-open, too.

I also have TourMaster Flex3 jacket and pants. With the outer mesh and inner mesh liner it really slows down the air so you are getting good venting but not a heavy direct air flow. The jacket has held up well for right at 4 years of frequent wear. Had issues with the zippers on the pants.

I really like my Olympia mesh

I second the Olympia airflow garments. My pants not only work well in the summer, but if you put the waterproof liner in them they keep you warm in the fall! Plus I've found the stock seat much more comfortable with them on.

johnakay said:

your lucky and we'd be lucky if we got aweek of it.

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I've visited your lovely countries in the summer and nearly froze my Florida butt off. A mountain top in Wales on July 4th and a day in Wiggan in June, the coldest places on earth, to this southern boy.