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ATGATT ... really? I mean really?

Full face helmet, mesh or other textile jacket, overpants, and over-the-ankle leather hiking boots, almost 100% of the time. I will occasionally leave off the overpants on rare occasions, like riding on an errand at lunch. I have found that even with the heat this summer, my perception is that I am cooler riding with the overpants as opposed to just my jeans.
 
Dress for the slide, not for the ride. Me: ATTGATT, meaning full leather jacket and pants (+ leather boots, gloves and FC helmet) all year 'round.
 
I USUALLY am ATGATT. There are a few times I will ride in jeans as long as they are good thick jeans... and very rarely in tennis shoes... but I know I'm wrong with the shoes! Those times are for short rides... which I know is still not a good excuse. So probably 90-95% I am ATGATT

Good denim jeans are pretty tough... not anywhere near as good as riding pants I admit.... and no padding unless they are riding jeans, then they are fine and part of ATGATT.

I will say this about ATGATT though.... I have very good quality jacket and pants... Klim Latitude.... They are designed to vent very well (at speed especially) so they are not a burden to wear even in heat.
I found it much harder to stay in full gear with cheaper gear that did not vent well or was not comfortable to ride in.
 
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I will say this about ATGATT though.... I have very good quality jacket and pants... Klim Latitude.... They are designed to vent very well (at speed especially) so they are not a burden to wear even in heat.
I found it much harder to stay in full gear with cheaper gear that did not vent well or was not comfortable to ride in.

I found out long ago that the "good stuff" is always inexpensive in the long run because the "cheap" stuff always ends up costing me twice, sometimes 3 times as I buy it, upgrade it, and often upgrade it again :(

Currently I have 2 jackets, a Klim Apex Air, which I find is good from 75 degrees on up and a First Gear 37.5 Kilimanjaro, which I find is good below 80 degrees. Even with the vents closed, the Klim Apex Air is really only a hot weather jacket, which one would expect from a mesh panel jacket. The textile First Gear 37.5 Kilimanjaro could use a couple more vents when and can get warm but is a very nice jacket in cool and warm weather but high humidity or hot sunshine can cause sweating in the jacket if speeds are too slow.

As I posted in my OP, I always ride with protective motorcycle boots, motorcycle gloves, jacket and helmet.

I've never owned or worn riding pants. That will probably change as we are looking to do a long trip on our bikes and I'm reassessing gear.
 
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I have Olympia mesh jacket and pants. During the cool/cold riding days, these go over existing clothes. During the summer, the pants are worn over bicycle shorts or Heat out shorts from Cycle gear and jacket goes over t-shirt. Helmet, gloves, boots (either my water proof Wellington boots or my combat boots) complete the ensemble.
 
Modular helmet - all the time
Ear plugs - any ride that will be more than 5-10 minutes
Gloves - all the time; short leather/mesh/armoured for summer; mid-weight gauntlet for spring/fall; snowmobile gloves for winter; thin liner as needed; waterproof over glove as needed
Boots - all the time
Jacket - all the time; Coretech mesh for summer (>50) + liners as needed; 3/4 Fieldsheer rest of the year + liners & fleece as needed
Pants - all the time; riding jeans/khakis (kevlar + armour) for short rides to events etc.; Joe Rocket mesh for summer, over work pants; Fieldsheer, over pants rest of the year + liners as needed
Neck gaiter - most of the time > 5 miles; thin for summer (wet as needed for cooling); fleece for spring/fall; balaclava (head/neck/chest) for winter
 
I went down about 10 years ago. I high sided, slid off the road, face down, bike on my legs. The shoulder of the road was wide and graveled. The chin of my helmet dug a groove in the gravel on the side of the road. My boots were scuffed, but saved my feet. The bottom half of my pants were shredded. (mc pants) My only injury was a small cut on my elbow where the pads slid up and a rock penetrated. Needed one stitch.

If I had not had the gear, my feet and legs would've been shredded and I can't imagine what would have happened to my face. I'm ATGATT!
I wear the gear when its 95 and humid or I don't ride. I do the little tricks to stay cool. Wet shirt or bandana, drink lots of fluid. Haven't tired Ice in my pockets, but I might. Sometimes I carry a water bladder on my back with ice. Feels good. I've found that if I keep moving, I'm fine.

I wear Aerostich. I do have a First Gear mesh jacket and some KLIM mesh pants, but haven't worn them this year.

And I live in the south....hot and humid.
 
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I consider myself ATGATT. That said, I may not gear up fully if I’m buzzing a couple streets over to see a friend or neighbor.

So, I’m _nearly_ always in:
Full-face helmet
Armor head to toe (jacket, gloves, pants, boots)

I live in a _hot_ climate, and sometimes it’s just too hot for me to ride without being miserable. So at those times, I don’t ride.
 
A guy I work with has a friend whose foot was de-gloveed by steel toe boots in a motorcycle accident.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

Question for the folks who say steel toe boots are a no-no.
What sort of accident could happen in which the steel toe does damage, yet without the steel toe the foot would be less damaged?
Are there any industry-accepted references about why not to use a steel toe boot, other than comfort issues?

Not really interested in 'I was told' sort of references.

Everything I see about dedicated riding boots says the toe box is solidly reinforced.
Given that, I have to wonder what sort of reinforcement is superior to a steel toe.
 
Question for the folks who say steel toe boots are a no-no.
What sort of accident could happen in which the steel toe does damage, yet without the steel toe the foot would be less damaged?
Are there any industry-accepted references about why not to use a steel toe boot, other than comfort issues?

Not really interested in 'I was told' sort of references.

Everything I see about dedicated riding boots says the toe box is solidly reinforced.
Given that, I have to wonder what sort of reinforcement is superior to a steel toe.

I have the same question.

I was the first in this thread to mention it, but only because the MSA class I went to specifically forbid us from using them and because both of our instructors said they were dangerous. No explanation was given.

Now that said, my wife and I both have reinforced motorcycle boots, but the toes are not particularly reinforced, at least no more so than any other pair of medium duty boots I own. The area of the motorcycle boots that seem to be reinforced -- other than a shifting pad on the toe -- is that our boots have CE rated pads on inside and outside of the ankles to help in a crushing injury if the foot is caught under a tipped over bike in addition to rigid heel protection.
 
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What sort of accident could happen in which the steel toe does damage, yet without the steel toe the foot would be less damaged?
Off the top of my head I would say a crushing injury. With a motorcycle boot the leather will just spring back into shape, relieving the pressure on the toes. That allows you to remove the boot and treat the injury ASAP. Steel would bend. And stay bent. Your toes would be literally in a steel clamp, crushed and bleeding while waiting for someone to show up with a hacksaw to cut the boot off. Ouch!

The argument for is well, maybe with your toes in a steel box, you don't even get the injury. I kinda don't get the whole thing either....

I will say around here steel toe boots would be brutal cold for late Fall early Spring riding.

I also think "steel toe boots" means work boots to most people. Work boots often have laces (bad) and no protection for the type of foot/ankle injuries motorcyclists encounter (also bad). If a MC safety coach says "steel toe boots" are ok, then he/she runs the risk of everyone showing up with lace type, ankle high steel toe work boots and maybe one or two show up with a dedicated steel toe motorcycle boot (they are out there, usually at HD stores).

I have a pair of high quality, over the ankle mid-calf steel toe boots that I wear when operating the chainsaw. I can't imagine wearing those heavy monsters while riding. Absolutely no feel at all and it is like my feet are in cement blocks. They feel like they weigh about 3x what my leather SIDI On Roads weigh.
 
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Off the top of my head I would say a crushing injury.

You mean like the type of injury that steel toed boots are made to protect against?
I'm really not trying to be pedantic here. I have some nice steel toed boots that go well above the ankles.
As for crushing protection in the event something hits my toes, I believe the myth that steel toes will cause your toes to be stuck in a vice has been disproven.
At least, in so far as it is a statistical likelihood. Broken necks from wearing a helmet, injury from seat belts, etc, and we still use those devices.

The one thing I can imagine that my boots won't protect against but a dedicated motorcycle boot may, is crushing, from the SIDE, at a location where the soles aren't in a position to protect. I believe some or most motorcycle boots have something there (?).

As for shifting feel, I've never had a shifty ride so I can't comment. Rear brake feel seems fine to me though.
 
I have a pair of Ariats that I bought to wear with khakis because they are very comfortable and were discounted a bunch! I don’t have an issue with feel while shifting. I can feel the click no problem. I’ve not ridden long distances in them, so cold has never been an issue as I’m not on the bike any more than 10-15 minutes going to/from work.
 
The reason I always cringe a little when riders think work boots or hiking boots are ATGATT is that when I was researching motorcycling injuries over a decade ago I noticed a large number of ankle injuries. Most non-MC boots don't offer the protection for ankles that MC boots will. Special bowl-shaped disks that go right over those bones.
I know it sucks having to buy yet another pair of boots (or 2 if you ride in the summer and winter), but there are plenty of price points for boots.

I used to wear regular hightops if I was going to a concert or someplace where I'd have to be on my feet for a long time, or not look like a storm trooper, or just being able to put all my gear in my tiny locker at the gym.
So I got a pair of Sidi hightops. They look like Vans or Converse but offer much more protection and are still something I can walk around in. They are lace up, which I don't really like, but it's almost impossible to find cool, stylish MC boots that aren't lace up. So I just wear my jeans that are longer in the legs, which covers the laces while riding, so they don't get caught up in my pegs.

Which takes me to my next purchase- riding jeans. I've got riding pants but they just take too long to get on and off when just doing a short ride to work or close by. My new jacket has belt loops at the bottom of both sides on the back, so will keep utilizing them to keep my wist protected. I went down many years ago at 60 mph and the only injury I had was a big strawberry at my waist. My regular jeans had slid down as I was doing a Superman down the road. The road rash didn't heal for a long time. Not fun having to have a wound electrically cauterized in the emergency room.
 
I crashed my KLR two weeks ago after coming around a blind corner and finding a wet, wooden bridge. Bike disappeared from under me before I knew what happened.

KLR hooked on the bridge runner and went straight down the bridge and skidded to a stop down the road. I skipped off the side of the bridge and flew into the creek bottom below. Took an incredibly lucky landing and was able to hop right up.

Had on:

Bell full face helmet
Klim Induction Jacket
Klim Fifty One Jeans (got scuffed)
Klim Dakar Pro Gloves (got torn)
Icon 1000 Elsinore boots

I ended up with sore left clavicle, sore right rotator, both wrists sprained, huge hematoma on left shoulder, medium hematoma on right elbow, pulled right pec muscle, left knee swollen, right knee took most of the damage from impact with significant swelling. Had I not been wearing armored Klim jeans, I believe I would have been in the ER with possible surgery/rehab after for my right knee.

Two weeks later, all the pain and bruising is just about gone.

Had I been in shorts and t-shirt, I'd be getting my physical therapy lined up right now probably, if not surgery.

Really drove home ATGATT for me.
 
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I would like to refer everyone to my sig line. It's a rule that applies to every situation: motorcycles, beaches, parties, funerals, etc...
 
Reviving this old thread. I wear all the gear all the time. Tall Alpinstar boots, Aerostich Hi Viz jacket w/ black pants (both have armour), a really ugly Hi Viz modular Bell helmet, and all my gloves have the reinforced palm padding and knuckle protection.

Awhile back I took a stone strike to the shin that hit the leg where it was protected by the upper boot and the pants. The impact hurt and shifted my foot on the foot peg. No damage to pants or boot, and no bruise. I have taken a bird strike to the crown of the helmet and a seperate stone strike to the opposite side of the helmet near the temple. Both scratched the finish of the helmet. In all three cases I kept the bike upright and straight. After the stone strike to the leg I pulled over to regain composure and check for damage. The other two I kept on riding.

What to wear is a personal choice, I choose the full gear.
 
I'm a 90% or so ATGATT rider, in part because I started riding when I was a bit older (30s) and am still a new rider (first full year of ownership). Also because I had to convince my very skeptical wife when I started riding. I started out with an old heavy leather motorcycle jacket and jeans, along with a Bilt Techno helmet and some mechanix gloves. I've since upgraded to Sedici Marco pants and jacket (white) with armor inserts, along with Bilt gloves, and some Interceptor work boots from Walmart that have ankle protection pads. When I got a new helmet, I went with white for visibility and an ECE rated lining.

I also ATGATT because I've been hands on treating a rider who crashed (I wasn't riding, just got called to help out because I know basic trauma care). The helmet protected his face, and he was wearing gloves and a riding jacket. His pants were shredded and his legs had some NASTY wounds. He also had some kind of chest injury so was struggling to breathe, and had a broken wrist (short gloves, not gauntlets), so never forget that safety gear can't protect you from everything. Also, don't ride like an asshole- he was racing someone else, overcorrected, and ended up riding his face across the road, into a sign and over the curb, according to witnesses. He survived (I handed him off to EMTs about 15 minutes after the crash).

Washing his blood off me later is what pushed me to upgrade my helmet and gloves.

All that said, I get lazy in one particular circumstance- I tend to just throw on a helmet and gloves when I am test riding my bike after adjusting my levers, brakes, or other basic maintenance. It's lazy, I justify it as, "I'm just going down my own street," but the voice of reason in my head knows it's not true.
 
I am MTGMTT--Most of the gear most of the time. Jacket gloves and helmet always--but this is supposed to be fun and sometimes I am just going to the bank or library and don't make a big production out of it--I have been down a few times and even rolled backwards over the hood of a car--still here and nearing my 70th birthday
 
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