#leathers

As a kid, I remember my folks would take their shoes to the local shoe repair shop. I take it for granted now since I’ve been working from home long before it was cool, but there was a time when people not only had to go into an office, they also had to wear nice clothes, too! And the bit of that wardrobe that got the most punishment were the shoes. Those business shoes never looked comfortable, with their hard soles and weird patterns on the leather. But they lasted a long time, and if the soles ever wore out – which they did regularly with my folks – the local repair shop (I guess they were called cobblers even further back in time) could just put a new sole on and breathe new life into what would have been (re)tired shoes.

Updated April, 2021

The REV’IT! Quantum One-Piece Suit is a looker for sure. Whether you can handle the splattery graphics and snakeskin-esque embossing is entirely on you, but if you can, you’ll be awarded with a suit that functions just as well as it looks, and all the ladies (and/or men) will notice. Let’s delve deeper into the Quantum’s mechanics.

Updated, February 2020

The relationship between motorcycles and safety has forever been a troubled one. Riders are unencumbered by protective cages, exposing them to impact danger in ways car drivers aren’t. Autos are equipped with doors, bumpers, crumple zones, and airbags. Wait, airbags, you say?

Retailing for $1,099.95, the Dainese Veloster one-piece perforated suit is an affordable alternative to the more expensive offerings in Dainese’s closet. For sure, you’re sacrificing some of the features and benefits of the high-end suits, but primary protection remains as does comfort. Best thing, the Veloster is of the “In” boot variety, meaning, instead of stuffing bulky leathers inside your boots, the Velosters are designed to be worn over the boot.

If you’re reading this in the good ‘ol US of A, then Thanksgiving has come and gone, and you might still be sleeping off that food coma. As you look down at your stomach and regret all the turducken you just consumed, let’s be thankful there are still companies out there who will custom make leather suits exactly to your dimension. For this week’s Church feature we take a look at one of the early players in the custom suit market: Z Leathers. This article, written by Todd Canavan from 1996 is particularly special because: 1) Much of it still rings true today 2) Designs from the 1990s are hilarious and 3) Z Leathers is still in business today. 

If you’ve been reading or watching MO sportbike reviews/videos in the last three years, you’ve certainly witnessed me wearing Rev’It Stingray leathers – the white with red and black highlights color scheme is both attractive and hard to miss. The Stingray has been my go-to one-piece leather suit for so long I’m loathe to retire it, but I was informed that earlier this year Rev’It discontinued this particular style. So, before I get too far behind current fashions, it’s time give my Stingray a farewell salute.

Either you have one or you don’t. If you don’t, you’ll know the moment you try to find a set of off-the-rack leathers to fit your custom-sized body. Manufacturers have a tough job when designing mass-produced riding gear, and nowhere is it more apparent than in one-piece racing leathers.

Italy is a beacon of motorsports, and that also holds true in terms of motorcycle race apparel. Alpinestars and Dainese are the two most prominent Italian apparel companies, but Spidi is another compelling player in the market. World-championship riders wearing Spidi leathers include Marco Melandri, Scott Redding, Leon Camier and Ayrton Badovini. (Not to be confused with Sidi, which is a different Italian company that makes footwear for motorcyclists.)

Southern California residents who are also fans of the Dainese/AGV brands are likely familiar with the D-Store Orange County. One of three official full-fledged Dainese/AGV retail stores (the others being San Francisco and Chicago), what you might not have known is that the OC store, which is roughly equivalent to a large two-bedroom home, also housed Dainese’s North American headquarters for several years. Think about that – Dainese, known the world over as one of the finest motorcycle apparel companies, ran its North American operations in modest office space at the back of a retail store.

Motorcycle gear has several important functions. While maybe not the primary purpose of dedicated riding gear, our chosen wardrobe tells the world that we are motorcyclists. Yes, there is a large fashion component to our apparel, one that announces what tribe we claim. From canyon carvers to stunters to cruisers to tourers and adventure tourers to street racers or vintage riders to even the one-percenters (of the pre Occupy Wall Street variety), every subculture within the motorcycle world has its own uniform. And if we’re really honest with ourselves, who among us hasn’t at least once pulled up to a stop light, noticed our reflection in the storefront window, and thought, “Yep, I look pretty damn cool.”