I don't get it?

You are absolutely correct Hunar, you have misunderstood my post. I genuinely don't get it and judging from this thread, i'm not the only one.
All I want to hear is a genuine reason for wearing them and all I got was digs about 'power rangers'.

Like you said you can wear what you want, but i'm entitled to question it on an open forum, right?

Don't get me wrong, it's not just the biking fraternity, I also laugh at my surfing, mountain biking and snowboarding 'brothers' that feel the need to wear all the gear and crow about it all the time.

What do I wear? Spyke 1 piece, Arai helmet, Dainese back protector and Alpine stars boots and gloves. Why? Because it's the best protection money can buy. None of it matches my bike and certainly isn't worn for vanity. Like all my sporting kit It serves a purpose and when i'm done, it gets hung up until it's needed again and no-one would be any the wiser about my hobbies, because the only person I do them for is me.


Good luck with quiting smoking. I respect that no matter what you're wearing.

Been there and done the 2 Piece Dainese suit on my CBR600, A 2 Piece Leather Suit and an all in 1 leather overall / Power ranger outfit on my Fireblade and my GSXR1000, I then after 10 years of sports bikes ditched full leather in favour of my draggin jeans / textile bottoms and more retro looking bike kit to suit my Speed Triple...

I haven't changed as a biker, my ride is less full on but the attitude is the same, live to ride , enjoy the social side, enjoy being alone with my own thoughts while still being part of a group when riding and just enjoy the sense of freedom that a bike gives me !

The clothing goes to suit the machine I ride, biking is not just about what you ride , but what you wear, you have to look good too ! Why spend all that money on a bike and not dress to suit the style of bike you're on? Jaydee won't wear the same kit on his GSXR1000 as he does when he is off roading ... it would look odd!

The only thing that has remained constant in my bike kit in my coming up 12 years of riding is my Arai lid ... no matter what bike I have , the lid is always an Arai :)

Not sure I'd go for the waistcoat tho, don't they flap around a bit and catch the wind a bit more ? the SP3 is thirsty enough without adding more wind resistance to it! ;)

Biking is what you make it, what you take from it and how it makes you feel... dress how you want, wear what you want (as long as it stops the gravel grating and protects in an off) I'm not a fan of those open face lids either that some Back Patch bikers tend to wear , but then I don't fancy flies in my teeth or scraping my face off the floor in a spill (can you imagine what would be left of Bruce Forsyths chin if he came off a bike in an open face lid ;D)

Ok maybe I need sleep now ! Gnight !!!

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Originally Posted by dan_geoghegan

Does anyone just ride because they enjoy it anymore?

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ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Can't get enough, to be honest.

Thank's for the good luck, I need it, withdrawal is a nightmare. At the moment I am going for as long as I can between smokes, as going cold turkey doesn't work. I figure as it's a dependency built up over time, then you just reverse the process so you body becomes less dependant over time. It's going OK, some days are good, other are bad, I can go for a couple of days with nothing and then maybe 5 in one day, but getting there I think, I think my overall use is on it's way down.

I wasn't misunderstanding the fact that you don't understand why some people choose to wear a waistcoat, I can appreciate that you might not 'get it', and gave you a genuine reason for why I wear mine, and of course you are free to ask why on this forum, I've never said or implied otherwise. It was more the tone of the post that I was thinking I might have misunderstood, and I don't believe I am alone in thinking that either. I am always advising members that if they see a post that they find objectionable to ask the author to clarify before sounding off on the forum, at meets, etc, as saves a lot of hassle for members and admin's later on, and to start on the assumption that members don't deliberately mean to offend you, and it's just a misunderstanding or possibly bad wording.

As a waistcoat wearer myself I assumed the question was directed at me, and the way I understood the question was

"Hey wannabe, what's with the waistcoat? you're trying to hard to be a biker, it offers no protection in an accident, and because you wear it you obviously don't ride for the enjoyment of riding, and although I could also question your riding ability based solely on the fact you wear a waistcoat, I won't at the moment. Oh and by the way you look more like the missing member of FGTH than a genuine biker".

Now assuming I have misunderstood the wording, and you are still looking for a genuine and clear answer to your questions / statements,

1. I don't wear a waistcoat as protection, I have full leathers and textiles for that job. Personally I think anyone who rides on the roads with bare arms is a fool, and I would say that to them, but it's their choice at the end of the day, the law only requires a crash helmet. I'm also certain that most of the Waistcoat Wearers Society would agree with me, and so would most of the rest of the biking fraternity come to think of it, but I can raise it at the next society meeting, but as these meetings are secret I cannot disclose when this will happen, and as we are a secret society I would appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone we exist!

2. I didn't realise I was trying too hard to be a biker, to be fair I didn't realise I was trying to be anything. I'm still not sure how wearing a waistcoat determines whether or not I am a biker, or the level of my riding ability. As I said before, I'm sure that there are many different opinions on what being a 'biker' actually means, but I would have said I probably qualify for most of them (I don't drive, I ride my bikes everywhere in almost all conditions, I enjoy riding my bikes in almost all conditions and no matter what the journey is for), but I will agree that I do not meet everyone's idea of a biker. I've seen myself in the mirror when I have been wearing my waistcoat, and I have to say 'missing member of FGTH' didn't cross my mind, but I've been called worse, and if it's true, it's good to know that I might have a possible future in a tribute band. I have to admit I had to Google Frankie Chili, and having viewed a couple of pages of images of him, I couldn't find a single image of him in a waistcoat, so was wondering how someone wearing a waistcoat was trying to look like him, if he isn't known for wearing one.

3. As for the reason I wear it, I think it suits me and I like it, which I think are probably the only important reasons. It's a gift from a friend, who is no longer with us, and his wife, the same friend also gave me his bike, so I wear it with a certain amount of pride. Waistcoats tend to be personal to the owner, patches and pins that have some relevance to them, I can say with confidence that mine is unique. I guess you could call it a wearable scrap book, showing rallies I have been too, friends I have lost, etc. I've never thought wearing a waistcoat makes me 'more of a biker' than anyone else, and I've never heard anyone I know say that in order to be a 'real biker' you MUST have one.

On the other hand, if I have understood your post correctly, I have to say you have an odd way of asking a genuine question. I'm not sure there was any need for the insults, when you could have simply said

"Hunar, why do you wear a waistcoat?"

And got the answer you wanted. I would have thought Wiggy's post might have highlighted the fact that some people might have misunderstood the tone of your post, but as your response was to insult Wiggy instead, for me at least that just seemed to confirm that I had not misunderstood the tone of your question. I appreciate the fact that you don't give a damn, but as an admin I have to practice what I preach, so I am giving you the chance to clarify the tone of your post as myself, and others, found it offensive.

Personally I don't make my judgements based on what people wear, if you like riding you bike for any reason, then you're a biker.

go to the no smoking clinic get champex me n err in doors gave up on them ,tablets there no withdrawl symptoms at all .gave up 3 years ago now . Well done for giving it ago though but go get help from the nhs clinic there very good . :)

Granted the leather waist jacket (I'm not one to judge, people's life style is up them them, BUT I love the expanding joiners they have so the waist coat will always fit that ever expanding middle aged gent) Cut offs and patches have been around for decades. What was noticable was the amount of new cutoffs with new embroidered patches

Me and my buddies used to think it was cool to parade around in Levi 501s, engineer boots and WW2 A2 jackets thinking we were in The Wild One. Bit of escapism. Some of those Harley boys far from being 1%'ers look like accountants and surveyors. Can't see it's any different than being a member of the Sealed Knot and dressing as a Cavalier at weekends

Suspect the leather waistcoat came from people wearing WW2 despatch rider jerkins? you could still buy them up till about 20years ago in army surplus. Bear in mind there was none of this clever keep you/warm dry stuff like there is now

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Originally Posted by Mutt

Forgot to say, one piece leather suit ! and power rangers !!
Cant seem to get that image out of my head :D

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Totally agree with Mutt on this! I love my one piece leather suit, I get called a power ranger wherever I am and tbh I love it!

One piece and a sports bike is a good image but I ride because I enjoy it not just to get from A - B as quickly as possible... you'll never see me on a Dual Carriage way or motorway in a hurry, B roads all the way! ;D

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Originally Posted by Morticia

[quote author=dan_geoghegan link=1311517457/0#0 date=1311517457]

Does anyone just ride because they enjoy it anymore?

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ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Can't get enough, to be honest.[/quote]

+1 8-)

Ride most days of the year, love it every day.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jon_W

[quote author=Morticia link=1311517457/32#32 date=1311944518][quote author=dan_geoghegan link=1311517457/0#0 date=1311517457]

Does anyone just ride because they enjoy it anymore?

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ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Can't get enough, to be honest.[/quote]

+1 8-)

Ride most days of the year, love it every day.[/quote]

I'll +1 that too! I ride 365 days of the year without fail! 8-)

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Originally Posted by swarwick

I'm also certain that most of the Waistcoat Wearers Society would agree with me

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I was not aware there is a Waistcoat Wearers Society! I'd like to be a fly on the wall at their annual Christmas Ball....

Suits you sir! ;)