The Art of Keeping Dry

The Art of Keeping Dry

EVALUATIONS

No matter what else one can say about the English—oil leaks and electrics come to mind—one must grant first that the English lead the world when it comes to being batty about bikes, and second that their weather is awful. Rainy and cold and all that.

Put enthusiasm and bad weather together and you get what has become a world standard: The English Riding Suit. The U.S. has leather jackets, the Italians rule the cafe colors brigade and the English keep you warm and dry.

Because this is so, and because an English suit is more like others of its kind than it’s like riding suits from other countries, we rounded up a collection, the best of the breed, and tried them all during the most recent winter.

To wit:

Mascot Suit

Every product should have a salesman like Harry Anton. He’s the proprietor of the Outrider, a retail and mail-order store in Los Angeles (10545 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, Calif. 90064) and he imports and distributes the Mascot suit.

Late last fall, after we published a report on cold weather gear, Anton called the C W offices and said his suits would beat any on the market. Come try some, he invited.

Two of our guys did. Never mind that this was at his invitation, that we were already customers. We got the full treatment. Harry held a suit under water to prove it wouldn’t leak. He described its toughness, as tested by himself in a fall on the road. He sat us through a short movie of a guy riding in the Arctic, as proof that the Mascot suit is warm.

Salesmanship? No, make that faith. Harry Anton believes in the Mascot suit. The suit justifies his belief.

Outwardly, the Mascot is a normal type riding suit. Comes in black or electric blue, sized small, medium, large or extra large. It’s an over-clothes suit, which means you don’t have to wear it to dinner and also that the wearer takes on that bulky, layered look, as if, as the cat-callers say, your mother dresses you funny.

First secret of the Mascot’s success is something called Dunloproof. It’s a polyurethane coated nylon that’s absolutely water and wind-proof. Not only does it turn back water under a faucet, it also stays dry on the road. The 60-mph rain doesn’t drive itself through the fabric on the highway and the puddle that always collects between the bike seat and the front of your lap just sits there. Doesn’t ooze through to your nether regions. If you’ve ever gotten a cold, uh, seat from a few minutes in the rain while wearing a—ha!—water-resistant suit, you’ll appreciate what genuine waterproofness is worth.

The Mascot obviously was designed by people who ride in the rain. There’s a front zipper backed up by wide flaps and a generous row of snaps. The collar is Velcro and there are zippers for sleeves and cuff's. The middle of the jacket has a belt and there’s a drawstring at the jacket bottom, so most of the wind is kept out and the jacket can be cinched down for less flapping in a headwind. The jacket has three pockets, in the front, and each pocket flap folds over itself, then is held down by a pair of snaps. It’s possible, given enough rain for enough time, to get water down the neck. With gauntlet gloves, your sleeves will stay dry. Neither of our Mascot wearers had any seepage around the middle.

Jacket and pants are quilted inside, with foam and some sort of acrylic material that insulates and doesn’t add weight or bulk. Depending on speed, bike condition and personal metabolism, the Mascot wearer can use the suit over regular work clothes down to 60° or so ambient, and a heavy sweater will work within the suit down to perhaps 45°. Add thermal underwear and such and the suit will keep you warm until the hands and face can’t take any more.

They Aren’t Stylish, but English Riding Suits Are Dry

Probably because of the light weight, the ability to keep cool as the day warms is also good. Unzip cuffs and sleeves and the jacket front while keeping the snaps fastened extends the season of the Mascot. Or you can take off the pants and wear the loosened jacket. No warmer than a leather jacket and lots safer than bare arms or shirtsleeves.

The Mascot isn't perfect. There are riders who plain don't like Velcro and zippers. The drawstring comes with little wooden beads so the string doesn’t get lost, but the wind can tangle the beads into the strings and leave you picking at the resulting knot while the other guys are halfway through lunch. One drawstring has disintegrated on a coat so far. The belt displays an uncanny knack of turning itself over in its loops.

More serious, the English may have shorter legs than Americans have. The trouser legs are short and the slick lining, w hich makes getting the pants on and off easy, rides up your boots. Our mediumsize man traded for a large-size pair of trousers just to get enough leg to keep the cuffs below his boot tops. Firmer fastening would be nice.

The Mascot is washable, a plus you’ll appreciate after a day in wake of trucks or after you overdo the chain lube, and at this writing, eight months after we got the suits, they are in fine shape. No frays, tears or worn spots—save for the drawstring. At $89.95 for the jacket, $79.95 for the trousers, the Mascot is more costly than average. But for keeping you warm and dry, with minimum care and light weight, the Mascot would be hard to beat.

Belstaff Enduro

Owning a Belstaff Enduro suit isn’t just owning a suit. It's also becoming a member of a secret society, complete w ith initiation ceremonies, rituals and the feeling that surviving all the fuss is somehow worth it, even when you can't explain just how.

The Belstaff in this case, is the classic version, waxed cotton and all. Famous among motorcyclists since the days of the plunger hub, the Belstaff' waxed cotton is something of a legend.

Also something of a survivor, in that when most current suits take advantage of various fabulous fabrics and inventions, the enduro suit gives away nothing to progress.

Waxed cotton is the secret. The English use funny words and in this case, wax isn’t wax. Not like ski wax or surfboard wax or floor wax. Belstaff wax is more like a fluid, an oil. Jacket and pants are made of heavy cotton, closely woven and sturdy as steel in its own right. The wax is soaked into the fabric, making the suit truly waterproof and nearly indestructable.

The wax also gives the suit its own, distinct, odor. Like creosote mixed with linseed oil plus something the memory can't quite catch. Odd, is what it smells like. Not unpleasant, not quite, but different.

This makes for problems. We know a man whose new bride threw his treasured jacket in the trash. She found it in the garage, piled in a corner because not even a bachelor enduro rider would keep a Belstaff jacket in the closet with the rest of the clothes. Pile of old rags, she figured and out it went. Nearly ended the marriage on the spot.

What the waxed cotton also does, along with repel thorns and brambles and water and wind, is attract dust and dirt. Like a magnet, the waxed cotton pulls grit out of the air and glues it to the surface of the suit. >

And you can't just wash it. no sir. Warm water or soap or dry cleaning would dewax the fabric. What you do instead is give the suit a cold bath. Hang the suit on a peg, hose it down and rub with a sponge or rag. Some of the dirt will come off. The rest will ingrain itself and as the years and miles roll

on, the jacket gets slicker and tougher and finally develops a sheen nothing can tarnish.

The design is outwardly conventional; the jacket has a front zipper with overflap and snaps; it and the trousers are supposed to be worn over clothes. There's insulation between outer shell and lining and the lining is smooth, so you can pull the suit on without hassle.

As befits the enduro suit, there are six pockets, four in front, two in back. All fold over themselves and the double snaps seal without failure. Nothing will bounce out, nor will water get in.

Lack of modern methods means the collar fastens with buckles. Likewise the cuffs. This means it takes more time getting in and out and making everything fit just right.

It also means everything will fit just right. The cuffs can be snugged down over street or road-race boots. They also have enough room to be worn over lace-up or even plastic motocross boots, and because they are firmly fastened, they don’t ride up.

The pants snap at the waist. The jacket has side adjustment for tightness, plus a belt at the waist. (As another sign that this jacket was designed by people who care, the belt has its own belt, to attach the main one to the loops so it won’t fall out, get lost or turn over.) There is no drawstring, but none of our men who own these suits have reported any problem with wind or rain getting inside.

The Belstaff Enduro is waterproof. Never any sign of rain blowing in. or soaking in, not even on day-long woods rides with stream crossings that gave wet feet until camp was reached that night.

The suit is warm. Good rig to have on in the snow, in fact, and our coldest riding, down to 40°, didn’t faze the man in Belstaff and sweater (real wool, from Scotland, y'know. Must keep up the image).

The Belstaff enduro is also heavy. When the day warms, the suit becomes hot. The weight is part of this, and we suspect that the waxed cotton doesn’t breathe in the manner of modern fabrics. The rain stays out, your sweat and body heat stay in and if you ride in changing climates, it pays to be ready to take the suit oft' and stow it until the sun starts down or you get into colder air.

Heck of a review. The Belstaff' enduro quickly comes to look like a pile of rags. It smells funny. It's heavy and cumbersome and every place they could have used Velcro or a zipper, they doubled the snaps.

And we wouldn't be without one. Due to the above limitations, this enduro suit isn't the best bet for the road. We've worn one on trips and it works, but the good points don’t make up for the lack of convenience.

But off road, things change. The Belstaff will shield you from cactus and thorns and branches. It will keep you dry. You can’t puncture a Belstaff enduro, not unless you shoot rifles at it. It will keep you dry even in the stream that killed the engine. And provided you give it a cold sponge bath, rewax infrequently and keep it away from your bride until she knows six-speed from six-pack, the Belstaff enduro suit is a lifetime investment.

The suit shown is a special version, the old style with leather patches for added style. Comes from the Knobby Shop International, P.O. Box 1592, La Jolla, Calif. 92038. Offered in red, black, or green.

Price is $107 for the jacket, $61 for the pants, sizes 34 to 48 for the jacket, sizes 29 in. to 35 in. inseam on the pants.

Belstaff Trailmaster XL500

Besides the honest-to-gosh Belstaff waxed cotton, Belstaff also offers the easier-to-live-with Trailmaster XL500. It’s made out of the same Dunloproof polyurethane coated nylon as the Mascot suit which means it’s absolutely wind and waterproof and it’s a durable suit as well.

One not trained to the subtleties of English Riding Suits might not be able to tell the difference between the Belstaff Trailmaster and the Mascot suit. A dullcolored waterproof nylon looks about the same on either one, provided both are black. And the Belstaff is only available in black, unlike the Mascot which comes in black or blue.

But there are differences. A well-worn Belstaff Trailmaster feels different than a well-worn Mascot. Maybe it’s the insulation between the bright red nylon lining and the outer Dunloproof that makes them feel different. After nearly a year’s use, the Belstaff feels stiffer and heavier than the Mascot. The Belstaff' also feels just a tad warmer. Maybe there’s 5-10° difference in the amount of insulation.

The construction of the Belstaff takes after the waxproof cotton Belstaff suit. There’s no Velcro anywhere, the zippers and snaps are all solid brass and the suit is cut to fit over lots of clothing. A large Belstaff jacket will bygod fit over a light jacket, a wool sweater and long johns on a large man.

Because the trousers are sold by inseam length, they are available plenty long for a motorcyclist to sit on a bike and not have

the pant legs creep up his boot. The elastic waistband is capable of fitting all reasonably normal shaped humans. Besides the elastic waistband, there’s a zipper on the side of the pants to make entry and exit easier, plus allowing one access to a normal pant pocket below. Zippers on the cuffs close the cuffs to fit tightly over boots. The cuff'width is noticeably narrower than on the Mascot trousers, meaning the Belstaff pants won’t go on without first taking off one’s boots, but this also means the trouser legs won’t come creeping up the boot tops because of the snug fit.

On the seat of the Belstaff pants is a second layer of nylon material for rein-> forcement. All the seams are double stitched and the Belstaff suit has the same look of durability as an anvil.

The Trailmaster jacket offers its own conveniences. The four pockets, two on the chest and two larger pockets down lower, are spacious enough to carry an entire sixpack. Double snapped fold-over pocket tops keep water out and whatever is inside stays inside. There’s a mid-length belt around the jacket, but no drawstring. The coat is plenty long enough to cover the top of the pants and provide thorough protection for a rider.

Under the arms of the coat are three screened vents on each side for ventilation. The collar has a corduroy material inside to help stop water without wicking it in. but the material can chafe a neck on long rides. The collar is closed with a brass buckle, not the quickest thing to get into or out of, but a sturdy and reliable closure.

Sleeves on the Belstaff coat are closed with brass snaps that offer a choice of opening sizes but need gauntlet gloves for warmth. The jacket is closed with another brass zipper and an overflap is closed with brass snaps.

A Trailmaster XL500 is not a convenient suit to jump into or out of. It takes work and it takes time. It's not intended to be used for a quick jaunt down to the corner store. Where the Belstaff Trailmaster shines is on a very long ride a long way from home when the weather is absolutely as foul as a human can endure. It could only come from England.

Available through your dealer in black only. Jacket sizes small, medium and large, pant sizes 29 to 35 in. inseam. Cost is $93.85 for the jacket and $61.65 for the pants.

Barbour Suit

Like the Belstaff Enduro, the Barbour Suit is a serious motorcycling garment. The dull sheen from the waxed black cotton suit would be enough to make anyone look serious. Unlike the Belstalf. the Barbour is only available in black.

Construction of both waxed cotton suits is similar. There's the heavy outer material with a lighter plaid cotton lining. It’s warm and it’s tough. On the seat and knees of the pants is sewn an extra layer of the outer material for reinforcement. The jacket is closed by a brass zipper and a wide snapclosed overflap. The pants have an elastic waistband w ith a pair of zippers providing access to regular pants underneath.

The Barbour suit is intended to be worn over regular clothes, but it’s not cut as fully as the Belstaff suit. The jacket is sold by chest sizes and it will fit over the appropriate sizes, but it’s a bit snug. Same for the pants. Rather than being sold by inseam length, the pants are sold by waist size. A man who wears a size 32 trouser should order a larger than normal size of Barbour pants, particularly if he’s got long legs and doesn’t want the pant legs creeping up his boots.

Holding the pant legs tight around the boot are a row' of snap-closed straps and buckle at the bottom. There’s enough room in the pant legs to thrust a foot through, but there’s not enough room if the foot has a boot on already. Better plan on spending several minutes just getting the Barbour pants on.

Getting into the jacket is easier. There are snaps closing the sleeves, a buckle closing the corduroy lined collar, and a wide belt going around the middle. And like all English riding suits, the jacket zipper is lefthanded.

Once into the Barbour jacket, things are quite comfy. There are small vent holes in the arm pits. The corduroy collar keeps out water but works best when there’s a scarf or high necked sweater protecting the neck. The jacket is long waisted, so a motorcyclist is thoroughly protected even w hen sitting on a bike. On the front of the jacket are four pockets, all closed with snap down overflaps and the top two pockets have a zipper under the overflap. Inside the jacket there’s a small poeket in the lining over the chest. Pocket space is adequate. though less than the six-pocket Belstaff.

As usual for waxed cotton suits. Barbour sells its own brand of “thornproof dressing” that keeps the Barbour suit waterproof and durable, if not clean or attractive.

Our Barbour suits, like the Belstaflf Enduro, naturally tend to be used by ofl'-road riders. The greasy spot that remains after a man in a Barbour suit gets up off a seat makes the Barbour suit less than appealing to the man who wants to stop in a cafe while on the road. And the time and effort needed to install a Barbour suit on a body is only acceptable to a man going out to battle thorns and rocks and wind and rain and who knows he needs all the ruggedness the Barbour suit provides.

Available only through Yamaha dealers. The jacket, in sizes 34 to 46, costs $89.95. Pants in sizes from 30 to 42 sell for $69.95.