Has anyone had experience hitting the ground while wearing one of the poly mesh riding jackets? I have one of the mesh jackets with the hard foam pads in shoulders, elbows, back, etc. It is great for warm/hot day street riding, but I've never seen anything about how well they actually protect if you end up sliding down the road. Does the mesh hold up and the pads stay in place for protection, or ????
I wouldn't trust 'em any farther than I could throw Green's Honder Hybrid. Just think of what happens if you were to slide with one of those Joe Rocket mesh jackets. I've seen vented leather tear.
Seen a guy hit and slide 70 plus feet in one. Got up, brushed himself off and had no real injuries. (bruised but no worse than leathers) Count on them as possibly being a one crash suit.
Is it as good as leather I don't think so. Is it better than riding in a t-shirt when its 98 degrees in the shade I think yes.
One of the guys in my street-riding group crashed while wearing a Joe Rocket Phoenix mesh jacket. It did not hold up. It shredded very quickly, left him with roadrash. Yeah, it's better than a t-shirt, but not much better. Probably as good as a long-sleeve wool flannel shirt.
I have a fully vented light weight leather jacket from Kushitani that is great in the summer. I originally got one of those ballistic nylon jackets with all the vents for summer riding but it was still way too hot. I don't really trust those mesh jobs to hold up at all so I went with the leather and it was great. I think vanson also makes a leather summer style jacket that is light weight and has lots of ventalation, I see a lot of street guys wearing them.
Those mesh jackets are no good. Working at the dealership we sold quite a few. I know of two people (both of which I advised to get a cowhide of some sort) that went down wearing one. In both instances, the mesh shredded pretty good and one guy is going to have an interesting scar on his lower back for life. You have a choice here: 1. spend the money, buy the leather and sweat a little bit while you're out riding or 2. "save" yourself some money, buy the mesh, and risk losing the ability to sweat after getting a skin graft. The choice is yours ...
Jeans (along with gloves, helmet and jacket) if you're just running out to the Circle K to get a gallon of milk and a pack of smokes. 2 piece leathers (or your retired one piece set from the track). I'd rather be a bit warm than to be missing a bunch of skin.
