Setting a computer to crawl the web brings a wealth of interesting motorcycle industry tidbits each morning. Unfortunately, some are newspaper articles about motorcycle-auto accidents, many of which contain the phrase, “The driver of the auto stated they failed to see the motorcyclist.”
Note to self—begin to immediately increase rider visibility. Fortunately, this resolution concurred with the launch of Olympia Moto Sports’ new jacket in a high-visibility yellow design.
Branded the Moab, its target market is the dual-sport crowd. Adventure bikes are typically unfaired and the three-quarter-length Moab (34 inches from the top of the collar down the center of back) offers good coverage, even for a tall rider. A full exterior belt and hook-and-loop sleeve cinches keep it snugged up.
The exterior material is 500-denier Cordura with mesh panels at the upper chest, sleeves and below the shoulders. Appropriately, the Moab has CE-approved armor at each elbow, shoulder and down the center of the back. Inside are two easily removed liners. The waterproof liner number 1 secures with hook-and-loop tabs, and doubles as an attractive lightweight sports jacket. Next is the full-length quilted interior liner. Insulated with Thermolite, it zips and snaps into liner number 1. Voilà, three jackets in one!
Adventure riders routinely travel laden with gear, but most such machines lack accessible storage compartments. The Moab Dual-Sport cleverly adds storage to the rider instead. This includes a pair of chest-high zippered pockets, approximately 6 by 8 inches, and slightly wider and deeper ones down low (with hook-and-loop closure and solid fabric front)—maps, a couple of sandwiches and goggles will fit. On the back, there’s a large (10- by 13-inch) flapped and zippered waterproof pocket that will hold a water pack, or a lot of anything else. Finally, there are two easy-access interior pockets.
The Moab’s a handsome jacket. The designers did a superb job in blending the predominant hi-viz yellow with black and gray panels as trim, armor overlay, and on the lower back. Reflective Scotchlite outlines the back and sleeves for additional visibility.
Evaluation of the Moab occurred aboard dual-sport and power cruiser motorcycles, in temps ranging from the mid-30s to mid-90s. The multiple liners, longer length and ability to really snug the jacket up contributed to it being the warmest non-electric jacket I have worn. As temperatures increased, both liners were shed and the Moab morphed into a mesh jacket. You’ll feel mid-90s in any jacket, longer length aside. Multipurpose means tradeoffs, and steady rain penetrates the Moab’s mesh but liner number 1 prevents it from reaching the rider. On a summer day of intermittent showers, the jacket’s airflow dries it quickly. Ride all day in solid rain and you’ll probably want to remove the liners for thorough drying.
Regarding visibility, I often mingled with heavy traffic in America’s sixth largest city while wearing the Moab. Phoenix drivers are notorious for lack of attention (to anything). I observed several drivers begin their swerve into the lane I occupied, glance, and stay put. Twice, motorists did double-takes and remained stationary at stop signs after seeing a large, neon yellow object approaching. Granted, not scientific, but convincing enough to make me a hi-viz convert.
Olympia Moto Sports offers a broad range of high-performance motorcycle gear for men and women, which it sells through a large network of motorcycle dealers, across the USA and Canada. The Moab jacket MSRP is $289. It’s available in sizes S-4XL in silver, or the highly recommended neon yellow, which allows the rider to stand out in a crowd, or better yet in a motorist’s mirror.
For more information: Olympia Moto Sports, 824 Locust Street, Suite 100, Hendersonville, North Carolina 28792; (866) 473-4327; olympiamotosports.com
When the color is clean it is impossible to miss.
The jacket & color combo is official-looking. Hubby visited his mom at a nursing home and the reception desk went into full alert asking is there something she didn’t know, was there a ‘situation’. She mistook him for an emergency worker.