In a previous article, I take aim at the word "best" where summer riding gear is concerned. Six components from helmet to boot including "best summer motorcycle jacket" are broken down until a handful of unique products remain. Each target a different kind of rider but all grip safety with a certain paranoia, the kind that only motorcycle riders can relate to.

The jackets mentioned include Sedici's Alexi, Scorpion's Optima, Olympia's Hudson, Revit's Defender Pro as well as Wind and Joe Rocket's Velocity. Each bring to the table some viable combination of armor, appeal, reflection, stitching and lightweight function over form ... over function. I own two of these jackets, so deciding what's right for spontaneous summer riding is a bit easier.

This time around, however, I'm faced with that 3rd or 33rd motorcycle gear purchase. You know, the one among many that screams from a shelf so high that you can see condors circling below it. It's gotta be not just a "great" motorcycle jacket but the best summer motorcycle jacket money (*ahem* the limited but easily exacerbated funds in my bank account) can buy.

Enter Spring, the most confusing season for anyone who's ever ridden north or south as an inaugural opener. My midwestern friends tell me it's rainy and cool where I'm headed. Here in Texas, however, I'm already exploring hot weather motorcycle riding gear for summer's eventual heatwave.

The riddle in finding summer riding gear lies in the balance between ventilation and protective armor. Being an ATGATT subscriber, I prefer riding attire that offers both without compromise.

Without fueling the argument of armor versus ventilation, let's look at some of the better motorbike riding equipment on the market. We'll build from the ground up: boots, pants, cooling, jacket, gloves and helmet. Any combination of the following will help you stay chill under pressure.

Not many riders "hope" they'll get to ride their motorcycle in the rain. Well, that is of course unless your goal is to review motorcycle rain gear. So I guess in that regard, today is my lucky day.

It rained some yesterday. It's raining BIG now. My typical impatience with riding opportunities got the gears turning, so I decided it was time I write about my one piece motorcycle rain suit.

Long distance motorcycle tours can be quite the pleasurable vacation and with that, remote locations become twisty destinations. When inclement weather fronts appear to be seeking us out, we need to know which motorcycle rain gear is up to the task. For this reason, we're focused on a great one piece motorcycle rain suit, namely the Bilt Tornado series.

When it comes to sport touring motorcycle boots, Tourmaster is the brand to buy. There. Now it's said. There's no reason to continue reading. I mean, dropping a statement like that about riding boots will surely convince riders anywhere to make the purchase, unless dedicated to some other brand ('Sup, Sidi).

... but if we disengage from all things marketing and instead look at logical reasons to purchase any pair of motorcycle boots, the prerequisites for what makes them worth buying become more complex under the guise of sport touring.

For this reason, I'm focused on mid-shelf priced, top-shelf quality boots offered by Tourmaster. Why? Because motorcycle boots are consumable (not to be confused with "ingestible").