Christmas came, and Christmas went, but for a biker, the lust for new gear never really goes away. We may have passed the main point of the holidays, but if you’re anything like gear junkie and expert Wahid Ooi Abdullah, you’ll probably find a way to own one (or more than one) of these gears whatever the time of the year.
He writes about some of his personal favourites, new releases and gear that’s great for riders all throughout the year in this three-part (post-Christmas) wish list.
TCX Track Evo WP boots
The TCX Track WP happens to be my favourite pair of boots. They have been through the rough in South Africa, the jungles of Thailand, on the roads around Sardinia and basically everywhere I’ve ever rode to.
Although they were intended for adventure touring, they also performed exceptionally well for light 
motocross, enduro riding and sport-touring. The reason is simple: Comfort. Think walking around in a pair of hiking boots. You’ll feel comfortable wearing them straight out of the box, without needig time to break them in.
The ankle protection system did a great job of keeping my feet from twisting hen hitting hard obstacles such as large rocks and the oversized shin plates deflected hard hits. The thick and aggressively patterned sole also provided sure footing on any surface.
Still not convinced? There were four of us, strangers from different parts of the world wearing these boots during our ride in South Africa. Coincdence? I don’t think so.
RS Taichi RST410 Armed Gloves
RS Taichi is a brand that ha
s been around for a long tie, offering a wide range of rider wear suitable for any season.
Ideal for hotter climates and seasons are the RST410 Armed leather mesh gloves that provide a high degree of airflow without sacrificing the protection of leather.
There is perforated leather on the fingers and back of the hand as well as fine mesh panels between the fingers. To cool the hands even faster, RS Taichi incorporated their fast evaporative fabric called Technofine inside them. The leather palm, foam padding and carbon knuckles provide good protection. Touchscreen sensitive fabric is also sewn onto the tips of the index finger and thumb.
Komine WJ-735R Jeans
While there are numerous motorcycle riding pants around, most of us would rather don a pair of blue jeans, simply because you can wear blue jeans to just about anywhere. A pair of 501s would do nothing to protect your skin underneath it in the event of a fall though.
Here are a pair of jeans for motorcycle riding from Japanese company Komine, wel known for offering stylish products at a fraction of the cost of other brands in their category.
The WJ-735R looks like your favourite pair of straight-cut jeans, but are Kevlar reinforced in the knees, hips and buttock areas. There are also a pair of CE-standard armour for the knees.
Dainese Rains
From the Armani of rider wear, Dainese, comes this multi-weather jacket that’s essentially a two-in-one jacket made of a mesh inner which contains all the CE-approvd shoulder and forearm armours and an outer water-resistant layer.
The mesh inner can be worn on its own on excessively hot days. It has two inner and two outer pockets, as well. The outer layer goes on to keep the rain or cold wind out with large openings on the entire length of the arms, the back of the torso plus one on each shoulder for maximum airflow.
It’s comfortable, safe and stylish at the same time.