Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127600
PRODUCT EVALUATIONS 180 MX Boots are a great bargain. Not only do they fit, feel and perform like man y boots cost ing much more, they look pretty cool as well. For mo re infor m a tio n con tact Kamikaze Spo rt, Dep t. CN , 43 Laurel Mo untain Rd ., Ma mmoth La kes, CA 93546,619/924-2444. Donn Maeda Kevco/Stubbs kidney belt Day 180 MX Boots n a day and ag e when a new mo tocross bike can cost upwards of $5000, a helmet $400 and a fancy race jersey $50, it is nice to see a top-quality product stay within a reasonable price range. Such is the case with the Day 180 MX Boots from Kamikaze Sport. Made in the same Italian factory that produces well-kn own br ands su ch as Gaerne and Answer, the Day 180 MX Boot is truly a high-end product that carry a "low-end" price tag. At $169, I wa s ske p tica l abou t the qua lity of the boots. Sure, they loo ked great, bu t I was pos itive that they would fall apart after only a few rides. Needless to say, I was wrong. After six months of hard riding, the boots look a bit worn, but feel jus t as good as they did the first time I slipped them on. Unli ke man y "eco no " bo ots (an d some manufacturers' h igh -end boot s, for that matter) that feature split-grain leather construction, the Day Boo ts are made entirely of top-grain leath er. Topgra in leathe r is thicker, stronger, and holds its shape better than split grain. Before my first ride with the boots, I repeatedly bent and twisted them in the ankle areas . This pro ved to be the only "break-in" th ey needed. After on ly a few laps around the track, I felt comfortable and confid ent. There are no excessive plastic panels .in the ankle area to keep the rider from "feeling " the motor cycle, only a small rou n d plastic ankle pad that do es a good job of ab sorb in g b lo w s to the frame. Ankle support is pro vided via a lace and drawstring syst em inside, and a pai r of easily adjustable ski boot-type buc kles on the outside. A pa ir of flaps with hook-and-loop fasteners secu re the top portion of the boot. As always, I found the lace s ystem insi de a p leasure to use, and th e two buckles on the ou tside provided a wide range of adjustment. The ski boot-type design allows yo u to clamp down and make the boots really tight.The soles are high quality, and are made of a soft compound rubber that really sticks to the footpegs. I'll be the firs t to admit that I am one of those riders who never moves around on the pegs, and I often wear a notch in the arches of my soles. Surprisingly, even though the soles feel soft, they have held up considerab ly well and are showing no excessive signs of wear. . The only complaint I had was that the right boot lacked any type of heat shield on the insid e of the foot near the toe area. While the left boot has the plastic shifter panel, th e right boo t is left bare and the rider can feel the heat from the engine's cases. All in all, however, I feel that the Day price, and a worthy addition to any collector's or enthusiast's library. For more infor mation conta ct Dorling Kindersley Adu lt Books, 232 Madison Ave. , N ew York, N Y 10016, 212/ 684-0404. Scott Rousseau evco/ Stubbs is not a familiar name to the typical motorcyclist - unless, tha t is, the rid er in qu esti on also ha ppe ns to be a groc er y s tocker o r a tr uck driver . I' ll be the firs t to admit, when the package containin g the kidney belt arr ived on my desk here at Cycl e News, my initia l res po nse was something like, "Kevco who? Isn 't he the new road racing world champ?" But jus t because Kevco / Stubbs isn' t the biggest name in motorcycle gea r do esn' t mean they 're not qu alified to make protective wea r. The kid ney belt is their first foray into the motorcycle marke t, bUI the comp any has 25 yea rs of experi ence making o r th opedic soft goods such as ankle an d knee braces, and has a line of over 300 oth er p rod- K I The Ultimate Motorcycle B ook s far as we know, The Ult imate Motorcycle Book, written by Hugo Wilson, is th e only bo ok on the market to make such a bold claim - and right in the title, no less! But this book goes a long way toward subs tantia ting itself among the many volumes wri tten on the subject over the years. Wilso n wrote the 192-page book in conjunction wi th the AMA, and it is the only work to be endo rse d by the American Her itage Museum. Wilson chronicles the last 100 years o f motorcycling, gi ving a broad overview of each marque. He devotes a paragraph to each model shown, highligh ting th e fea tu res tha t made it unique. We found that to be a real plu s, as you learn just enough about the bike without becoming bored by d rawn-out explanations. The book contains over 600 eye- pleas ing color ph oto gr aphs of the more than 200 bikes profiled, from the 1883 Daimler to the high-tech, ovalp istoned Honda NR750 and beyon d . The color pictures are interspersed with black-and-white photographs depicting the machines in use d uring their respective eras. There are also specification tables on each ma ch ine - good if you ' d like to com pare weights an d measures from, sa y, Harleys and Indians of th e same era . Wilson devotes sections of the book to motorcycle competition (from trials to road racing), the rid ers of these historic machin es, and motorcycle technol ogy (w ith chapters on subjects like engines, chassis, electrics, and even the considerable advancements in rider apparel). With all of this, you'd think Wilson had written the ultimate tribute to the motorcycle world. But ultimate is a big word, and the author's efforts to make a timeless presentation trip the book up in a few places. For example, Wilson can tell you th e weight of a 1937 DKW SS250, but won 't even guess at that of a simple 1974 CZ250. Another example is the book's claim that the quickest quarter-mile tim e for a motor cycle is 7.08 seconds, a record that was broken years ago. Still, the pictures alone make the book well worth the $29.95 suggested retail A ucts . The kidney belt is a mod ified version of the one used by miners and other w orkers to reduce workman's comp claims, with the primary difference being increased flexibility. The main difference between the Kevco/Stubbs belt and typical kidney belts lies in the closure system. Whereas most belts use a sim p le s ingle-s ta ge system, the Kevco/Stubb s model closes in two s tep s . First, a pair of stiff (al most unstretchable) flaps are secu red at the front via stro ng hook-and-loop closures, and next, a set of stretchy elastic flaps are cinched up on the sides. This is the belt's best feature, as it allows it to be tightened more on the sides and back, and less across the stoma ch. To obtain ad equat e sup po r t with other belts, I often have to pull the flaps so tigh t that I can barely breathe. The Kevco /Stubbs belt is quite comfortable, thanks to its tapered cu t. The back is tall for support, but the front is narrow so that it won't fold in a sitting position. It was not uncommon for me to forge t I was wea ring the belt, even when I finally got off the bike. Though the belt offers more support than any other kidn ey belt I've tried, its lack of plastic panels means the lower ba ck gets less crash protection than I would like. Of course, added protection may come at the cost of less comfort. The wide range of available sizes (5XXL) is a big plus. Waists from 20 to 70 inches are covered, and seven- and nineinch heights are both available in each There's no future in mixing alcohol or drugs with motorcycling. But even riding sober doesn't mean you're riding safely. Thats why you need to wear a helmet,eye protection and protective clothing. And responsible motorcyclists take the time to really understand their machines by reading their owner's manuals. And they never ride without a motorcycle license. So remember, ride straight. Or don't ride at all. ~HONDA Came ride with us. C 1991 American lIondaMotor Co.. Inc.( 11 /91) size . I ride mainly off-road, but it seems to me that the Kevco/Stubbs belt would work well for street-bike riders as well. Several top off-road car drivers also use the belt. Color choices are limited to all black or purple/yellow, but more color combinations are said to be on the way. Suggested retail price is $39.95 For more in fo rm a tion contact Kevco /Stubbs Racing, 4518 Van owen St., Burbank, CA 91505, 800/223-1713. Chris Jonnum 29