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Olympia Moto Sports Blaze Safety Vest


By Ron Davis #111820


A STICKER ON ONE OF MY SIDE cases reads, “If loud pipes save lives, just imagine what proper gear and training could do.” While it may be true that loud pipes might prevent a bicyclist or pedestrian from wander- ing into the path of an approaching motorcycle, I have my doubts over whether that guy behind the wheel waiting to turn left while cranking his sound system, listening to his email or turning his air conditioning to MAX will be able to pinpoint the origin of those thun- dering straight pipes. On the other hand, most everybody on the road is using his or her eyes (I hope!), and taking advan- tage of that fact is where lies the potential for actu- ally saving lives. According to fairly


recent research in New Zealand, conspicuous clothing or helmet colors may make it less likely to get hit, though of course those kinds of statistics must be questioned since riders wearing high visi- bility gear are, by nature, more likely to be more concerned about their safety and thus more cautious, more likely to have invested in more training and less prone to risky behaviors like drinking and driving. I do want to save my own life, though, so even a negligible edge on safety is enough for me to consider making myself and my bike as


26 BMW OWNERS NEWS December 2015


conspicuous as possible. With their Blaze Safety Vest, Olympia Moto Sports has made a nice contribution to that effort. The watchwords in the design of Olym-


pia’s high-visibility safety vest (which replaces the Nova Vest) must have been


The Olympia Moto Sports Blaze Safety Vest can be ordered in Neon Yellow or Neon Orange.


motorcyclists since three adjustment straps on each side and elastic bands at the sides of the waist assure a snug, no-flap fit, plus the vest comes in four different sizes. I was a little sur- prised the YKK zipper on the front was such a small gauge, but I guess this is part of the desire to make the vest as light and comfortable as possible. Despite its light weight and


Coupled with the yellow accents of an Aerostich Roadcrafter, the Olympia Moto Sports Blaze Safety Vest makes any rider even more conspicuous.


weight and ventilation. Constructed of thin rip-stop nylon panels, Olympia’s usual bal- listic airflow mesh front and back, and their cool mesh lining, the vest seems to weigh practically nothing, and had little effect on the breeze getting through to my armored jacket when I was on the road. It’s clear the vest is also aimed specifically at


liberal use of mesh, the vest fea- tures three functional pockets: a see-through vinyl ID chest pocket, an interior cell phone pocket large enough for an iPhone (though it’s a tight fit if you use an Otter Box® case) and a large storage pocket.


Using the same EZ-Pack Storage System found on Olympia Moto Sports rain gear, the large pocket inverts to serve as a zip- pered pouch for the vest, packing it down to about the size of a softball. For conspicuity, the nylon panels of the


vest come in either brilliant neon yellow or neon orange, colors which are bound to


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