Supremely comfortable, the Pro Shirt felt snug and secure.
cial zones that allow increased air flow. It was time to find out. The following day
I donned the shirt, strapped on a Camelbak, and set off on a 400-mile ride to Mariposa for the Horizons Unlimited Travellers Meeting. I left Palm Springs with the air temperature at 99 degrees Fahrenheit. I loved it right out the gate! The Pro Shirt felt snug as a Spiderman
suit. I barely knew I was wearing it. And, yes, the airflow—even as I rode across the baking desert—felt peppermint cool. (Sweating is, um, no sweat: The high-wick- ing, fast-drying shirt can be machine- washed to maintain hygiene.) Still, I was aware that I was probably perspiring like crazy, so sucked Powerade through my Camelbak every few minutes. The protective pads felt perfectly posi-
tioned, with zero motion. Wither my arms went, went the shirt. Still, my sense of secu- rity was edged with a niggling doubt. If I took a high-speed get-off, would the armour stay in place? Would the thin and stretchy BeCool fabric tear if I took a pro- longed slide down the highway? Nothing in the Forcefield literature spoke of the fabric’s tensile strength. Hmmm… maybe this is better worn under a jacket? Surely a Kevlar or Cordura mesh could be integrated into the BeCool base layer without compromis- ing comfort or thermal capacity. By sundown I was arcing up into the Sierra Nevadas with the mercury falling.
Time for another layer. I removed the armour from my AirShell jacket and slipped it over the Pro Shirt. The Airshell felt emi- nently more comfortable without its armour. I felt much lighter and less encum- bered. When the thermometer dropped below 65 I stopped to add a fleece-lined Port Authority Enhanced Visibility Chal- lenger jacket (boy, do I love that for its warmth). I still wasn’t physically aware of the body-hugging armour beneath. Thanks to the Pro Shirt, I had foresworn the slightly uncomfortable sensation of moving hard- ware associated with the loose-fitting Air- Shell’s own armour. I hadn’t anticipated testing the Pro Shirt
in a get-off. But @#$% happens. Fast for- ward one week to Baja California. Again, I go down hard on a mountain trail in Parque Nacional Constitución de 1859. I’m wearing my Pro-Shirt under my AirShell. I don’t feel a thing! The Forcefield Body Armour Pro Shirt is
a supremely comfortable and user-friendly protective garment that provides just about all the real-deal Euro-spec armour you could want in a get-off, with none of the uncomfortable awkwardness of strap-on roost protectors or in-jacket armour. For more information, visit forcefieldbodyar-
mour.com or
motonation.com.
www.re-psycle.com 11 11
www.epmwilbers.com
Professional travel writer/photographer and motojournalist Christopher P. Baker (www.
christopherpbaker.com) has written and photographed for more than 200 publica- tions worldwide, from BMW ON to National Geographic Traveler and Playboy. His more than 20 guidebooks include Back Roads Cali- fornia: 24 Leisurely Drives plus five titles in the National Geographic Traveler series. A Cuba specialist, he has written and photo- graphed six books on Cuba, including Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro’s Cuba (National Geographic Adventure Press). He leads motorcycle tours of Cuba on behalf of Cross Cultural Journeys, MotoDis- covery, and RTW Moto Tours (www.
cubamotorcycletours.com).
www.alaskaleather.com January 2017 BMW OWNERS NEWS 21
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