“Fashion Fades, Style is Eternal” - Yves Saint Laurent
Last week I had an appointment with a Dermatologist who removed more than two dozen sun spots from my arms and my hands. I have been wearing sunscreen on my face for many years, but I had applied sunscreen to my arms and hands when I first started riding motorcycles 25 years ago. I could have avoided this expensive little visit which then got me thinking about how I had survived so long with the way I used to dress for motorcycling. I did not think to wear protective clothing or gloves – never mind sunscreen and this prompted me to share some NB riding tips with you.
Back in the naughty 90’s, it was more important to look cool and sexy, than to be safe on a motorcycle. To be honest there really was not a lot of protective riding gear for women available. Custom outfit: high heeled boots, tight denim jeans and a collection of cut-off, sleeveless T-shirts. If it was cold, I would wear classic leather jacket and perhaps a pair of pretty gloves that grandma had left behind. On a long distance summer ride to Cape Town via the Eastern Cape, I would wear a pair of cut-off gloves – a fat load of good that would have done had I run out of talent! Thankfully I have grown wiser and in the last 15 years, my protective rider gear collection has grown – which I must admit I am quite proud of. But what exactly should women wear on a motorcycle – be it as a rider or a pillion passenger? The answer to that is, “The right gear – all the time” so although I continue to grow old disgracefully, I would like to do it with some dignity and style.
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