Are You An ATGATT Rat?

What is an ATGATT Rat, anyway?

What does that mean?

What's ATGATT?

I've been asked this question since I assumed the monicker "Atgatt Rat" and began the blog.

ATGATT is a well-established term, a mantra for the safe rider, and an acronym for "All The Gear, All The Time". It's been described as a philosophy, an ideal.

ATGATTers abound. We're the quiet minority in moto-culture. I don't know the percentages; someday when I'm bored I'll take to doing informal surveys of riders I see on a sunny day. How many are wearing helmets? How many are wearing gloves? How many are wearing boots? How many are wearing long pants (for starters). How many are wearing pants with some level of protection above mere denim.

If "moto-gear" is a continuum, on one extreme we have the pure SQUID. This, too, is a well-established term in moto-culture.

Squids wear no protective gear. They don't even wear appropriate attire. Sandals, flip-flops, shorts, tank tops, no shirts. I've seen it all. They hop on a bike dressed like they would walk to the refrigerator, or walk to the beach.

On the other extreme, are the hard-core ATGATTers. There are those among us who would not dream of throwing a leg over a motorcycle without donning every article of protective clothing. Boots offer more protection than sandals or flip-flops. Motorcycle-specific boots have special abrasion resistance and armor in strategic locations.

So it is with pants. Blue jeans offer more protection than shorts or cutoffs. They offer more protection than a pair of Dockers. But motorcycle-specific clothing would take this the extra step, by adding padding in the butt and knees, abrasion-resistant fabric, or armor.

Leather Jackets are iconic motorcycle wear. Even a jacket worn for its good looks, if it's made of leather, offers more protection than a tank top. But for true protection, it has to be motorcycle-grade leather, or another abrasion resistant fabric such as kevlar, nylon, or cordura. There are mesh jackets for summer and quilted padded lined jackets for cold-weather riding.

Helmets, too, have a wide range, from the minimalist beanie, to the full-face helmet.

So, we have the Squids, and we have the ATGATTers, and everyone in between. Most folks who ride fall somewhere in between; we may tend toward true pure ATGATT, or may tend toward Squidishness.

What's A Rat?

Okay, I understand ATGATT? But where does "Rat" come in?

In moto-culture, a Rat Bike is a beat-up old bike. Technically, it takes more than age or signs of wear to make a bike a "Rat". It needs to be modified. And by this, I don't mean "customized" with expensive after-market parts. I mean modified, cheaply, to serve some function. An example of a Rat modification would be patching a hole in the exhaust with an aluminum beer can. Rat bikes might have missing covers, dangling wires. The emphasis is on getting the bike running on the cheap. Function over form. Sort of the antithesis of the chromed and polished "custom bike" which has lots of expensive modifications which enhance the appearance but do nothing to enhance the performance or the function.

When I bought my first motorcycle, at the tender age of 38, it was a 20-year-old Ratty looking bike that I bought for $900. Rusty tank, duct tape wrapped around the broken stubs of the turn signals holding them on -- all it lacked to be a true rat bike would have been a broken mirror or a beer-can exhaust patch.

Immediately after buying it, I geared up. Before I ever rode it, I bought a helmet. I found gloves. I wore boots. I would tell my friends about the jacket, or the pants, or the boots I bought as "motorcycle gear."

One friend made the observation "Holy Crap! You're going to spend more on gear than you did on your bike!"

I thought about it, and thought, "Yeah, I probably will. And what's so bad about that?"

ATGATT RAT is born

So, I made up this term...ATGATT Rat. I combined two already-existing terms in our moto-culture lexicon, and made a new term.

Strictly speaking, an "ATGATT Rat" spends more on gear than he does on his motorcycle.

More broadly interpreted, it means an emphasis on safety over image. It might be cool to evoke Brando in his blue jeans and leather jacket, but it's safer to wear abrasion-resistant pants and jacket, gloves, and a full-face helmet. You can't wink at the girls at the stoplight as readily wearing a full-face helmet, but you'll fare much better in case of an accident.

At its core, the ATGATT Rat philosophy says, "It doesn't matter what you ride! Just put on your gear, and let's ride!"

Best Dressed Biker

A cow-orker of mine, who isn't a rider himself, commented on my riding apparel today.  He said I was the "best dressed biker" ... a commentary on the fact that I always wear my gear. 

I overlooked the fact that I consider myself a "rider" and not a "biker", and I took it as a compliment.  

I wear my gear, and come into the office dressed in my get-up every day.  Folks have gotten used to it.  Out of the two dozen motorcyclists in my office building (who have ever commuted to work) I'm the only one who wears protective over-pants and protective boots.  Most wear helmets, a few wear jackets and / or gloves.  

I get questions sometimes.  What's it made of? Aren't you hot in the summer?  

Some mistake it for rain gear.  Some say, "Good for you!"  Some roll their eyes.  

I enjoy the full protection, and the anonymity, of the full faced helmet.  I change personas when I'm on the bike.  

I've been made fun of.  "What are you -- some sort of superhero?  Is that your super-suit?"  

To which I reply, "Yes, I am, and yes it is."

From ATGATT To ASSSHATT

 If you're readying this blog, you  ATGATT stands for "All The Gear All The Time"


But have you considered ATGATT's lesser known siblings:  They are:

HOTGATT-Half Of The Gear All The Time

HOGSATT-Helmet Only Gear Some Of The Time

NOTGATTNAB-None Of The Gear All The Time No Apparent Brain

And my favorite:

ASSSHATT-All Safety Stuff Sits Home All The Time

Fellow Magna owner Brent put together this gem.  

Motorcycle Fashion & Safety

Enjoy!

Motorcycle Safety and ATGATT

This article from "Arrive Alive South Africa" is a great, concise, accurate review of ATGATT -- what it is, and why we choose it as a way of life.


Arrive Alive South Africa | Motorcycle Safety and ATGATT

Take The Time -- Motorcycle Protective Gear

I appreciate the sentiment: "Take the time to wear your gear" ... but honestly, with a title of "The Hassles Of Motorcycle Protective Gear", this can hardly be construed as a vote for ATGATT.

Calling it a "hassle" in the same breath as saying "wear your gear" is counter-productive.

There is better gear for this type of riding! How about a demo which shows overpants that can be removed without removing the boots, like the wonderful "Alpinestar's Air Flow Mesh" pants that I wear.

Who says ATGATT isn't fashion?

Darth Vader on a Speed Triple.
The Force, Good Fashion Sense, and Motorcycle Safety is with him.
(Photo courtesy pnwriders.com)

I love the folks over at pnwriders.com for assembling a collection of ATGATT photos.

I have to be honest, I cringe a little when bloggers post an article titled "ATGATT Pics". Not because I oppose ATGATT, but because I know that frequently these articles, in their attempt to persuade people to wear their gear, can have some pretty gruesome photographs. Truth is, there is no shortage of evidence, gory or otherwise, which proves that wearing protective gear when riding is a smart thing to do.

I lost a few readers there. There are some who haven't stayed with me to this point. They disagree with the basic statement that protective gear saves lives and limbs for motorcycle riders. Fact is, there's not much I can do here to change their minds.

But you're still with me, and I think that's because you agree with at least this much of what I'm saying: we "should" wear our gear. We may not always do it, but we know we should.

Do you not embrace the ATGATT way?

Do you raise objections like one of these?


1. It's too expensive.

To which I say, which is cheaper, skin grafts or protective gear?

2. It's too inconvenient.

Again, i say, which is more convenient, going to the hospital to have skin graft surgery, or putting on protective gear.

3. It's too hot.

To which I say, you should check out mesh gear! It's amazingly breezy. You can be cooler wearing gear than totally naked I kid you not.

4.I don't need it - I'm a safe rider.

You may very well be the safest rider on the road. You may take safety courses every year, you may study safety techniques, have all the latest accident avoidance on your bike. You may be the best motorcycle instructor in the land.

If you say you are, then who am I to argue? But I ask you this? Do you ride alone? I mean, is there anyone else out on the road? Is everyone out there as good a driver as you are a rider?

If not, wear your gear.

5. ATGATT isn't "cool"

Oh, now, there, you're just plain wrong. There is no limit to the look you can have while wearing ATGATT. From super hero, to stealth pilot, to professional racer, to international man of mystery. Thanks to the PNWRIDERS for providing evidence of the diversity of available gear, and the fun that you can have, while looking cool.

Check out the rest of the photos at www.pnwriders.com

Don't Call Me A Biker

Are you a biker, or a motorcyclist?

I'm a motorcyclist!

She's Down, But Not Out

My wife called me up at 3 oclock today to tell me she had laid her VF500C down.

She tangled with in-the-street railroad tracks, and took a tumble. It was low speed and she was wearing her gear. (She is MRS. ATGATTRAT after all.)

I asked her to write an account of it, and I'm forwarding it to the list. I'd like your thoughts about narrow angle railroad crossings, and how to approach them.

She's in good spirits, maybe some bruising. We've been meaning to spring for some armored mesh overpants for her, but at least the draggin jeans, while not providing padding, provided abrasion resistance. She'd have kissed asphalt without her full face helmet, which will have to be replaced. (The only thing gear-wise needing replacement from the encounter.)

Here's her account:

"I had just gotten onto a street that has train tracks running down the center. I'd only gone half a block and probably wasn't even up to third gear yet when the tracks that go down the middle veered to the right and across my lane at about a 45 degree angle, at most. Though I've been over those tracks before without incident, this time I didn't make it.

"I'd forgotten that they cut across the lane like that. When turning across them earlier in the day I'd made sure to come to a stop and then turn at almost 90 degrees across and through the intersection. But with them veering across the lane in front of me, I slowed down and braced myself mentally to cross them. They always make me nervous because I'm not quite sure of myself on how to handle them. I thought I was going to angle back across them but somehow didn't. I saw and felt my tire hit the rut and go down in it and the next thing I knew the bike was being whipped out from under me to the right and I was
heading forward and to the left. I landed with most of my weight on my left hand and knee. I also felt the chin of my helmet hit.

"Since I was well geared up, I just got a little scuffed. My bike however, took the worst of it. The headlight is broken. There's glass somewhere on the road. The speedometer is cracked and bent downward. The footpeg is wrenched backward and the saddlebags are pretty scarred up. There's also something wrong with the electricals because it won't attempt to start and it's hard to turn the ignition and lights off.

"I feel like I'd jump right back on and head down the road if my bike were running. But I'd really like to know exactly how I should handle tracks like that. While standing with my wounded bike, I watched a Goldwing rider whip right across that same spot without hesitation. He may have angled across them quickly, but I didn't catch it (I was still talking to the very nice police officer who came to help). I'd really like to know what's the best way to handle angled tracks like that - especially if I encounter them somewhere when I'm going more
than 30 mph."

I'm proud of her for wanting to jump right back on. I've got a new winter project for myself -- restoring her VF500C back to rideable condition.

I'd welcome any feedback, I'll pass it along to her.

Purdue University Student Motorcyclist Killed By Semi

This story from the Chicago Tribune

"Bradley Trifone, who was on a full ROTC scholarship, was stopped at a red light on U.S. Highway 52 in front of the truck, driven by an Indianapolis man. When the light changed, the driver accelerated, apparently not seeing the motorcycle, Lafayette police said.

Trifone died at the scene. The driver has not been cited. Police said they are waiting for the results of lab tests to see whether drugs or alcohol played a part in the crash."

ATGATT is not enough, you must stay vigilant! 

Keep your eyes peeled in your rear-view

mirror(s) and stay in gear when stopped at traffic lights.

Suffering Feet

Went on a 250 mile tour with 3 friends/former coworkers on Saturday (BMW R1150R, Honda VF750C, Suzuki DR650), discovering some great motorcycle roads.

My biggest complaint from the ride is my tired feet. After about an hour in the saddle my feet would be so tired of hangin off the footpegs. I ended up trying to work my toes, point them up, point them down, over and over again, just to keep my feet from aching.

I'm wearing cheap general purpose leather boots ... not moto specific boots. They are extremely comfortable boots, i can and do wear them all day, and walk for miles in them.

I'm wondering what I need to change to fix this. I don't know if the pain is caused by balancing my size 11's, with a flexible rubber sole, across a magna footpeg. I will have to experiment with some options. I suppose I could try running boards (SHUDDER!) or forward controls, highway pegs, or maybe better boots.

Anybody have any experience with this that could shed some light?

HJC Breath Box Review

I rode my motorcycle to work today. It was a chance to try the HJC breath box I bought and installed in my HJC CL-14 helmet.

Fogging is my chief complaint about my CL-14. With temps in the 40's or lower I cannot keep my visor closed when I'm commuting. At a stop light, and even at city-street speeds the visor will fog. I spent my cool-weather commutes with the visor cracked open -- fine for visiblity but very cold on the face. Sometimes the wind chill takes my breath away.

In all other ways, and at all other temperatures, the CL-14 suits me fine -- certainly a price performer.

The breath box snaps into the two circular air vents in the chinbar of the full-faced helmet, and velcros to the lining. It stays in the helmet. But when the helmet is on, it looks like I've donned a painter's mask, mounted over my nose and mouth. All breath is deflected downwards.

With the mask in place I had zero problem with fogging.

The mask smelled rather strongly of polystyrene. I'm sure that smell will dissipate over time.

My chief problem with the mask was that my sunglasses wouldn't fit properly with the mask in place; the mask came so far up on the bridge of my nose. With the mask in place, the glasses couldn't fit as tightly, and ended up compromising my field of vision. It was distracting and dangerous. For the return trip I side-stepped the whole issue and left the sunglasses off.

I might be able to find a different pair of sunglasses that fit properly over the bridge of the mask. Or, I might try a tinted visor instead.

But the mask itself was worth the $9 I paid for it. It will allow me to keep the visor closed on those cold days, and still be fog-free.

Breath Guard Installation 101

No, nothing to do with chronic halitosis.

I bought a breath guard for my HJC CL-14 today, along with a chin skirt. Installed the chin skirt just fine. Cannot coax the breath guard into place.

This is the rubber strip that slides in between the helmet and the lining right at the bottom of the opening of the shield.

There is a 4" wide plastic vent strip that occurpies the same space. Not sure if I'm supposed to rip out the fixed vents in favor of the rubber guard, or if I'm supposed to cram the both of them back into the same tight spot.

Unfortunately HJCHELMETS.COM has no technical support... some of the links on tech support are cobwebs and don't even function.

Anyone done this simple task who knows the trick?

Googling so far has shown me helmet reviews and breath guard reviews but no installation instructions.

Thanks in advance.

What is ATGATT

What is ATGATT anyway?

ATGATT stands for "All The Gear, All The Time".

ATGATTers believe in wearing protective gear at all times when riding on a motorcycle.

Protective gear includes a full-face helmet, protective gloves, a leather or other abrasion-resistant jacket, protective pants or chaps, and boots.

Best Source Of Warmth

As I mentioned before, I'm searching for heated gear.

But I wonder if a windshield ought to be my first "warmth" investment instead?

Riding a VF750C sitting upright, wind blast full in the chest.

I remember riding the Wing was tolerable at least 10 degrees cooler than the Magna. I attribute this to the fairing.

(It was intolerable for other reasons...)

Heated Gear Comparisons

Gerbing Jacket Liner - 199. -- 77 watts 6.4 amps

Gerbing Pants Liner - 199.

Gerbing Controller, Single - 69

Gerbing Controller, Dual - 119



Widder - vest $115.00 - 35 watts

Widder - arm chaps - 81.00 - 20 watts

Heated Gear Selection

Santa Claus brought me some Christmas moneywill be enough to spring for a heated vest of some sort. I'm looking to extend my riding season maybe a week or two on either end. Plus, it'll make that last 15 degrees that I do ride more comfortable.

Currently I cut off at 37 degrees. I tried once this year at 33 and my fingers were definitely compromised, even with my TourMaster Gel gloves. I reset and maintained my 37 degree rule; I was amazed how much difference 4 little degrees made.

With heated gear, I may be able to extend that riding range down to 25. Regardless of temperature, I never ride with ice on the road.

I'm doing my own research, and rereading recent threads on the subject. But also I would welcome any first-hand testimonials of what folks have tried and works well.

Considerations:

1. Money. I'm not made of it. But I do have some to spend.
2. Convenience. I don't have time to sew my own super suit. I doubt that I have the skill to solder my own temptroller either.
3. Modularity/Expandability. Once my trunk is kept warm, I don't know how necessary gloves and pants might be. But, a system that supported add-ons would be good in case the need arises in the future.

The primary use of this gear would be for extending the season for using my bike in its commuter-vehicle role - 45 minutes each way.

As I learned from my November adventures "Brown County Trip Report", 8 hours at 47 degrees is colder than 30 minutes at 37 degrees. Sounds like a duh, but I never thought about it until I experienced it.

I'll share my findings with the group.

Thanks in advance.

Nice Pants

Alpinestar Air-Flo Mesh Pants

I recommend these because you can put them on over your clothes, and put them on over your boots. No need to remove your boots! Air-Flo Mesh Pants

Received Kid's Gear

Ain't no such thing as kid's street gear in the USA.

Bought two pairs of moto riding pants for the kids from www.motorcyclecloseouts.com.

This provides some padding and abrasion resistance, and was cheaper than ordering from Europe.

The shipped immediately and we received it in like 2 days.

The kids were thrilled.

They can't wait to go for a ride.

Now we have to figure how to get them jackets. We're thinking ladies XS jackets with some minor modifications.

Motorcycle Gear Websites

http://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com/

My own earlier post about kid's gear