Modern Vespa

I just rode to the store, and am serously considering wearing long pants next time.

haha last time I was in FL it was pretty cold that was December of last year. It was pretty nice except one day the high was in the mid 40's. I am sure you would have to wear your pants that day.

Heh, I always find it amusing when people in texas complain about cold weather! Come up to the east coast if you really want to freeze your face off! Although, 44 degrees does seem cold for Texas. How cold does it get for you guys down there during the winter months?

I also have a pair of the Tourmaster Winter gloves. Very warm but has issues keeping the cold wind off of your hands. Here is a tread I posted in another thread last night that mostly applies here to if warming up is important.

Both my wife and I have Corazzo jackets and a set of Firstgear Kilimanjaro 4.0 Jackets. I need something heated and I was considering the Jett Battery Heated Vest but in the end I think I think I am going to get something I can plug in.

It came down to the Tourmaster Synergy Heated Vest (Winner: webBikeWorld 2007 Motorcycle Product of the Year award for Winter Motorcycle Clothing!) or the Gerbing Heated Motorcycle Jacket Liner. I am really leaning towards the Tourmaster Senergy line due to the much lighter more modern carbon fiber heating elements. I also really like the fact that all of their gear has the built-in controller and the wiring harness already included in the cost. I think I am going to add a Powerlet plug in the plastic cover on the the left side since that is the side of the bike I always get off on. I have a portable tire pump that will also plug into the Powerlet plug if I need to use it to fill the air in a tire or fix a flat.

I just bought a TecMate Optimate 4 Battery Charger today for $61.95 and I will be able to plug this right into the Powerlet to keep the battery at full charge at all times when the bike is not in use. They also have a cool Optimate Compact Wall Bracket that I got that will mount next to the bike right on the wall so it will take less than 10 seconds to plug it in after a ride. I would like to monitor the amps/volts during the ride and I am kicking around a Datel Voltmeter but in the end I do not think I will pull the trigger. I run a Blue Sea ST Blade Fuse Box on my FJR and it makes plugging in additional items very easy.

I just realized how long this post is getting but I guess I had a lot on my mind. In the end, I think I am going to get plug in gear to keep me warm on those colder rides and some of the other safety issues I mentioned above. I do think the battery gear is going to be the best solution for most of the people on this board. Good luck and it really sounds like an exciting product.

We get a week or two every year below freezing. Last year wasn't too bad. The year before we got snow and ice which gave me three days off of work the entire city shut down. I think that year it got down to 20 degrees.

I know it isn't as cold as up north but since no one here knows how to deal with it it can be just as dangerous here.

I don't have a clue what cold is I grew up in Cali and then moved here so to me anything under 50 is freezing. It is all relative. If you went through a summer of our heat it is a shock to your system when it drops that cold.

I got a cigarette lighter installed, so it is easy to plug in an adapter for my gloves and heated vest. I wear a gator also.

The heated clothing has made a huge difference in my morning commute.

+1

I remember when I first moved to San Antonio and I showed up to work in shorts with flip-flops when it was 60 and raining outside. Everyone there was wearing North Face coats and looked at me like

5 years later I moved back to Wichita and once it hit 60 I busted out my North Face jacket

Cold here in Ohio this morning. Down in the low 30's and real windy. Rode in with a fleece long sleeve jacket and my rain gear over that. Toasty warm. Oh and my 3/4 helmet with a neck gaiter.

Probably won't ride tomorrow. Forecast for rain and snow. Rain doesn't bother me but freezing temps, snow and leaves all over the roads gives me the shivers.

When I moved to San Diego it was the same thing. You would see down polar jackets worn when it was 68 degrees outside. They wouldn't even come outside if there was an arctic blast that would lower temperatures to 58. I lived there for 3 years and 57 was probably around the coldest I experienced.

After 3 years I couldn't stand it when it was cold enough to see my breath. Texas definitely gets much colder than that but I have yet to experience northern climates. My wife likes it super hot. She is happy when it is 95+ outside and cannot stand any temps below 60 so I venture to say we'll never live up north and if we visit it will be during the summer.

I dated/lived with a mexican girl when I lived there. The house was always set on a nice balmy 80 F. If I was lucky I could sneak it down to 75 F for a few hours before she figured out what I had done.

haha I have my house set at 82 and she wears a blanket inside when we are watching TV.

holy crap it's 68F in my study as i type this, and that's the warmest room in the house. we don't turn the heat on until it goes below 60 in here... and i'm a terminally cold person. right now i'm wearing a huge woolen shawl and clutching a very large cup of hot tea (my fourth of the day)

Well this is Texas so I still don't have the heat on. That is what I set it at in the summer so I can afford my electric bill. To keep it at 82 during the summer my utility bill is around 300 dollars/month. During the winter it is more affordable so we keep it around 70 degrees and she freezes her butt off.

It is cold in the morning this time of year but in the afternoon it still gets to the mid 80's so my house really doesn't cool down that much until we get near the end of November. That is when I turn the heat on.

I was getting used to the moderate cold (35f-40f) in the morning...
I want to know.. Who ordered the D- rain?
I check the Weather every morning so I know how to dress and that wet stuff was not in the forecast...
Can I sue the weather channel for false advertisement?
Long cold 30 miles home, and just for those few who say otherwise..
The leg shield does not protect you worth jack diddly...
12 hours later and jeans are still soaked and gloves are sponges.
I took the cage today and tomorrow.. They are calling for a little wet snow !!!!

Get some Frogg Toggs or a cheap rain suit to keep on the bike. Also, upgrade to some waterproof gloves like these or just get some rubber dishwashing gloves and pull them over your riding gloves.

Got the rain suit, left at home... I am a genius...
Had latex gloves on, under my olympians, hands dry but froze..

Yeah, I used to always keep my rain gear on the bike but have gotten bad about bringing it unless rain is in the forecase. I worry a little less now because my winter jacket and armored overpants are moderately waterproof, so I shouldn't get soaked. I always carry at least two pairs of gloves though.

Not to hijack thread but did you see snow flakes in tomorrow's weather..?

Its supposed to snow here today but it wont stick, so I'm still good to scoot!

Yeah, I saw that... what ever happened to global warming???? if it doesnt exist then why did Vespa put an evaorator hose on our scoots, I guess they wanted to flood our engines 8)

Yup. Probably won't amount to anything, but I'll still take the cage.

I always say "I wish I had that job. You can be wrong 90% of the time and still be paid."

So I rode to work today (around 50 degrees) and I wore my new neck gaiter and it was a huge difference. I think I could easily go down another 10 degrees. Thanks guys and gals for the help!

http://www.rei.com/product/713072

Last night, I put a new full-size Vespa windscreen on my S150. Once I got to work this morning, I realized I had ridden the whole way in with my helmet visor open. There's so little wind blast that I could probably comfotably ride with no visor on at all now.

I'll be taking the screen back off as soon as it gets warm in the spring though.

It was in the mid 30's when I rode in this morning. The Turtle Fur worked like a champ.

Global warming only comes out in the news when it is warm outside. I personally believe the weather goes through cycles similar to the economy.

For helmet fogging, the best thing I've found is a Respro Foggy. It is a bit of neoprene that attaches to the inside of your helmet and directs your breath down. When it's warm outside you just take it out of the helmet. The only tricky part is holding it away from your face when you take the helmet off.

That is cool thanks!