To "Serve & Protect" or "Obedience Training"

A private members bill has been introduced by the NDP  would allow the police to stop and force you to take a breathalyzer test without cause. This bill supposedly is an attack on repeat offenders - yeah right.

++

If you have nothing to hide....that's always the reasoning - if you have nothing to hide, you'll do this...

We have good laws around drunk driving, the problem with those good laws is that there is no teeth to them. By the time the so called Justice System gets ahold of the offender, some judge makes a mockery of human life, of suffering and tragedy and gives the offender a slap on the wrist.
And many times that offender is a repeat offender.

BUT WAIT - The Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees all Canadians are protected from unreasonable search and seizure.

The NDP member, MADD and the police would love to see that right - that freedom completely removed.

Watch this video on the Whig.com  I am not alone in my thinking

What real purpose does punishing the many for the crimes of a few really serve?

It's all very self serving - MADD is behind this private members bill in spite of the fact that deaths caused by drunk drivers has been on a steady decline - a large and steady decline - and the politician presenting it, Tarik Brahmi, obscure until now, is only trying to make a name for himself.

The police want it because then they can further their obedience training of the Canadian population.

I can see it now, you are on your way to an important meeting, you get pulled over and are forced to take a breathalyzer and arrive at the meeting late and lose the contract.

You are on your way to work and get pulled over, forced to take a breathalyzer and arrive at work late and lose your job.

A police officer who doesn't like you can stop you over and over again with no fear of reprisal...

But do our law makers ever look at the consequences of their "make me famous", laws?
NO - as long as they look good, like they are getting tough on something and taking a stand and are getting their names in the history books or their mugs on TV, they could care freaking less about what you, I or the other innocents of the world have to deal with.

They claim it's a minor inconvenience compared to losing a life - really?

My losing my job and not being able to feed my family is a minor inconvenience?
My rights being taken away is a minor inconvenience - hmm.

I do not condone drinking and driving, my heart breaks for the families affected but if the laws we have were simply enforced - and repeat offenders dealt with harshly - would this even be an issue?

This is a stupid law meant to punish the many for the crimes of a few.

I'll give you a few examples of other stupid laws that punish the many for the crimes of a few.

In BC a number of years back a young man working alone at a gas station was killed when he went after a gas thief.  And today, because of one employer who did not do his job properly - train his staff to get info instead of running after someone - because of one employer who was breaking the employment laws - taking shortfalls off of people's paycheques - well every motorist gets to pay the price by paying for their gas before they pump.  The law hurt and continues to hurt the convenience store sales.

And, I am a good example of how that happened. When I go to BC, I fuel up and go now, I seldom go into the C-store.  Maybe once out of three stops. And I generally do not purchase anything other than gas.  I would rather stop at a grocery store and pay far less for the same product - I even do that on my bike, not just when I am in my car.  Load up the tour pack and go.

Then there's the discrimination of our community, brought courtesy of stupid bylaws...

Look at the No Illegal Motorcycle "Gang" colours bylaws.  Because there are bad guys who ride bikes, the petty trespass act states that bar owners whose liquor licenses hang in the balance, have to ask anyone wearing MC Gang colours to leave - but guess what - too often, because there is no training offered to the pub owner - people who wear non "Gang" colours/patches have been refused service, and been discriminated against.

I have been present at toy runs where police film and photograph riders and their machines because 1 member of an outlaw "gang" was present.

I have been an event coordinator, and I speak with hundreds of them every year, and I can tell you first hand that in that arena, far too often we lose really good motorcycle events because of the restrictions and rules and the subsequent extra expenses incurred by event organizers.

The cost of enhanced policing becomes so high that the average event folds or evolves into something different because they have to find creative ways to work within the law.

Our Toy Run parade here in Grande Prairie is a prime example.

Because every year on the way to or from Wembley someone would have to speed or do something stupid - generally one person - and then because a rider allegedly rode drunk (I never did hear the outcome of the court case over the death) and his spouse who was only wearing a beanie, hit her head and died...we now have a 12 or so block parade with police doing the blocking.

We used to have a parade that lasted an hour, winding through town using our own fire tricks and our own blockers.   We no longer go out to Wembley.

The feel good event that brings in some $30,000 a year for the Salvation Army has had to get creative to make riders want to attend a 12 block long event. Attendance at the event itself has fallen from a high of 725 bikes to 250-300.  The money raised hasn't been affect because now they fundraise all year long instead of just September.  But again, the many pay for the actions of a few.

Look at the Motorcycle Only Noise Bylaws - we have had officers lie about how they performed tests, we have seen countless numbers of people be inconvenienced - innocent people be held up for no justifiable reason and yet...having to go to court, waste their time, court resources only to have the tickets thrown out.

Or bikers/riders/motorcyclists being told they can't march in a parade because a police chief thinks wearing black leather & biker patches in a parade of remembrance is disrespectful.

No one gets involved, gets angry - its like they can't connect the dots to all of the rights and freedoms we are losing.

I have witnessed the way the many pay the price for the few.

It's not pretty. It's definitely not right. But what does anyone do about it?

People whine, piss and moan - but do they do anything...not really. There is no groundswell of public discontent...if you have nothing to hide, you'll put up with this minor inconvenience...if your life is not affected - who cares...

And our court system is NO BETTER.

Instead of truly dealing with the offenders and making the consequences really tough, law makers and special interest groups want to penalize everyone. If the penalties the few faced were actually dealt out - there would be fewer willing to risk the crime.

Yes, so many of our laws punish the many for the crimes of the few but why?
It is about saving lives? Is it about being tough on crime?

NO 

This is about obedience training - it's about getting the citizen to willingly give up their rights and freedoms, because you have nothing to hide...

We are moving to a police state, just like in Australia where today comes the news of a motorcycle event being threatened because of the new Anti Bikie Laws there.

Think about it people, OBEDIENCE TRAINING - we are becoming the sheep they want us to be and hardly a whimper do you hear.

If you really value your freedom then please do two things:
Make yourself heard by contacting the people below.

Canadian Constitution Foundation
Chris Schafer
1830 – 52 Street SE
Suite 240
Calgary, AB T2B 1N1

Phone: 1.888.695.9105x. 101

Email: cschafer@theccf.ca

Tarik Brahmi - NDP
Saint-Jean Member of Parliament
Constituency Office:
315 Macdonald Street, Suite 117
Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec J3B 8J3
Telephone: 450-357-9100
Fax: 450-357-9109

Parliament Hill Office:
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6
Telephone: 613-992-5296
Fax: 613-992-9849
E-mail: Tarik.Brahmi@parl.gc.ca

MADD Canada
Angeliki Souranis
2010 Winston Park Drive, Suite 500
Oakville, Ontario L6H 5R7
Phone: 905-829-8805 or Toll Free: 1-800-665-6233
Fax: 905-829-8860
Email: info@madd.ca

And then sign and share our petition to Remove Police Chief John Hagarty - discrimination of our community and the stripping of people's rights and freedoms needs to be curbed and only a united community will see that happen.

Until next time, I am your editor, Belt Drive Betty

HELD Rain Storm Gloves

In June, I had received a set of the HELD Rain Storm GORE-TEX® gloves from Angel-Wings Trading Inc. in Ontario.

The HELD Rain Storm glove has some great features to it.

• Palm in soft WR (water-repellent) goatskin.
• Back in stretch fabric with leather detailing.
• 3M Scotchlite® reflective piping.
• Gore-Tex® gloves with X-Trafit fabric technology extra-durable breathable waterproof membrane.
• X-Trafit by Gore-Tex is a laminated waterproof lining system - the lining will not pull out with your hand; laminated layers give single layer feel.
• Pique Push Pull lining in 100% polyester.
• Pique Push Pull lining is laminated together with the X-Trafit waterproof liner; this special fabric wicks perspiration away from the hand so that it may "breathe" outward through the lining more effectively.
• Adjustable hook-and-loop wrist and cuff straps.
• Visor wiper.

They are a good fitting glove that allow a rider full movement of their thumb thanks to the elasticized thumb joint design. 

They have high density foam padding across the knuckles and the pinkie finger and side of the glove have extra leather and foam as well. 

The over fabric is abrasion resistant and the palms are made of goat skin. 

The inside thumb area is double reinforced.

The heal of the hand area is protected by a foam panel covered with SUPERFABRIC® which is filled with ceramic etched plates that offer 14 times more abrasion time than Kevlar and they don't produce heat.

RevZilla has a great video that goes over the features:

Riding on hot days, they stay cool thanks to the coldblack technology.

The technology reduces heat build up due to sunlight and is especially effective on dark coloured textiles.

These are great gloves on many levels...Riding in rain however, is another story altogether.

In spite of their claims and the name Rain Storm, these are NOT WATERPROOF gloves.  

After riding in moderate rain for about an hour your hands become so wet and so cold that you feel like your fingertips are on fire. In really hard rain, they barely last 15 minutes before your hands are soaking wet.

When I do product reviews of a product that doesn't in my eyes, live up to its claim,

I Google search the product to find out what others say. 

I like to ensure that I am accurate in my reporting and that I have not done something that would degrade the ability of the product to do its job. There are very few reviews on the Rain Storm glove by HELD from anyone who has actually worn them in real riding conditions other than the one review I link to below - the rest tend to be new product walk arounds.  

HELD Rain Storm Gloves  - A review

Because the review above was written by someone who had similar experiences to me,  I went to the Gore-Tex® site to do some more research.

From the Gore-Tex® web site:

If you're feeling moisture inside your GORE-TEX® garment, it could that you are experiencing 'wet out,' a condition that occurs when the outer layer of garment fabric above the GORE-TEX® membrane gets saturated with water. While the inner GORE-TEX® membrane isn't leaking, the outer fabric can become heavy, leaving you feeling damp and cold. This can happen when your garment's durable water repellent - or DWR - outer fabric treatment needs restoring. This naturally occurs as your garment ages and the DWR treatment on the outermost fabric layer is exposed to normal wear and tear, especially across the shoulder and upper back area. See Restoring Water Repellency for instructions on how to restore the DWR treatment of your garment's outer fabric.  

I read up on how to restore that water repellency and that did nothing to restore my faith - the gloves had been dried in the drier on low and that did not improve their ability as a "Waterproof glove."  

During my recent crash, the HELD Rain Storm did its job safety wise - ALMOST.

The Macna jacket I was wearing during my crash had nice long sleeves, and I wore the gloves with the gauntlet on the outside of the sleeve.

As the bike pitched right, my right arm went almost straight out, and my arm, just above the cuff of the glove became exposed thanks to the short gauntlet. I did have the top of the gauntlet tight to the jacket sleeve, but once my arm became over extended and the fabric of the jacket began to tighten and pull from the force of the slide - it pulled the sleeve tight and my skin became exposed.

I believe that if this glove had a full gauntlet instead of a three quarter or short gauntlet I wouldn't have gotten a cut from the side mirror glass I rolled through.

At 56 seconds into this video about my crash, you will see where my skin becomes exposed just above the wrist area:

The gloves themselves held up really well in the crash and protected my boney knuckles.

In fact other than a wee bit or abrasion on the left glove at the wrist and on the knuckle pad, you'd never know they had been in a crash.

In spite of the 2 issues, I loved the fit of this glove - it truly is a comfortable glove, and the left index finger visor wiper feature is an absolute winner.  It offers great abrasion and impact protection and when your hands are damp, sticky or wet, the liners really do not pull out of them because of the Pique Push Pull lining and lamination with the X-Trafit waterproof liner.  It's a comfortable glove in warm weather too.

I'd wear these gloves all day long in the sunshine, warm weather and cooler weather but NOT in any heavier rain than a light shower and even then not for very long. They should be labelled as water resistant not waterproof and the name should be changed as it is in my mind somewhat misleading - these gloves did not hold up in any Rain Storm that I rode through.

The short gauntlet and less than stellar results during rain riding left me a tad disappointed with the HELD Rain Storm gloves.  I give them a 7 out of 10.

Angel-Wings Trading Inc. is the distributor for HELD products in Canada.

The news feeds over at BeltDriveBetty.com have some interesting articles that you might find of interest:

NORTHERN Tasmanian motorcyclists are urged to join their Southern counterparts in Hobart on Sunday as part of a nation- wide protest against Queensland's association laws.

The AMA in the US is challenging the CDC's call for a federal helmet law in the US.

MAG in the UK has a powerful person join them -  Former Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik has joined the organization as its director of communications and public affairs.

If you love Motorcycle racing then you might be interested in knowing that Valentino Rossi has given himself an ultimatum

There are lots of other articles of interest from around the world so be sure to visit www.beltdrivebetty.com where "Our work is keeping you informed!"

Tomorrows Busted Knuckle Chronicles has coverage from my Conga this past summer - read all about the Yarmouth to North Sydney NS portion of my trip tomorrow. So if you are a subscriber, make sure you look for your newspaper in your inbox!

And on a parting note - we have a new contest to announce...

Paul Jamiol, creator of "The Bikers Are Animals" book series for children has created a riding partner for Rita and this male beaver needs a name...

So, its time once again for Name Belt Drive Betty's Beaver mascot, details about that are also in the week's Busted Knuckle Chronicles.

Don't forget to sign and share our petition and stand up to discrimination - please!

Remove Police Chief John Hagarty

Have a great Hump day everyone.

Belt Drive Betty

Editor Rider

Versatility and quality make Heat Demon by Symtec a winner!

Most of us have experienced what it is like to be down to the bone cold when riding, and how dangerous that can be.

And most of us have tried out all sorts of things to stay warm and extend our riding season.
I have tested a lot of gear, some products I have loved, and others not so much.

In the "I love it" category is the heated vest and foot warmers from Heat Demon by Symtec.

Let's talk about the vest first.

The vest is made of water resistant Taslan fabric, so its lightweight, durable and very malleable.


It is an adjustable vest with 3 side zippers that offer multiple configurations and stretch fabric inserts that allow for the most comfortable and snug fit.

Hence why there are only two sizes available for purchase - Small to XL and XL - 4X

The beauty of this system is that if you gain a little weight or loose a little wait you do not  necessarily need to go out and buy another vest.




The heating elements are flat, made from high tech carbon fibre, and they are removable which makes the vest easily washable.
I don't know about you but that has been one of my complaints of some of the other heated products I've owned - you can wash them, just not easily.

Because the flat heating elements are in pockets inside the front chest and the back of the vest, there are no wires to rub or chafe and there is very little bulk to the vest, an added bonus is the heating pads don't draw a lot of power.


The elastic at the waist helps keep the vest in place and prevents it from riding up, it also helps to trap the heat in the upper part of your core.

The back heating pad does extend below the elastic waist band by about 2 inches.



The vest also has 2 decent sized zippered pockets on the outside and two Velcro sealed, extra large pockets on the inside.

Now, I have the battery operated configuration of this vest so the left inside pocket is already in use by the battery and therefore not available for storage.

Yes, you read right - battery operated.

The Lithium Ion battery that charges the vest will offer you about 7 hours of heat depending on the heat setting you run your gear at.  When I was in Ireland last month, we had one day that was so wet and windy and we got so cold, that we
stopped at a pub for hot chocolate and to warm up.

I took my Heat Demon vest and foot warmers out of the side bag and put them on in the parking lot.
The rain had stopped and everyone was divesting themselves of bandannas and gloves etc and hunting for dry replacements.
Running vest and foot warmers on 4 -  the second highest temperature range, I was warming up nicely and by the time we got seated in the pub, I was no longer shivering. I was getting some funny looks and comments as to why I wasn't freezing like the rest and so I told them about the Heat Demon vest and foot warmers I had just put on.

Well, I was ribbed pretty heartily but as I expressed to them, I am a Northern Canadian rider and I come prepared. The ribbing turned to more burning comments like "Can I try that thing on? (They were referring to the vest.)

As we geared up to head out, I put the vest on high and had consistent heat for the better part of 4 hours using pretty much just the vest alone. I am not sure how much battery time you loose running the foot warmers at the same time as the vest as I unplugged the foot warmers after about a half hour. My feet were not wet and so once the chill was off of me, I just unplugged them.
(I'll get to the foot warmers in a bit).

The heat this vest puts out is so nice and consistent with no hot spots like you find in some of the wired vests.

The Battery Operated Vest SHINES for its versatility; hands down, this is one of the best ideas in heated gear that I have seen.

You can run a cable to the motorcycle to power the vest just like any other system, but if you want to stay warm when you get off your bike, you just unplug from the bike and plug into the battery in the left hand inner pocket.

If  you are riding a bike that is rented or borrowed and does not have a cable installed - no problem...you can stay warm.

The battery takes about 5 hours to fully recharge.

The heat controllers have clips on them that allow you to clip to your pants pocket or to an outside jacket pocket.

You also have the advantage of being able to run two vests off of one controller with the use of a Y-cable you can purchase.

The cable that hooks to your motorcycle's battery to power the vest has a dust plug to keep grime and moisture out of the connector when it's not in use.

The features, benefits and quality of this product are simply fabulous.

Now Heat Demon by Symtec has put a ton of thought into your pocket book with their designs and offerings too. They offer the vests and the assorted cables & controllers to run them, in bundles and separately.

The foot warmers are ingenious, one size fits all, you cut them out to match you foot size based on the lines provided for cutting, you slide them into  your boot and run the cable under your jeans or riding pants, they connect to the controller and voila - warm feet. There are no wires or bumps, no bunching - you hardly know the foot warmers are there except for the warmth emanating from them and the cable that runs up the side of your leg, but you get used to that pretty quick.


There are three options to the product that I would like to see in the future:


1) Have the back heating pad extended by about 2 more inches to warm more of the kidney area

2) Have a jacket option with a heated collar and heated sleeves.

3) For the wall charger to have the prongs slide sideways/collapse for shipping so that it doesn't take so much space to pack or run the risk of breaking a prong or something else in your bag.
I'd pay extra for all of the above mentioned features.

I really, really like this vest and the foot warmers.

For the money, Heat Demon by Symtec heated apparel offers some of the best and most versatile heated apparel products in the business. 

Think of the various applications for the vest and foot warmers; snowmobiling, quadding, motorcycling, and any outdoor activity where a little extra warmth is needed and if you choose the Battery Powered one - you will get so much more use and value from it outside of the recreations mentioned above.  Heck, I keep mine handy by the door and take them in the car with me, just in case I hit the ditch, or have a tire that I have to change.  My husband has used the vest while tinkering in his garage when he didn't want to fire up the big furnace for a 20 minute job he had to do.

If you are looking for a great gift for the outdoor enthusiast in your life may I suggest checking out the heated apparel from Heat Demon by Symtec.

Heat Demon Seats, Grips & Apparel by Symtec offers various snowmobile and ATV specific products too and their products are distributed by Kimpex in Canada and are available through the Kimpex dealer network.

I think that I really should take their heated grips and one of their seat kits for a test spin.

Have a great Friday everyone,
Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Shopping local means something very different to me that it does to a lot of people

Shopping local means something different to me than it does to most of the people who read my blog or our newspaper, simply because of the geographical location I live in.

I am a rider and tend to, whenever possible shop with other riders who own small businesses, sadly all of them live hours and hours away from me but that does not stop me from supporting them.

I have always been a big proponent for shopping locally and in the rider community, for me, at least, that means shopping with small businesses on line.

I do a ton of my shopping on line because for me it makes sense.

I live in Grande Prairie Alberta and I am at least 5 hours by car to any other major centre where there is choice and selection.

In the GP region we have 2 Honda and Victory dealers in the area, 1 Yamaha dealer and one Harley Shop. Other than that there are no small business to buy gifts from if you are a rider looking for gifts for other riders.

When I go into these shops to gift shop, I seldom find what I am looking for.  It's no fault of theirs either, they can only carry so much stock and a lot of the gear they carry is directed at the dirt rider because motocross is huge here as is quadding. That's who their primary customer base is.

The one Victory shop deals in KTM and snow machines - so there is very little for me there.
The other is 40 K away and deals also in Honda and snow machines - again, other than service, there is nothing for gifts for someone like me there. The same is true of the Yamaha shop, they deal a lot in snow machines, boats and quads. I use their services for things like tire changes but beyond that there isn't a lot there for me either.

The Harley shop has lots of gift ideas however, a lot of the people I buy for do not ride Harley's and don't really want branded products for gifts.

There are no local aftermarket shops, no leather shops that are geared to the rider, no gift shops that carry rider specific gift items...so....

The bulk of my shopping is done by visiting the shops of the little guys on line, people I know or have met while on bike trips and I liked their product ranges.

As a small business owner whose kid is all grown up, I don't spend a ton on Christmas; one good present for hubby and small gifts for the daughter and her husband along with stocking stuffers for everyone.  The rest of the gifts I buy tend to be stocking stuffers or smaller gifts for the people who work for and with me.

I support small businesses in the riding community like Grizzly Leather, West Coast Roar, Leather & Steel, artists like Mark Mullen and Gypsy's Art, Ken the Glassdude or ...just to mention a few.

For me - that is shopping locally, even though Gypsy is in Red Deer AB, Grizzly is in Calgary AB, West Coast Roar is in Mill Bay BC on Vancouver Island, Leather & Steel is in Fruitvale BC, Ken is in Regina SK and Mark Mullen is in Keswick ON.

I love on line shopping for a number of reasons.

I can shop at 5 in the morning when I am taking my first coffee break of the day.
There are no crowds to battle and I find the customer service to be excellent with most small businesses who have a presence on line.

I like the fact that I can cruise through these web sites and if I am not sure of fit or style, I can call them, talk to them, send measurements etc.

Because they know me, they can help me out.

If they don't have what I am looking for they can generally get it for me and have it drop shipped for me or to me, so while Canada Post, can be expensive, it affords me the luxury of supporting my community by shopping with the rider owned businesses that I have come to love.

The other upside is that I don't have to spend hours in a vehicle driving in winter conditions - so using Canada Post actually becomes more financially viable for me too not to mention safer.

Lots of times when I call these small businesses I find out about other products that are similar to what I am looking for or they tell me about great deals they have....

Online shopping is not for everyone, but for this Northerner, it makes sense, I get what I need from people I like, people who are members of my community, the riding community.

I do what I can to support the little guys - the people who like me, are working at their passion because after all, small business is the backbone of this great nation of ours.

Yes, shopping local is different for me - what does it mean to you? I'd love to know.

Have a fabulous Wednesday

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Helping those in need.

There is so much need in the world right now and I know how hard it is for people to raise money and awareness.

It's almost Christmas, we all have bills, lives and are busy.

There are so many causes with their hands out looking for support and like many I would love to help them all.

We all have the charities and causes that mean the most to us, the ones we support and serve without fail,  BUT, right now Illinois needs your help to recover from the Tornados - you can make a difference by helping Gypsy deliver simple things like Toothbrushes, diapers, water, clothes - whatever you can offer by visiting her Facebook Page - she is a sister biker doing what she can to help those who are homeless and in need.

Help Illinois - Visit Gypsy's Page

 And there is a lady veterans that also desperately needs your support.

Watch this video and then once you are done drying the tears from your eyes - SIGN her petition - please!

Sign Robin's Petition

There are many around the world who need help in the Philippines and elsewhere who need support - the Red Cross is the best way to help there I feel and lastly I ask you to support the Canadian Motorcycle Community defend it's freedoms and rights by signing our petition to Remove Police Chief John Hagarty or have him apologize to all he has wronged.

Please educate yourself and then consider signing our petition.

Kawartha Lakes Police Chief John Hagarty - Bikers don't belong marching in Remembrance Day Parades wearing biker attire.

A Police Chief crosses the line and publicly discriminates 

Lawful Police Harassment Or Why we need to remove people like John Hagarty from positions of authority

A damning indictment of the Police Service Board in the City of Kawartha Lakes

Chief Hagarty; is he digging himself a bigger hole? Three sides of the story

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/removepolicechiefhagarty

AND NO - you do not have to donate after signing - that is the host of the petition asking for support not us.

Thanks

Have a kind and supportive day

Belt Drive Betty

Editor & Rider

Bell's "Pit Boss" Helmet Survives a real life Crash Test

Back in September I received a Bell “Pit Boss” helmet from Bell Helmets for me to test.

Bell's "Pit Boss" Helmet

I was very excited the day it arrived by courier.

My first impression was “That’s a nice looking helmet.”

I eagerly put the helmet on before reading the users manual and was a bit disappointed that the helmet felt so tight. I hate having to ship something back it’s a pain.

I do most of my gear shopping on line these days;

I don’t have to worry about going to 4 different dealerships to see if I can find what I want. I can shop at 5 in the morning when I am taking a coffee break. 

The downside, things sometimes have to go back and that can become tedious.

Even though I was disappointed that the helmet was so tight, I sat down and read the owners manual and in a few minutes I was one happy girl. 

You see I read about the Speed Dial fit system and how with the turn of a dial, you can adjust how the helmet fits on your head horizontally and vertically.

 

Speed Dial Fitment System

The claim on the Bell Helmets web site that the Speed Dial Fitment System provides unmatched levels of comfort while drastically reducing the tendency for open face helmets to lift off of the head, are not an exaggeration in any way shape or form!

Once I had the helmet fitted to my head, it went back in its carrying bag and in my suitcase for my trip to Ireland.

Little did I know that I would be writing about that helmet saving my noggin’ in a crash!

After hundreds of thousands of kilometres and 40 years around bikes, this was my first and hopefully only, crash.

Read that article here - Rider Error

Well, before that little 35KPH reminder of our human vulnerabilities… I had 9 days of riding and wearing the Bell Pit Boss helmet and I have to tell you that I LOVE this helmet – it gets a 9 out of 10 from me!

I am deeply grateful that if I had to crash that it was a low speed crash and that I was wearing the Bell “Pit Boss” helmet equipped with the Speed Dial fitment system when I did. 

In nine days of riding and wearing the Bell “Pit Boss”, I experienced reduced wind resistance because of the shape and sculpting in the visor – to me there is nothing worse than a helmet that catches a ton of air causing your neck muscles to be tense all the time. My neck swells up and looks like I have a small orange under the skin. 

The air flowed off of it well and there was very little buffeting of my head.

I found that I was most comfortable with the removable neck curtain left in place. 

I liked the support it offered my neck and how it kept the wind from going down my back.

Being made of Kevlar, carbon fiber and fiberglass, it was so light.

There were actually times I forgot I had it on it was that lightweight!

This helmet was wonderful – absolutely wonderful.

And in a need department that’s super important to me.

With the 4 compressed disks I have in my neck from a car crash many years ago, I have always gone for the lightest of helmet. Sometimes that meant I wasn’t always as protected as I thought I’d be simply because of the fit. There are too many downsides to wearing a full-faced helmet for me. Claustrophobia, that feeling of not enough air, let me the hell out…is one reason I choose to wear an open face helmet, the others all involve the limitations of using them.

I find I spend too much time focusing on unlatching the jaw piece to take a drink or relieve my claustrophobia. Not to mention the pulling of my hair even with a head sock on, the heaviness, getting it on and then realizing you forgot to fog proof your shield – I am trading one risk for another what, 5 or six things that all take away my focus and make me less comfortable. 

I get that. To me this is a smart risk – I have weighed and measured my options, I have tried all sorts of helmets and have come to the conclusion that being focused and comfortable protects me more than the full face compensates for.

This is one decision I feel a ton better about now that I have experienced a crash.  

(AND NO I DON’T intend to make this a habit in the name of product reviews.)

I have been riding my own or on the back since the late seventies and I have dropped my bike, dumped my bike and rodeoed through a ditch with my bike, but I had never had or been in a true crash until my trip to Ireland. I can’t image if this had happened to me back in my no helmet and beanie wearing days. 

I am glad it hasn’t happened with a few of the DOT helmets I have had over my time either.

I can’t imagine the outcome would have been good.

I gave this amazing helmet a 9 out of 10 because of two things.

One, I did not care for the drop down sun visor. I guess because of the way I had adjusted the helmet to fit me, the lens came down and rubbed on the end of my nose.  It was just too close and rather uncomfortable, but hey, that’s what they make facemasks, bandanas and good goggles or glasses for! I wear the Liberty Sport Glasses and a bandana for my face in the rain and high wind.

Two, the ear pieces that have the carrying pockets in them for communications devices might have kept my ears warm if I had been able to have the ear pieces lay flat against my ear, they bulged a bit, letting wind in and caused more wind noise than I like. It felt like they are cantered too far back by a couple of degrees.

I imagine that with communications devices in those pockets though that it might be a totally different experience.

Other that the drop down lens and the earpieces, I absolutely loved this helmet and now I need to go buy a replacement one because my new helmet is where it belongs after a crash, in the garbage.

During my crash the Bell “Pit Boss” Helmet took at least one good hit, in spite of the fact that I had tucked during the first revolution of my body skidding down the road.

There were some deep asphalt gouges – the pavement in Ireland is rather aggressive.

You can see them on the bottom left of the helmet by the DOT Information.

The helmet never budged.  

It stayed on my head and protected my head just the way it was meant to.

The visor took some scraping but beyond that the helmet looked new.

I never ended up with more than a dull headache caused more by all of the bruising on my ribs and the spraining of my left thumb and hand I am sure. I am still shocked that I never had much of a headache.

This is a helmet that I feel truly good about recommending. 

If you prefer an open-faced helmet, this is one, I feel you should consider the Pit Boss by Bell Helmets.

That Speed Dial Fitment System and the light weight of this helmet, makes this helmet a champion in my eyes!

Bell“Pit Boss” Helmets are available with a number of designs and a reasonable number of colors, they also come in sizes small to extra large and because of the Speed Dial Fitment System…all sizes in between!

Bell Helmets are distributed by Kimpex and sold through a wide range of dealers.

Belt Drive Betty,

Editor and Rider