ATGATT? – Question of the Day
Be honest, now
May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, which makes it as good a time as any for all of us to take stock of our own riding habits, both good and bad.
Most motorcyclists are familiar with the acronym “ATGATT”, but for those who aren’t, it stands for “All The Gear, All The Time”. That means wearing the right safety equipment every time you ride, whether you’re commuting to work, or hopping over to the corner store for a carton of milk.
Here at MO, we’re big proponents of always being equipped with proper safety gear, often going a step beyond the average rider with additional gear such as airbag vests. That’s one of the reasons we point out what we’re wearing with every review. As a part of the motorcycling industry itself, it’s important that we set a good example.
But we’re also realistic in acknowledging that not everyone will do the same, at least, not all the time. Maybe you don’t want to spend your day at work in armored jeans, or want to bring an extra change of clothes. Maybe you don’t feel like taking longer to get dressed than it takes riding to the CVS. Others just don’t want to do it, ever. No amount of preaching from us, or anyone else, will convince everyone to get fully geared up every time.
So, no judgments here (though we can’t promise the same from the comment section). We want you to be honest. For our Question of the Day: do you wear all the gear, all the time?
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Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.
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I bought a high quality leather motorcycle jacket and elkskin chaps and elkskin gloves at Fox Creek Leather, and high leather boots with steel toe. The chaps were hard to put on til I figured it out, now chaps go on easy. Buy yours in person someplace where they can fit you properly, maybe a biker event. I should get elbow armor. I put it all on when I ride, but all my rides are at least half an hour, or several hours. I don't just run down to the store on the bike. When I ride I turn toward rural areas, low traffic times. bitd I rode in city and suburban traffic all the time, with helmet and sometimes gloves, sometimes light jacket, boots and luck. My current bike, a big cruiser, I took the back seat off.
Been riding 14 years since age 50, 100% ATGATT, never once without - you don't get to choose when you have an accident. Looking into air vests as next step.