Bonneville rules are probably going to, for fire safety, require leathers WITHOUT CLOTH PANELS, and ith "limited"(whatever that means) perforations ONLY in the underarm and behind the knee.
OK, I see that the "all cow, all the time" thing is for safety reasons, because of fire. No cloth or preforations to allow fuel to get inside and support fire in contact with flesh. If that's necessary, than I support it!
If I race at Bonneville again, than I will find a maker of custom leathers who will make the suit with NO cloth, and NO perforations ( I hear the rules allow "limited" perforations, but I am not qualified to determine what "limited" means in this context - hence NO perforations at all.)
Which also brings up the subject of BOOTS AND GLOVES: Current rules 7.C.2 and 7.C.3 say the boots and gloves will be leather. The rules do NOT say leather and cloth, or perforated leather, or leather and plastic.
Since the reason for "all cow, all the time" is for fire protection, we can assume that the boots and gloves will, as required by the rules, have a FULL LEATHER EXTERIOR.
Most modern true racing gloves and boots are a combination of leather, kevlar, carbon fiber and high-impact plastic. The better to prevent abrasion and impact damage.
While at the Daytona bike races this week, I made my annual trip through the offerings of the major makers/sellers of safety equipment. In the Harley department, it was possible to find all-leather boots and gloves, but I would hesitate to use them for speeds OVER 100 MPH.
The true racing stuff was up-to-the-minute with special features, and engineering improvements. However, it was VERY hard to find race-quality stuff that had an all-leather exterior. (I couldn't find ANY!)
Since the rules say LEATHER, we may, as Joe Amo points out above, have to trade impact and abrasion protection for fire protection.
Too Bad, since most riders crash, and don't burn.
OK, I see that the "all cow, all the time" thing is for safety reasons, because of fire. No cloth or preforations to allow fuel to get inside and support fire in contact with flesh. If that's necessary, than I support it!
If I race at Bonneville again, than I will find a maker of custom leathers who will make the suit with NO cloth, and NO perforations ( I hear the rules allow "limited" perforations, but I am not qualified to determine what "limited" means in this context - hence NO perforations at all.)
Which also brings up the subject of BOOTS AND GLOVES: Current rules 7.C.2 and 7.C.3 say the boots and gloves will be leather. The rules do NOT say leather and cloth, or perforated leather, or leather and plastic.
Since the reason for "all cow, all the time" is for fire protection, we can assume that the boots and gloves will, as required by the rules, have a FULL LEATHER EXTERIOR.
Most modern true racing gloves and boots are a combination of leather, kevlar, carbon fiber and high-impact plastic. The better to prevent abrasion and impact damage.
While at the Daytona bike races this week, I made my annual trip through the offerings of the major makers/sellers of safety equipment. In the Harley department, it was possible to find all-leather boots and gloves, but I would hesitate to use them for speeds OVER 100 MPH.
The true racing stuff was up-to-the-minute with special features, and engineering improvements. However, it was VERY hard to find race-quality stuff that had an all-leather exterior. (I couldn't find ANY!)
Since the rules say LEATHER, we may, as Joe Amo points out above, have to trade impact and abrasion protection for fire protection.
Too Bad, since most riders crash, and don't burn.
