Last night I saw a kid pull up to the local watering hole with your a-typical Jixxer (What is around here pretty much standard issue… You see so many I wouldn’t be surprised if you get one free at Walmart for ever 100lbs of Government cheese you buy) But - What impressed me was the Joe Rocket magnetic tank bag that he had on the bike.

I have been looking for a decent magnetic bag for a while now, and they all seem to either be so small that all you can fit in it is your wallet and cell phone.. Or so large that they look like they were designed for people trafficing… The Joe Rocket Manta Bag seems to do a good job of finding the happy medium between the two.

Coming in four colors (Blue, red, Black, Silver) and for right about $50 at most online stores I have found (Cycleworld, Kneedraggers, etc…) This is a cheap and easy upgrade to give you extra storage when you need it… (And It bonuses as a tank whistle muffler as well! )

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With summer rains on their way (Especially here in Florida, where you have to be high on glue to ride in one of our notorious afternoon thunder storms) here is a neat DIY for adding a wiper blade to your riding gloves to help shed off some of that precipitation.

Inspired by a feature on Snowboard Gloves, this is a pretty simple DIY for any rider that commonly finds themselves in rainy weather.

Source: Make
Link: Wiper Glove

Looking for a quick and simple GPS unit that you can strap to your handlebars and just go? Perhaps something a little more portable than like a TomTom.. Something waterproof, rechargeable, and has the ability to upload your trips to your computer after wards… Or, perhaps you’re just looking for a simple way to verify your speed since the speedos on the Ninja 250R are about as accurate as a blind man playing lawn darts…

Well then, if you have about $125 laying around, check out the Garmin Foretrex 201. This lil guy is only 3.3″ x 1.7″ x 0.7″ and weighs in at about 3oz’s. It has a wrist strap that you can just strap it to your wrist or handle bars, or you can purchase the additional handle bar mount for about ~$15.

Unfortunately, this unit doesn’t do streets and directions - but come on - REAL MEN don’t need no stink’n directions.. The only other down side is that the antenna receiver is not a premium chip set. This unit’s update speed is about once a second with a 15 second - 1 min startup/acquisition time. But it’s more than enough for riding around town, on trips, and nice to have on and for lots of other things — Like tracking where your teenaged daughter REALLY goes on a Friday night.

Manufacture: Garmin
Product link: Link
Price: ~$125 (Refurb Units can be found for ~$100)

I had been looking for a all around riding / walking boot that didn’t - well - look and feel like a traditional boot so it could be worn out and about when I was running errands. I was originally looking at the new Sidi Streetburner’s — But they are damn near impossible to get currently… (And $250!) Then, I found some Som Puma’s. The Puma riding shoes looked really nice, and were on sale at Zappos (BTW: Zappos is one of the greatest online retailers you can find for shoes…) But, from what I could read (and see) they just don’t have as much protection as people would like from their boot when on a bike — Which is why I went looking at Sidi’s again.

Sidi’s Doha come very highly recommended by both weekend warriors and racers alike. They recently released the Doha boot to be more of a riding / walking solution compared to their other full boot styles. Granted it is a low cut boot, so you’ll need to wear something else at the track — But the amount of protection you do get in this boot is tops for around town…

Features:

• Low cut stunter design.
• Composite inner sole.
• Removable arch support.
• Non-slip sole.
• Reinforced internal heel cup.
• Reinforced internal toe.
• Double stitched in all high stress areas.
• Lace and Velcro closure.
• Leather/Cordura upper construction.
• Ankle ball protection panel.
• Heel reflective stripe.
• Leather toe shift pad.

Overall it’s a really nice boot, and the build quality is second to none. The first few times you wear it, it is VERY STIFF! So, take it easy till you get it broken in. Secondly, if you are used to only riding in tennis shoes — the height of this boot will bill a little awkward making you question upshifts. The only bad thing about it is that it is very heavy. That clearly comes from the protection (which is a good thing) but if you’re not used to heavy shoes — be prepared to spend some time with them before getting on your bike!

Manufacuter: Sidi
Part-Number / Name: Doha
Price: ~$160 (Street price may vary)

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