Motoport - Cycleport Ultra II Air Mesh Kevlar
 

- Update posted 2011  -

I'm finally updating this little review. My orignal review is below this update, so read on. The mega thread on advrider.com linked below is still the "end all" info source on this gear. First of all I'd like to say that Motoport riding gear (in my opinion) is the safest, most customizable gear you can get on the market today. Wayne and the good folks at Motoport will work with you to achieve the perfect fit and help you select/design any custom options to meet your wishes.

I've had this kit for 4 years now and it's still my main riding gear. I bought both the Ultra II Air Mesh Kelvar 3/4 length jacket and pants. I also got the Aero-Tex wind/rain breathable liners and the thermal liner for the jacket. In 20/20 hindsight I'd probably just change a couple things. 

First of all I'd most likely not order the top pockets on the jacket. I usually just carry a bandana in one of them, so they really haven't been that useful for me. This gear is generally not know for being the most stylish and the top pockets don't help in that reguard. 

I'd also probably think twice about the thermal liner. I've used a fleece jacket most times in winter riding. The thermal liner is a bit light insulation wise and using the fleece jacket option means you can use it off the bike around camp. 

Here's the fleece jacket. Note the pants and Motoport gloves (Fall 2010)...

The only problems I've had is the jacket has lost 3 snaps over the years. I've gotten them replaced locally for about $10 which is lot's cheaper than shipping it back to California. I've also melted some of the stretch Kevlar flap that covers the leg zipper. No biggie and I'll sent it back some off season to get it fixed.

I've washed the kit a few times in our household HE front loading washing machine. No armor to take out of anything special. Just throw it in and wash on the gentle cycle. Comes out smelling like a rose! I just line dried it.

It's broken in nicely, but this fabric is very course and will scratch paint pretty easily so be warned.

That's about it on my update. I'm still very happy with my purchase and think it's been worth every penny. Thinking hard about getting one of those cool Marathon jackets Wayne has next...

My 2012 Yama Super Tenere - delivery day!

My 2008 Yama WR250R - Big Bend Ranch state park Texas

This stuff is the real deal!

-  Originally posted in 2007  -

One thing I like is LOTS of information before I make a purchase and so I've decided to add my little review of the Ultra II Air Mesh Kevlar suit. I bought the 3/4 length air mesh jacket and the air mesh pants. I've tried to add lots of images, many are 2300 X 3400 if you click on the smaller images on the following pages. These are just my personal observations so take from them what you want.

I read some great reviews on the Olympia Airglide jacket and pants, First Gear jackets etc. and this strange stuff from Motoport. I even visited the Motoport web and got more confused than informed and decided in the end that the Olympia gear was the way to go. Luckily for me our local BMW dealer carried it so off I went and the next thing I knew was the proud owner of a matching pair of Airglide II pants and jacket.

Fall 2007 came around and my local BMW shop was having their Oktoberfest and I decided I needed some cool weather gear and had decided on an AST jacket and Ranger pants, but I kept hearing about this Motoport stuff again. I read and re-read the great posts on advrider.com thread "Motoport Kevlar first impressions (long, many pics...)". This thread and others answered most of my questions and really peaked my interest in these suits. I also really enjoyed the Blog by "Toast".  Toast's blog is geared towards the Air Mesh Kevlar, while Gringo's post on advrider is more towards the stretch Kevlar. Both describe the ordering process in great detail. The images alone convinced me to dig further and made me conclude that the Ultra II Air Mesh Kevlar could be a year round solution to my needs. Living as I do in northern Kentucky's Ohio valley, mesh is the only way to go in our hot humid summers and with the available liners, the mesh should perform well in cooler conditions. I don't plan on doing much riding below freezing temperatures so Wayne's claim of comfort at -20 degrees wasn't an issue to me.

I emailed Wayne for the hi-rez images of the Air Mesh and he gladly obliged. I wasn't especially thrilled with the color combinations he sent as a choice I'd personally go with I Photoshoped a grey mesh/black panel design.

I emailed  Wayne the image on the right and he replied it would be no problem, so the next day I emailed detailed measurements.

This was pretty straight forward, except the knee armor measurements seemed a bit complex, so I called and spoke to a very helpful women. She said to sit on my bike wearing jeans,  mark the center of my knee, then go over to the inseam and measure up to my crotch. She then said to measure down to my cuff and add any length needed. The jacket was pretty much as described on the Motoport web. I used my Olympia Airglide II jacket which fits pretty well. I also ordered the hip pads and the waterproof liner for the pants. For the jacket I order the sleeve pocket "ala Gringo", the additional reflective strip down the sleeves and both liners for the jacket.  I asked about the lead time and Wayne said about a week...this really surprised me since I had read all the posts about 12 week wait periods. He said it was a good time to order, but a big order from a police department could come along and back them up anytime. I gave him my CC # and then...

..fast-forward about 10 days and they arrive in a nice FedEx box.

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