Looking at jackets and helmets, what is functional and won’t make me look like an idiot?
Something that fits. Make sure you buy something that is tight, loose gear doesn’t protect worth a shit.
Best suggestion is to go to local places and try things on, then order online for the best prices.
perforated leather and any helmet that fits? just make sure you ALWAYS wear gear. cool people don’t wear shorts
alpinestars gear, shoei helment
Back in the good old days I opted for a full faced helmet colormatched to my bike, and a indiscrete black nylon motorcycle jacket with elbow and spine padding. Nylon jackets tended to be a little cheaper and more versatile than leather, and I didn’t feel like I was screaming “I’m here on a motorcycle!” when I was just running to the store or something.
Just personal preference though. Nothing wrong with a good leather jacket even if it looks like you’ve got sponsors when you don’t. 
Dammit every time I come into this forum I start to get the itch again. I’m going to blame Howie for my divorce! :lol:
YES!
DOUBLE YES!
T shirt and shorts.
Really though-
- Icon decay mesh
- El Cheapo HJC
- Cortec gloves
I’m not cool though 
The HJC’s are heavy, when they’re on your head for so long, it feels like a ton of bricks. I threw on an Icon helmet and holy hell it’s lighter than sin. That’s my next purchase
shoei rf1000
FT perf jacket
FT boots (dont always wear these)
astars or ft gloves (depend son weather)
and i have some textile sport pants that i have yet to wear.
arei helmet, zero-go leather/mesh jacket, alpinestars gloves.
For helmets, i like the lighter helmets with the ece"whatever" rating (~3lb) opposed to the heavier snell lids (~4lb+).
My fav. jacket ever was the alpinestars s-mx airflo. Luckily thoughI never tested it’s abrasion or impact protection :).
Gloves i liked the alpinestars. gp pros, although they only last about one season. I must have went through a half dozen pairs of those.
i love my shoei RF-1000 helmet.
icon helmets are pigs compared to a shoei. youlll never want another helmet, and yes ive owned both
Cool…
what about suomy helmets? They look really cool, but are they lightweight and decent to wear? I know they are EXTREMELY pricey though
I’ll have to check the price difference. The icon compared to the HJC is leap and bounds alone. Never wore a shoei before.
I’m gonna see if I can find info on wind noise as well. I grabbed some chicks pink helmet for a laugh when we were on a group ride, and I never noticed how f’n loud mine was. Along with that little piece of fabric under the chin to reduce wind comin in to the helmet.
i kinda wished i had owned a shitty helmet before so i could compare to my shoei, but it’s my first helmet.
i put on some shitty ones before, and mine is leaps and bounds more comfortable. it’s also pretty quiet in comparison. at 80 mph it sounds like when you drive your car with the windows open at 35 mph.
the only thing that took some getting used to is the lip on the back of the helmet. great when looking ahead at high speeds, but the first couple times i checked my blind spot, i thought my head was going to get torn off my shoulders or me ripped off the bike. if you turn your head the right angle, it’s not too big of a deal.
EDIT: pic for reference
So far I have Alpinestars gloves 
whats the point of the lip?
Got a good deal on it. AWESOME helmet, and has an airpump in it…just like nike shoes.
fits great.
and I have;
MY BIKE is all black and a black helmet, so I didn’t want to have the ghost rider affect,so i needed something bright to break it up