The Great Motorcycle Cover Up

There are a lot of ways to kill a buzz; one of the easiest ways is to see the future flash before your eyes. This morning it happened! Looking out the kitchen window into the backyard at my brand new, red, Yamaha FJR 1300A sparkling like a jewel in the morning sunlight. Excitement quickly turned to buzz followed by horror as my subconscious mentioned, "Give the old girl a little time and she'll look as good as old Nellie there." Turning to the far corner of the backyard at the mention of my old ride, I felt my hackles rising as I took in her weather-worn exterior, broken and run down from years of sun, rain, dew, acidic bird droppings, pollution eating away at her - anything that could fall on her, did fall on her and has consequently resulted in her dilapidated state. In a perfect world the old girl would have spent her downtime in a warm and dry covered garage, but back then foresight and planning often got lost in the excitement of a new baby to provide me with freedom, so Nellie was relegated to enjoying the changing seasons in the backyard.

"You need to find some space in your garage Einstein." Reverberated across my hackles, shaking my soul as thoughts of Jennifer relegated to life in the elements, as I have taken to calling my new baby, after my wife's car, the storage shelves, my workbench, the laundry machines, the bicycles and the menagerie of life's expensive acquisitions already occupying the available space in our one-car garage, room for Jennifer would be non-existent. A little negotiating might help, okay begging, but then I remembered how ‘my boss' felt about me acquiring Jennifer to begin with. Resigned, I realised Jennifer is probably destined for life outside the garage. Realisation turned my head back to Nellie in her corner and the thought, "Not this time, this time Jennifer would be covered by the best protective covering I can buy. Her beauty would not rust, fade or peel away and never again would I ride away with a damp derriere in the mornings." No, Jennifer would stay as pretty in red as the day we first met. Fortunately, even the most basic blanket can act as a cover to keep sun, wind, dirt, and doo-doo off your best girl.

A cover is a security blanket for your baby, not an anti-theft device, a deterrent for the meddlesome to the mischievous from fiddling with your expensive new toy. One cover in the review below even has a pocket inside to hold an optional alarm to surprise any would-be-thieves. Many characteristics make for a good motorcycle cover, and many depend on the owners needs. The perfect cover needs to protect against UV rays, be water-resistant or water-proof, breath to prevent condensation, protect against hot exhaust pipes, stay put in a fierce wind, be velvety smooth on the inside to prevent scratches and reduce down to carry around size. A tough nut to crack, considering today's fabrics, so tough all the covers reviewed only come with a slice of perfection. All weather, outdoor, covers tend to be bulky, while touring and precipitation covers generally compact, but not suited for prolonged sunlight. Consequently, no one cover fills all a motorcycles protection needs; one for the driveway and another for the road could be a necessity. Covers designed for indoors storage stop dust and scratches from damaging your bikes exterior, one cover, the Moto Jacket, can keep your bike as beautiful as the day you brought her home, even through a long, cold, Canadian winter.

You'll see the word ‘aluminized' in many of the reviews. This refers to fabric coated with fine aluminium powder, then sealed with polyurethane paste. Resulting in heat-resistant material able to cover hot exhaust pipes. Make a note; most covers aren't machine washable, so it will pay to check cleaning procedures before deciding to send one through the wash cycle. While all the covers come with storage bags... you'll find some easier to pack then others. All covers were not created equal, as you will see. Also I have only covered a few of the available covers for motorcycles, this was to give you a taste to tempt your buying buds.

MOTO-JACKET $189.99

Available sizes: small - extra large.

Available colours: Grey.

Made in the USA by Pine Ridge Enterprises,

13165 Centre Road, Bath, Michigan 48808

1-800-522-7224

http://www.carbag.com/

Resembles a spacious, fold and carry, garage more than a normal bike cover, Pine Ridge's Moto-Jacket is designed for stress-free, lifetime, indoor storage of your two wheels of freedom. Pine Ridge's patented design totally covers a bike, keeping moisture and dust off your baby, curious minds and prying from accidentally damaging your bikes beauty.

COVER-CRAFT $144.95

Available sizes: large, extra-large.

Available colours: black, charcoal, blue, silver, green and red.

Made in the USA by Covercraft Industries Inc,

100 Enterprise Boulevard, Paul Valley, Oklahoma, 73075.

1-800-426-8377

http://www.pwr.sports.com/.

Soft as a feather, the Form-fit by Covercraft is constructed from supple polyester material so soft your bike will snore. Coming in a variety of attractive shades the Form-fit is double stitched with Spandex so it stretches easily over your motorcycle with stretchable hems on both sides.

ADCO ARMOR TYVEK HD $122.22

Available sizes: s, m, l, long, XL, and XXL.

Available colours: white/silver

Made in China by ADCO Products Inc,

9655 Irondale Avenue, Chatsworth, California, 91311.

1-800-541-2326.

http://www.adcoprod.com/.

Skin like a garage! It's true; ADCO's Tyvek HD all-weather cover is constructed from the same material they cover houses with. Feather-light, water-resistant, and breathable the Tyvek fabric (made by Dupont) deflects sunlight with its light colour, has double stitched seams and comes with aluminized fabric along the bottom to protect against hot pipes and engine parts. The HD cover comes with a captive strap that attaches underneath the bike and an elastic hem to fit comfortably against your little piece of freedom.

OSI SPORTS EVOLUTION III SPORTBIKE COVERUP $109.99

Available sizes: six sizes and a half cover.

Available colours:black/grey.

Made in USA by OSI Sports

8 Old River Road, Glenmont, New York, 12077.

1-800-556-7355.

http://www.osi-sports.com/.

We all need to breath, your bike cover is no different...this is the theme of OSI Sports Evolution III Sportbike Cover. Constructed of two halves sewn together with heavy single stitching to securely join the two fabrics together, strengthen the shape and attach the hem. The front part is Evolution 4 fabric; soft, pliable, breathable, and mildew resistant, the rear portion heavy cotton that also breathes to prevent condensation. Hand washable and guaranteed for two years, the Evolution is a top-flight cover with a definite future.

Written by "Warren. J. Hayashi"