Today we review two excellent jacket choices for ladies; one built for ADV touring and one for sport touring. The Firstgear TPG Monarch Jacket is the women's version of the Firstgear TPG Rainier, a bombproof all-season all-weather jacket. The Alpinestars Stella Sigma Drystar Jacket, on the other hand, is a sporty-cut waist-length Fall-Winter-Spring jacket designed for sport touring in all weather situations. Depending on your application, when you pair either one of these jackets up with women's winter motorcycle pants, you'll be comfortable, warm and protected during any cool and cold weather riding.
Essentially a carbon copy of the Rainier but cut for a woman's curves and contours, the TPG Monarch packs a feature set that will go head-to-head with the finest Adventure Touring gear for women available on the market today. It features a Hypertex Plus waterproof breathable membrane that is built into the abrasion-resistant 600D nylon outer shell which will keep you covered through any precipitation hurled at you. The liner is a three-layer laminate that is waterproof, windproof and microfleece-lined for comfort. It operates as both the zip-in liner but can be taken out and worn standalone as a stylish destination layer. For the warm weather, take the liner out and open up the six total vents -- two chest, two sleeve, and two 8" rear
exhaust vents -- and you'll flow plenty of air to be comfortable in summer heat.
YKK waterproof zippers can be found throughout this jacket with a scuba-style RiRi zipper for the main connection to prevent any precipitation from penetrating. There are two hidden front pockets underneath the front seam and two side pockets along with a key pocket on the left sleeve. There is also a good deal of adjustability to accommodate an array of women with waist and arm straps and zippered side gussets for customization. The Monarch also features an integrated under the helmet rain hood that tucks neatly under the collar when not in use. As far as all-season all-weather ADV touring gear, you won't find many other jackets that compare with the Firstgear TPG Monarch; phenomenal features and year-round functionality.
Built for three-season sport touring, the Alpinestars Stella Sigma is a stylishly sport-cut jacket that offers a great deal of functionality. The waterproofing is built into the high-denier outer shell via the Drystar waterproof breathable membrane. For warmth and versatility, there is a removable thermal liner that can be taken out in warmer weather, combining with the chest and arm ventilation to keep you relatively cool on warmer Spring and Autumn days. The Stella Sigma has removable CE rated shoulder and elbow armor, with upgradeable PE chest and back padding. These can be upgraded to Alpinestars CE rated Bioarmor for added protection.
Cut specifically for women, the Stella Sigma is very accommodating with waist, wrist and arm adjustments. There is also a waist connection attachment to pair this up with select Alpinestars textile and leather pants. Four external pockets, rubberized logos, and reflective trim round out the feature set of this solid three-season waterproof sport touring jacket.
When you think Puma, the first thought that comes to mind is style. For years Puma has cemented their name in the world of athletic footwear as a high-performance and stylish manufacturer. Their recent dabbling into the world of motorcycle boots is no different. The Puma Desmo boots, available in a brand new color scheme, remain true to Puma's trend of creating standout products. 100% developed in-house at Puma, the same R&D went into these boots as all of their other standout products.
The Puma Desmo is a performance boot constructed to be versatile, durable, and stylish for the motorcycle rider who keeps it sport and street. The Desmo has impact protection features that compete with all high-end sport touring boots: internal nylon ankle cockpit; TPU shin, heel, forefoot, calf & toe protection; Zinc sliders on the toe and back of ankle; Flex inserts in the heel & forefoot; a rubber gear shifter; a comfort sock liner that is pre-molded and offers excellent vibration absorption; and finally, that superior Puma sole: high density and built for stability, grip and oil/abrasion resistance. Whew. That was a lot on the feature set. But these boots are really impressing us.
If you're a rider who focuses mostly on the sport road riding aspect of the motorcycle world, these boots are worth a good hard look. They go head-to-head with any of the high end road riding boots we carry at RevZilla.
And they surely aren't going to stay on the shelves for long, so take a look before they're all gone!
A newcomer to the motorcycle helmet game, especially in the American market, Nexx Helmets has exploded onto the scene with some head-turning products. RevZilla started carrying the X60, their impressive retro-styled open face helmet, and the X30, their futuristically versatile modular helmet, last year.
And now we're pleased to introduce the latest and greatest from these forward-thinking Portuguese developers: the Nexx XR1R Helmet.
At first glance, you might be thinking this helmet looks like a lot of the other everyday sport touring helmets out there. You might be thinking we're jerks for making a big deal about it. That's because you haven't picked it up yet. The weight of this helmet is absolutely mind-blowing. Weighing between 1200-1400 grams, depending on the size and the graphics, this is second only to the Akuma Phantom as the lightest helmet we've ever carried at RevZilla. And they haven't even dropped the carbon fiber version yet (it's coming soon). How is it so lightweight? The Nexx Tricomposite shell, made up of carbon fiber, kevlar and fiberglass. Nexx Helmets developers combined these materials to create a helmet that is not only lean, but super rigid and resilient.
Beyond the weight, the XR1R also features an incredibly wide and tall eyeport for exceptional peripheral view. The liner utilizes CoolMax fabric which is anti-sweat and anti-allergic, and also removable and washable. Another feature that really stuck out to us is the Ergo Padding System, which is a set of pads including with the helmet that have adhesives for easy-install to customize the fit of the helmet to your head shape. That's next-level.
The helmet flows a ton of air and is also super-quiet thanks to the velcro folding flap that fits between your ear and the helmet to muffle ambient outside sounds.
As you can see, there are some cool graphic options (five total) in addition to the six solid colors available.
Check out the full detailed video review of this helmet up top. We bet you'll be impressed.
If you want to compare and contrast, check out our selection of motorcycle helmets over at RevZilla.com.
Built for three-season sport touring, the Alpinestars Stella Sigma is a stylishly sport-cut jacket that offers a great deal of functionality. The waterproofing is built into the high-denier outer shell via the Drystar waterproof breathable membrane. For warmth and versatility, there is a removable thermal liner that can be taken out in warmer weather, combining with the chest and arm ventilation to keep you relatively cool on warmer Spring and Autumn days. The Stella Sigma has removable CE rated shoulder and elbow armor, with upgradeable PE chest and back padding. These can be upgraded to Alpinestars CE rated Bioarmor for added protection.
