I’m a personal protection geek/nerd. I love researching and finding just a bit better gear that will keep me safe from broken bones or impaired us of my “you only get one body, take care of it!”
The opportunity costs of not having the correct gear, especially when you are getting older is very high! Time off work, medical bills, pain/suffering and impact to quality of life.
I think we’ve all seen friends crash and brake bones.
This article will cover the items I recommend for personal protection while on a bike.
Just like preparedness, the FIRST thing you need to prepare is to protect yourself from attack. Doesn’t matter how much food/water you have stored, if someone steals it from you or kills you for it, they have taken your property/life. Same with anything in life, safety first. There is no one to call for help, so protecting yourself from attack is priority #1. Even if you did call someone, they won’t be able to respond in under 1 second.
Hill People Gear pouch/holster for your pistol on a motorcycle. I tried it with my Klim Nak pak and I could not deploy my personal protection in time because the way the straps work, so I went back to my old camelpak and the straps really dug into my shoulders and cut off circulation and was just uncomfortable. So I started to hunt around for a solution. The Zac Speed Recon is about the same size as my Nak Pak and designed for Moto. I also liked the chest protector! One, no one wants a handlebar in the chest or a branch in their heart/lungs and TWO, it would keep the HPG pouch off my chest (It really got sweaty working hard on my dirt bike) –I did NOT detect any sweat on my sig. So, I ordered the Zac Speed chest protector that integrates with the zac speed recon and used velcrow straps to mount the HPG pouch onto the chest protector and it looks ideal! SUPER comfortable and I can take off my pack and HPG with two buckles (which is fast and easy).
I also got my inreach SOS (life line for major injuries), hydration hose (likely THE most critical gear I take with me!) and my radio mic/speaker (as seen in the photo above).
What moto sports will this setup work with?
- Enduro/Dirt Biking
- Adventure biking (Zac speed with Hill People Gear (HPG) holster/pouch can go on the outside of my street jacket.
- Snow Biking (Timbersled)
First ride report with HPG and zac speed chest protector:
So, my buddy and I did what we call, Puke Hill/Pass, this is an undocumented trail and is one of the hardest trails in this canyon/area. I used to run Mosko Moto 10 liter saddle bags, but this trail makes it so you need to slip off the back of your motorcycle…often, so I can’t run saddle bags.
The zac speed and HPG holster worked great! Only 2′ off the ground challenges/obstacles really I would feel the extra kit and that was mostly weight and that weight was balanced with ME on my person and not swinging weight. I thought for sure my giant loop fender bag would never fall off, but going over a 2′ log, it bounced off. Glad I saw it and glad I had a tether for the giant loop fender bag.
I did need to take my pack off 3-4 times during the 4 hour ride. Not as easy as a normal pack, but still pretty easy. I got separated from my buddy and turned on my radio…but he left it in the truck cuz it was too heavy.
I was still sweaty under my chest protector, but given how much we were working hard on the bike. Any chest protector would do the same, but having my pistol was soooo nice and comforting as I try really hard not to make exceptions to having my self defense tools on my person at all times (like car insurance…bad guy insurance).
I dunked my head/arms/neck etc in a river and didn’t worry too much about getting my pistol wet in the HPG pouch/holster. I like to cool off at almost every river crossing.
I found the RECON to be ideal size for my “just in case” super small kit (medical and over night kit). I still have space for a few things if it was going to be a long trip.
Crashing and having lots of tree branches around, I’m glad to have a chest protector. Falling backwards onto large boulders is always a risk so having back protection was nice too. I wore my forcefield back armor, but it seems to always hike upward and I did pull it down several times. Maybe next time I’ll remove the forcefield back armor and rely on the Zac Speed back armor in the pack.
I wondered about the V shape of the pack, but it helps with athletic movement and helps it be snug on my back so I don’t get swinging weight at the worst possible time balancing me and my bike.
Even 5 mph the air flow felt soo good, but I could tell my chest radiator wasn’t working well with the covering, but MUCH better than just the HPG pouch, at least with the Zac Speed chest protector, I got ‘some” air flow on the chest.
For larger dual sport bikes, I think most people would be happier having their holster on the handle bars provided the holster has retention and they don’t mind sand paper on their gun for thousands of miles (I did this for years and I don’t mind giving a tool some “hard love” if it serves its purpose).
Pros of Hill People Gear (HPG) holster/pouch
- Discrete and doesn’t look like a holster, I considered a serpa holster that has retention that mounts horizontal on the chest protector, but it would be covered in sand/dirt/mud/snow and might make California Refugees nervous (not concealed)
- I got the runner HPG with extra straps to attached to your pack, but didn’t work out for me, it was pulling the HPG into my neck with the moto backpack.
LINKS to products
Hill People Gear holster/pouch – I got the ripstop version > https://www.hillpeoplegear.com/Products/CategoryID/1/ProductID/182
Zac Speed Recon with chest protector > https://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/riding-gear/zac-speed-exotec-roost-deflector-with-recon-pack-p
Recommended Radio uv5r > https://amzn.to/3PuOGJT
Recommended Antenna for the uv5r don’t waste your money on anything else > https://signalstuff.com/product/super-elastic-signal-stick-sma-female/
Recommended speaker/mic for uv5r btech don’t waste your money on anything else> https://amzn.to/3RUBeAA
Garmin Inreach SOS life-line and satellite messenger > https://amzn.to/3yWprsO
- You can see the SOS orange tracker, it seems the giant loop “tracker packer” does rub on my collar bone a bit strapped on the Zac Speed shoulder strap, I MAY move it to another location. I have it upside down because the antenna doesn’t catch my helmet if pointed down and I can still see/use it in that position.
My fav knee protection/braces asterisk knee braces > https://amzn.to/3Bc1Eb5
force field protector for hot weather > https://amzn.to/3b3A7Ow
- what I really like about the forcefield is its CE level2 and I can remove layers off the chest and back for dirt only rides. With the zacspeed chest protector, I can just remove the forcefield protection. The shoulder/elbow pads stay PUT! and I just put a riding shirt/jersey over the top to protect it. I use the forcefield enduro/dirt biking, adventure riding and snow biking!
Alpinestarts tech7 boots – I had a set for 5 years, beat them weekly and finally broke enough plastic that I’d rather not risk it, so they are retired and I have a new set of tech7 boots. YOUR FEET ARE WORTH IT! PROTECT YOUR FEET! > https://amzn.to/3oqL9jG
pressure bandage 6 inch – IBD – safe a life from stopping major bleeding! https://amzn.to/3cAH8q9
I’ll keep this page updated with gear recommendations.
