n my 50 years of riding
bikes, the good times
have sure outweighed
the bad. But the bad
experiences over that
half-century include mul-
tiple broken collarbones,
six rib fractures, and a
smashed scapula (shoulder
bone); all injuries that probably could have been
prevented had I been wearing the new torso-pro-
tecting airbag under-vest from Alpinestars at the time
of those crashes.
The Tech-Air Race vest has been at the leading edge
of motorcycle racing safety for several seasons, and
it is now mandatory for all riders to wear one in Mo-
toGP. The slightly different Air-Tech Street variant first
made its debut at the 2014 EICMA show in Cologne,
but is now finally being rolled out to global markets.
New Zealand became just the fifth country to make
the two Tech-Air vests available to riders. Each vest
costs $1899, and are available from three metropol-
itan dealers located in Auckland (Motomail), Welling-
ton (TSS), and Christchurch (Avon City). Add on the
price of a set of Alpinestars leathers or a jacket to get
the overall cost of the airbag system. The Tech-Air
vests are compatible with three new leather suits, two
new leather jackets and four new textile jackets from
Alpinestars, costing between $699 and $1499.
Once that (quite hefty) investment is made, you’re
good to go, on any bike, riding in whatever scenario
takes your fancy, as the Tech-Air system is the world’s
first fully-independent motorcycle airbag system, and
has no need of a GPS link. The patented double-in-
flation system also makes it capable of use in at least
two crashes before it needs servicing, a boon for
adventure riders and track-day hoons.
KIWI RIDER 27