Komodo Sport News

My name is Craig Montgomery and I am an expert racer in the CMRA (Central Motorcycle Road Racing). It was round 5 of the CMRA series (Hallett Raceway) and because I changed bikes at the beginning of the season I’m starting from the back with no class points. I’ve been on a 1000 for last 3 years but wanted a change so I just picked up a Triumph 675. I love the way the bike handles and although slow compared to a liter bike its got decent speed and I like the torque. The one drawback is because it’s a British bike “hard parts” are very expensive. No worries, just don’t crash it, right

I ended up taking 2nd in the sprint race and was frustrated with my result. It was a great dice for the win and I didn’t come out on top unfortunately. I was a little bit angry on the cool down lap and decided to pull a frustration stand-up wheelie. I knew I had problems as soon as I dropped the clutch. I was in 3rd instead of 2nd but instead of accepting defeat I pulled up even harder on the bars. The anger I felt (which dulled my senses and judgment a bit) coupled with a headwind did me in. I then proceeded to loop the bike over backwards.

Unlike my bike I was not hurt. My Komodo leathers and race gloves protected me amazingly well considering how long I slid down the pavement. Most crashes are in a turn and you slide off the track very quickly. This one however was a on straight away and I was sliding with the direction of the track. You’ll notice the smoke coming off of my leathers. Thanks to Rene Vivion and Barry Nichols for the photos.

Check out Komodo Gear’s May 2010 Motorcycle News Letter

A Great Motorcycle Street Glove

By Komodo Gear

With so many different Motorcycle Gloves on the market it can be a little overwhelming at times. 

Here’s a short list to ask yourself:

a)      What are you looking for (fit and feel)?

b)      What do you desire the most (protection/quality)?

c)       Does it really matter what brand it is – and why?

d)      What’s your riding style (cruiser/street/track day/race)?

e)      Is price your motivation?

Let’s begin with the basics.  Motorcycle Gloves are intended to be worn, so they must feel right when you put them on.  “Feel right” means that they are comfortable.  If they’re not comfortable, chances are you won’t wear them or they will be a distraction while you ride (not good).   It’s ok if they’re a little snug, most gloves will break in with time and use.  However, you must have the ability to articulate your fingers and also have a snug, but comfortable fit on your palm.  

In addition to fit and feel; you need to take a good look at what protective features are included.  What type of leather are the constructed of?  Ask what kind of leather the Motorcycle Gloves are made of (a lot of gloves today use buffalo; goat and other less than desirable materials that will not hold up in a crash).  Yes, the type of leather does make a difference!  Cowhide (top grain or full grain) is preferred for the overall structure because it is very durable and easy to maintain.  So, make sure you look over the gloves thoroughly to understand how they are made as quality control is also an important feature.  Other nice features to consider is Kevlar stitching, padding in the palm, composites on
knuckle/fingers, extra layers of leather in the palm or even Kevlar panels on the palm or on the pinky (or both).  You need to also ask if there is reinforcement in the critical areas to avoid road rash.  Also, check the closure system.  Is it a Velcro tab or strap?  Does it offer a dual enclosure system with a latch, snap or Velcro?  You need to make sure the glove is secure when it’s on your hand.

The type of riding you do is also important.  For example, riders who just cruise around usually do not stress their gloves a great deal because they are not putting much pressure on the grips.  You know what kind of rider you are.  If you do general riding, then it’s likely you will not be putting a lot stress onto the glove and enjoy your gloves for many years.  However, if you race, then you placing a great deal of stress on the glove due to pressure, temperature, sweat – then repeat.   Race gloves take a beating and their life is accelerated by hard use or crashing.  An interesting reality of glove “life” is also related to sweat and temperature.  Yes, I said sweat!  Sweat is either alkaline or acidic; either way both will break down the leather and can accelerate its deterioration.   A quick remedy is to rinse your gloves out with water after a ride; let them dry and them apply a quality mink oil (remember, leather is skin; so clean and add moisturizer often
for long life).

This is a pretty good quiz:  http://komodogear.blogspot.com/2009/11/motorcycle-quiz-how-much-do-you-know.html

CONTEST – WIN A FREE T-SHIRT!

(rules: to win, you must post your “beginnings” on this blog along with a pic).

BEGINNINGS…
 
 Most of the time, it all begins when you’re a kid. This is how it happened to me.
 
 When I was around 7 years old, my dad brought home an off-road mini bike. I didn’t know exactly what it was until he explained it to me; but I had seen them before at the hardware store. These mini bikes weren’t anything like today’s mini bikes. This was the late 1970’s, and these little mini bikes were the “hot item” of the time for young boys. It was a real piece of American ingenuity; it used a Briggs and Stratton lawn mower engine (say 3 or 5 hp), small and wide fat tires, no suspension; no adjustment anywhere and just a rear brake. It was primitive, stiff, bouncy, a real hard tail that included lousy brakes. Looking back, it had no business being off-road.
 
 Who knows who made it, but it had a big sticker on the side of it labeled, “Cheetah”. The seat was a cheap vinyl plastic covered in cheetah stripes. It was cool for the day and pretty quick. That scooter would easily reach up to 30mph and had no clutch; you just twisted the throttle and it went forward. When you have no suspension, a poor rear brake and small, fat tires as hard as wood, it made for a lively ride to say the least. (pic above is not actual bike, but very close; picture is courtesy of Google pics).
 
 I loved it. It was mine and I was smitten. Every day after school, I’d saddle up and ride it in the alley behind our house. It was a “starter kit” motorcycle for kids. However, there were thousands of kids like me across the nation being groomed on these homemade mini bikes. My sisters and I would take turns riding it in the alley and we all enjoyed it; I think I just enjoyed it more.
 
 We didn’t wear much protective gear (motorcycle apparel) back in the 70’s; just a helmet. Oh yeah, the helmet was a ¾ helmet by Bell and had a “bubble” shield. The rest of the gear was your favorite t-shirt, jeans and cowboy boots or sneakers. That was it. Life in the 70’s was wild, young and free. Good days.
 
 Needless to say, it was all about the experience and the impression it left upon me. As I grew older, I had other and newer off-road bikes such as XR-80’s CR’s and bigger XR’s, but still retained the stunning retro ‘70’s helmet and SWAG from that era (social wear and gear for you newb’s). It wasn’t until middle school to high school that I graduated to permanent cowboy boots, a nylon Yamaha jersey and Hi Point off-road gloves. I was almost “looking the role” and I just couldn’t get enough. Most teens have posters up on their walls of women from Sports Illustrated or the NBA. I had pictures and posters of Danny Chandler, Chuck Sun, Brad Lackey and Bob Hannah on my walls. I once saw Bob “Hurricane” Hannah race at the Houston Astrodome in the late ‘70’s (’78 I believe). From that point on, the scar was real and deep. No bikini clad women or rock-n-roll posters anywhere, just die hard motocross riders (these were my hero’s) at every corner of my room with a stack of Motocross Action magazines on the shelf. Funny thing is that I knew I would never become a motocross star or even race motocross. However, I knew in my gut that motorbikes were my identity. I rode them, understood them and dreamed about them. As I grew older, I also took a great interest in the road bikes, the GS; CB’s; FZ’s and early Ninja’s. When I went to college, I finally got my taste of a 1983 Suzuki GS750E, but that’s another story for another post. If there was a diagnosis for, “bike lust”, I had it bad. I know it was bad, because I was still a junkie for off-road bikes, too.
 
 If you’ve got fond memories like these, share them! For me, it all started with a poorly built mini bike and the dreams of a young boy; who now is grown up with kids of his own and a garage full of vintage and modern bikes from different decades – never let go of your memories and keep your child hood dreams alive!
 
 **Komodo Gear will choose the best blog post (one winner per week) from each week and the lucky winner will receive a free Komodo Gear t-shirt; we’ll ship to your door anywhere in the Continental United States at no cost. See pic of t-shirt here: https://www.komodogear.com/store/home.php?cat=14 **
 
 So dig out those old pics and post ‘em up with your best “BEGINNINGS” story while the contest is on!

Well, this is truly DIFFERENT and cool! We were amazed to learn that Komodo Gear’s K-XP race suit used in the new Indie movie, “BLUE”. We were sent this picture from a friend half way across the world. It just blew us away because it’s awesome to see our gear being used in the entertainment world. In this picture, actor Zayed Kahn, is wearing the white/black K-XP on the movie set, BLUE, aboard a Ducati 999.

Komodo Gear announces its partnership with www.psychobike.com; the worlds largest online community of motorcycle drag racers.

 Check out www.psychobike.com for new events, it’s sponsors (yes!  we want to acknowledge the other sponsors who support drag racing!) and of course, the new products that Komodo will roll out for drag racing. 

 Thanks for checking it out!

To all our Customers,

August is FREE GROUND SHPPING month! 

If you live in the continental U.S., then your purchase is shipped via ground for FREE!

It’s our way of saying “Thank You” as we want to create more value to our customers.

Stop by often as Komodo will continue to offer specials!

MSR Cresson July 12, 2009

My year so far has not been the greatest with blown up
motors and some straight up bad luck.  I am so happy to say that all that
changed at Cresson.  The week in general started out on a good note.  Instead of
waiting till last minute to pack up for the race, I was smart and finished it on
the Tuesday before the race.  All I had to do was hook up the trailer and go, it was nice. 

I had gotten to the track Friday morning, unloaded the
bike, threw on my Komodo leathers for the Lone Star Track Day and got to riding
early.  It worked out really well because I had given myself plenty of time to
set up the bike and get it ready for race day.  I was lucky, on my second time
out on the track I was able to grab a few laps behind Ty Howard and get my pace
where I needed it to be, so long story short, Friday was great for me because my
bike setup was awesome.  If I’ve learned one thing about going fast is you can’t
go fast without a proper bike setup and you can only do that by going fast.  A
quote from David Hirsh with Michelin tires this weekend from me asking him if I
should put on a new front tire was “Well Danny, if you want to go fast in the
race you have to ride practice fast”.  I took his advice.

Saturday came around and it was a really awesome day.  WFO!!
Komodo got it on the box!! But I don’t want to say too much about it, you can
read all about it from the WFO!! Komodo blog.  That brings me to the best day of
road racing I have ever had.  Practice went awesome in the morning.  First
session I was in the low 18’s and the next I was in the 17’s, With that said I
was pumped for the racing to begin.  I had never gone that fast in practice  so
I was ready to go.  The first race started off good with a holeshot and I
continued the lead all throughout the race until the last lap.  I came out of
the rattle snake with a good pace but apparently not enough for to keep a 750cc
behind me down the front straight.  I ended up getting 2^nd.  When I
came off the track I knew I could go faster so we did some changes to the front
and rear suspension to get it to settle into the bumps a little better.  I went
out for the warm up lap and knew right then the bike was better than the race
before.  I was 2^nd or 3^rd row on the grid and got the
holeshot again.  I put my head down, worked on my braking markers like my
mechanic and I had spoke about and pushed my limits of myself and the tires. 
About mid way through the race I know someone was behind me and I knew it could
only be one person, Ty, the one person I have been wanting to beat straight up
for the longest time.  The whole race was so exciting for me.  I didn’t get
nevus at all with a guy like Ty behind me, it was so much fun , but I could not
wait for that checkered flag to come out any sooner.  I was the most amazing
thing for me when I passed that line in the lead. 

The third race, I am happy to say went about the same way. 
I got the holeshot again, but this time it was from the third row.  I makes the
race a lot better when you don’t have to deal with anyone in front of you to
slow you down.  I put my head down and got it done, across the line first
again.  All was well up to this point.  I had one race left for the day and I
knew it was going to be tough one.  It was another 750cc race and I was starting
on the third row again.  When the race started, I tried to get the start the
same way I got all the rest, but it didn’t happen this time.  I came out of the
first turn in second.  Before the race, my trainer and I had talked about what
to do if I was in second.  We thought it would be best to study the lines and
stay calm and wait for their tires to go out.  Well the rider in front of me was
no slouch.  He is a very good rider, not to mention he was on a 750.  After the
first lap I found I was being held up in all the turns.  I thought it would be
best to force the pass and pull away.  I went for the pass the first time, then
got passed back down the straight.  Tried the second time in the same spot, and
again it didn’t work.  I finally stuck the pass on the other side of the track
around the rattle snake, sneaking in underneath the inside.  I was able to hold
on to that lead for the next 2 or 3 laps.  Heading through the last turn on to
the front straight I came across a lapper entering on to straight.  If I would
have known better I would have hesitated in the one line section of the track
just before the straight.  Instead I had to hesitate for just a split second
coming on to the straight, which gave Derek in second just enough to out motor
me down the straight.  I did everything I could to pull off another pass but
Derek is a smart rider and kept his turns tight leaving me little to no options
to get around him.  I gave it 100% trying, just about smoking the tires coming
out of the last few turns, but just could not pull it off. 

It was one of the most fun races I have had in a long time
and hope to do even better in my nest races to come.  I feel that I have started
tapping into another level of my riding and can’t wait for the next event. 
Thank you to Liberty Motorsports Park, Komodo Gear, Lone Star Track Days,
Michelin Tires, Vesrah Brakes, VP Fuels, Hotbodies, Kicker Audio for the support
to make all this happen for me.

Danny Kelsey #34