Instead I, like many of my age group have succumbed to the practicalities, and dare I say comforts, of biking. This is why my Kawasaki ZZR1400 now sports an impressive Giui 52 litre top box. I know, I know, I hear your outrage I really do, and I even share it, but the top box is so useful for keeping my files dry and secure when I am out and about at Court or seeing Clients!As if that wasn’t bad enough I’ve finally switched from leathers stuffed with two or three fleeces and my own personal padding to textiles!
But wait – it get worse. For years I’ve resisted wearing ear plugs as I love to hear the sound of my engine. In my opinion the sound of all of my bikes over the years (including my Bandit 600with micron can; GSX1400 with 4 into 2 stainless oval cans; GS750 chop with straight through pipes; and my Kwak ZZR1400) deserve to be heard loud and clear through unadorned ears. However, the sensible “old man” in me realised if this continues my hearing will not fair to well in the future in all likelihood so I have bitten the bullet and invested in some custom made ear plugs.
I would have been quite happy with some of those soft pellet ear plug things that you can bulk buy – and easily replace as they are so cheap. But no – I had to be influenced by the likes of Mr Dalton, whose arsenal of toys for his Multistrada includes “the perfect ear plugs”.
Which is why I found myself sitting at the Ultimate Ear stand at the NEC last November with gunk stuffed in my ears in preparation for my very own custom made ear plugs. Oh the shame – not only ear plugs but custom made ones! It’s official. I’ve turned to the dark side that is comfort biking.
The Ultimate Ear plugs arrived and I eventually remembered to use them. To say I was surprised is a bit of an understatement. They are made of some soft squidgy silicone which makes them an easy and comfortable fit in my ears.
Importantly for my safety, I can still hear the engine and road noise such as sirens, car horns etc. but not as sharply as before and it has completely cut out the wind noise which was giving me earache.
It is now several thousand miles later and it’s ten out of ten for the custom made ear plugs by Ultimate Ear they are definitely worth the extra money over the soft pellet ear plugs. Now I think I’ll just get my pipe and slippers!
