Rukka Kidney belt

We've used a Rukka photo from their website as he's much better looking than we are...

We all know that kidney belts are a good thing when riding on rough roads. They not only provide the kidneys with something to hang on to but also support the lower back and in doing so provide support for the rest of our organs as well. They also keep the wind chill factor at bay, although our Rukka jackets are already pretty good in that respect. The downside of most kidney belts is their bulk and their weight. Most aren't very comfortable either, particularly the leather ones makes you as stiff as a mediaeval knight in body armour. Enter the kidney belt that changes all that... 

We already have good experiences with the Rukka Cosmic suits and the brilliant Outlast undergarments. It's a combination that works really well. Rukka has proven to be one of the few manufacturers who actually deliver what they promise. Take the Rukka gloves for example which honestly are waterproof and by far the best ones we've had. As you can read under the Clothing tab, Rukka's Outlast material promises the impossible, but again does what it says it does. 

'Normal' kidney belts would hamper the temperature regulating properties and moisture wicking capabilities of both the jacket and the under garment by forming a fabric or leather barrier between the two. Rukka's kidney belts however are made from the same Outlast material. This not only makes them work well with the under garments and jacket, it also makes them as far as I'm aware the only kidney belts with temperature regulating properties. 

Kidney belts are a blessing when rattling around on bad roads. Not just off-road but unfortunately quite a few others too. Mexican speed bumps spring to mind. Or Canada's finest when going north. Not to mention some of the European city standards. Yet we don't tend to wear them all that often, do we? It's easy to understand though as most of them are cumbersome and uncomfortable things. Being strapped in to some form of harness can never be comfortable... or can it?

Full support, yet flexible enough to be able to wear it in comfort, plus
wind stopper and Outlast temperature regulating materials. Result:
a blessing for motorcyclists with a sore back!

Imagine a kidney belt that allows you to move around and yet offer full support. A belt that isn't made from stiff leather but elastic material and yet still give proper support where it is needed. One that can be worn in summer without getting sweat rash... Wouldn't that be nice... Quite honestly I was a bit sceptical, reluctant even as I had used kidney belts before on a motocross bike. The results weren't that great, to put it mildly. Sure they offered protection for the kidneys, and for that I did wear them, but wearing one of them was like being squeezed into a PVC drain pipe. With that in mind I was totally surprised how comfortable the Rukka kidney belt is.

The Rukka kidney belts also use windstopper materials to protect the back from cold wind, which particularly in my case is a blessing. My back doesn't like the cold at all! Windstopper is another one of those Rukka materials that seem to promise the impossible. How can any fabric be wind blocking and yet transfer moisture to keep the wearer dry? I have no idea, but it does work. For extremely cold and windy rides we have a very thin windstopper jumper which we wear over the Outlast undergarment. It has proven to work perfectly.

For more info on Rukka materials check out the Rukka Materials page which gives clear info on the various materials Rukka uses. For more info on the technologies used have a look at the Rukka Technologies page.