Rukka AquaAir GTX Rain Suit

When I realised I would have to ride home from Motobike 2019 on a scooter, wearing protective riding jeans in falling snow, I immediately started looking for rainwear. Torn between something flimsy that would get me through the day and the better-quality options, I wandered into Mototal's stand. On dear Sina's recommendation, I bought a Rukka AquaAir GTX rain suit. Thanks to my poor planning, I got to test the suit first in heavy snow, then in a downpour and strong winds.

The main material is a three-layer Gore-Tex membrane, with long waterproof zips on the chest and legs. There is no lining inside and no impact protection anywhere. There is no need for it anyway, since you wear it over your motorcycle clothing. The area in contact with the seat has a layer of Keprotec to prevent slipping. At the front, over the upper right thigh, there is an easily accessible waterproof pocket for your registration papers, wallet and so on.

There is a conspicuous belt at the waist with an excellent buckle. The suit is entirely black, with reflective areas in various places. They have remembered hook-and-loop adjusters to tighten the cuffs and ankles too. At the neck there is another excellent Gore-Tex section, long enough to cover your chin if you want.

You can put it on easily while wearing boots. I struggled a little because of my magnificent belly; if I had found somewhere to sit or lean, I probably would not have struggled. The zips really are long, making it easy to put on even over boots. It is a little long, but that is no great problem, since there are hook-and-loop adjusters at the feet. Let me remind you that my belly is rather large for my height. Pulling the sleeves over the gloves and tightening them is very easy.

Once dressed, I set off on the scooter. The first thing I want to say is that riding a motorcycle in weather like this is hardly sensible. When I set off, light snow was falling and there were patches of snow and ice on the ground. Going down to and back up from MottoPark, the dashboard showed -1°C. The snowfall turned into a blizzard, with 10–15 cm of snow covering the ground. By the time I joined the bridge road, the snow had turned to rain and strong winds made themselves felt on the viaducts. With the other vehicles around me and the icy slush they were throwing up, I can say it was a wonderful (!) environment for riding a motorcycle.

Hoping I have conveyed the conditions, I want to return to the suit. It let no water through at all during what I think was a ride of around 90 km in total. It has no thermal insulation, which also suggests we can wear it in warm weather. It blocks the wind very effectively. As my speed increased, it did not change shape or make any noise. Throughout the ride, apart from its protection from the conditions, I barely noticed it was there.

I had not tightened it properly over my left glove, so I sometimes felt the wind and cold there. While undressing, I noticed that the cuff of my jacket underneath had been left open. After taking the suit off, a gentle wipe with a dry cloth was enough to clean the mixture of mud and snow from it. Rukka has done an excellent job again. I think my only problem is that it does not fold down as small as the rainwear we are used to, and it has no bag for carrying it.

Features:

• Three-layer Gore-Tex Pro laminate
• High, protective, elastic Gore-Tex collar
• Adjustable, highly visible belt with quick-release buckle
• Keprotec anti-slip coating in the seating area
• Long waterproof zips at the front and on the legs
• Waterproof pocket on the right leg.