Helimot Suits Slideshow

Anyone in the Bay Area who does track days will no doubt be familiar with Helimot suits and gloves.  Made by hand in nearby San Jose, Helimot gear is widely regarded as the best money can buy, for those with the money to buy it.

Helimot also sells Daytona boots, handcrafted German racing boots, also widely considered the best money can buy.

I learned about Helimot reading BARF posts about riding gear, and got curious about all the rave reviews.  Although I was a long way from being able to afford a track day eventually I decided to ride to the store in San Jose and see what all the fuss was about.  The shop was small, the staff super-friendly, and the gear looked and felt to be of extremely high quality.  Although I hadn't the need nor money for a track suit I decided to try on a pair of their well-reviewed Buffalo 365 touring gloves.  They had me try on about a dozen pairs of gloves to find a match for each of my hands, and eventually ended up separating a few pairs to get a good fit.  After getting over the sticker shock (I think they were $275) I bought a pair and, as per their directions, saturated them with water and wore them wet for two hours while I watched a movie on TV (Faster, I think it was).  They've been the most comfortable gloves I've ever owned.

Eventually I bought a second pair and put tens of thousands of miles on them, then gave them to my wife, who put another tens of thousands of miles on them and crashed-tested them twice.  This pair finally wore two small holes in the left forefinger and could use a repair, but have otherwise held up well.

At the time my mom was starting to do track days and needed a pair of track boots.  I suggested she ride up to San Jose and meet me at Helimot to check out the Daytona boots.  That day the owner, Helmut, was in the shop and struck up a conversation with my mom.  It turns out they share an interest in SV650s and riding on the track.  She eventually bought a pair of Daytona Winners which she's had for many years.  She's periodically sent them back for repairs and new sliders, and that way has kept in touch with Helmut off and on.  Recently he emailed her a link to a slideshow which he posted on youtube, a 30 minute retrospective about his suits:

Helmut is an artist and the custom work on his suits is really impressive.

Over the years I've picked up a few other odds & ends from Helimot, a back and chest protector set, and a pair of used Daytona M-Star boots.  Both items are of excellent quality and I wear the back and chest protector daily on my commute.  However, Helimot gear really does seem to be specialized for the track and integrates best with Helimot suits.  Both items seem kind of at odds with my Cycleport commute suit.  Since almost all my riding is commuting I haven't been to Helimot for 3 or 4 years, but if I do get into track days (and find myself with a lot of extra money) I expect I'll be back there eventually.