If you dish out the dough for a nice jacket you want to get the most out of it as possible. We put nearly 2,500 miles on Alpinestars Atem perforated leather jacket to show you this is a jacket for almost any condition.
We headed out on an 800-mile road trip and then another 1,800 miles of daily commuting with the jacket. This has allowed both the benefits and drawbacks of the jacket to surface. This jacket has everything from CE certified armor and perforated high grade leather to comfortable stretch paneling. Add that up with a neoprene collar and cuff liners making this jacket one of the best all-around units on the market. The Atem pulls out all of the stops as one of the company’s top of the line road racing style jackets and obvious quality features.
Suiting up in the Atem for the first time immediately shows the superiority of the jacket’s protection and fitment. The jacket is snug around the torso and chest region allowing for minimal movement of shoulder, back and chest armor away from critical protection areas. This is a problem with other jackets we’ve reviewed. Add that with riders’ tendency to purchase over-sized jackets for comfort and you tend to find more loose-fitting jackets.
However, the tight fit of the Atem does not eliminate mobility thanks to the aramidic stretch paneling just below the chest line and up the inner arms from the wrists to the armpits. Traditional-style accordion stretch paneling is also located on the lower triceps as well as on the shoulder blade areas further increasing mobility without disregarding protection. To keep the sleeves and elbow armor in place, small Velcro wrist straps are located on the interior of the jacket securing the arms of the jacket and reducing movement in these areas as well. The final measure taken to keep the jacket properly anchored is the addition of removable security straps that attach to the bottom edge of the jacket and wrap around the rider’s crotch region.
The only fitment feature that could use improvement is the outdated and clumsy Velco d-ring waist adjustment straps that help secure the lower portion of the jacket around the waist but create protruding folds of material in doing so.
The secure fitment of the jacket allows for comfortable riding as well as easy movement when off the bike, like when you’re slinging a backpack over your shoulder or pumping gas.
No more irritating zipper around the collar and cuffs as the Atem features neoprene liners that wrap around the collar and cuff edges. However, the cuff liners combined with the wrist straps underneath create slightly bulging wrist areas making full length gloves a bit difficult to strap up. The perforation system does an excellent job in the comfort department as well on hot days when many riders opt for a textile jacket or worse, nothing at all. On multiple occasions, it caused me to think the jacket was unzipped while riding down the road. This is a testament to how well this perforation performs keeping you cool even on 100-degree-plus days.
Unfortunately, all this perforation does come at a durability and aesthetic cost; wearing a backpack everyday put a toll on the perforation holes in the front shoulder areas wearing the leather a bit quicker than expected. But this did not harm the integrity of the material nor jacket construction, just harmed the look slightly.
Protection
The entire jacket is CE certified as a level 1 riding garment (EN 13595 standard) including CE-certified shoulder and elbow armor. The leather components of the exterior shell of the jacket are comprised of 1.3mm high-grade rawhide that is reinforced in critical impact areas. Additionally, Alpinstars’ proprietary DFS (Dynamic Friction Shield) guards are located on the shoulders and elbows for further impact resistance. You can combined the jacket with Alpinestars Bionic chest pads that can be inserted into the built-in pockets inside the liner or the level 2 CE-certified Alpinestars Bionic back protector that can be attached via the snap button system in the rear.
Conclusion
The Alpinestars Atem leather riding jacket has out-performed many of the other options tested this year. The extensive list of features that comprises the jacket results in excellent fitment, protection and comfort. Alpinestars in known for quality, racing-derived riding gear and the Atem is an excellent way to experience this technology on a daily basis.
Price: $699.99
Available sizes: 48-60
The Good:
- Tons of protection
- Great for track, great for street
- Keeps cool
- Great mobility
The Bad:
- Wearing a backpack left markings (didn’t hurt the jacket)
- Price
- Velcro straps on bottom could be improved