Weise Corsa RS jacket £199.99

www.weise.co.uk WHEN I NEEDED a set of leathers for the Café Racer Cup last issue, the Weise Corsa RS jacket and trousers looked perfect. Short and long zips join the two, making the jacket-and-jeans combo more versatile and less bulky than a one-piece suit.

The jacket is a sturdy affair; initially stiff thanks to thick cowhide leather, this soon softened up. It has a mesh liner and comes with a zip-in sleeveless thermal liner with two internal pockets and two front zipped hand-warmer pockets.

The Corsa RS comes with CE shoulder, elbow and back armour. There are zips and Velcro tabs at the cuffs, adjustable Velcro tabs at the waist, and zip covers top and bottom at the front. It comes in red, white or blue colour options.

None of the leather panels are perforated and there are no vents, so it doesn’t breathe much. However, a little room at the top of the zip gives some airflow through the neoprene-edged collar, while gloves inside the large cuffs mean some air ingress there as well. On the track or the road it’s superb, especially when used with the matching jeans. Zipped together there’s no gaping, it fits me perfectly and, once hunkered down on my Suzuki SV650X, the riding stance is natural without nipping or trapping skin. There is light contact from the armour — enough to be reassuring but not annoying — and the back protector doesn’t ride up as on some jackets. Stretch panels at the shoulders mean the arms move easily and comfortably.