Last month, Fox Racing revealed its Drive series, a set of gear made specifically for side-by-sides. The line of products features everything from helmets to jerseys and just about everything in between. We recently received a box of the Drive series from Fox to review, and we’re loving it so far. Here are a few of our thoughts on the UTV gear.
Starting with the most important piece of gear, let’s look at the Fox V1 helmet. An important part of buying a helmet is to make sure that you like being seen in it; if you don’t like the way it looks, you’re less likely to wear it. The V1 helmet comes in three different colors: matte black, matte white, and gloss black. While some might want to go with something brighter, it’s hard to go wrong with a solid-color helmet and you’ll always look great while wearing the V1. And it meets US DOT and EU ECE 22.06 certifications, meaning it’s as safe as it is stylish.
The fitment, on the other hand, left a bit to be desired. The comfort is great, it fits true to size, and once it’s on, you won’t even notice it. The issue comes from putting the helmet on. If you don’t put the helmet on just the right way, your ear will get pushed down inside the helmet and you’ll find yourself taking it off and on a few times trying to get the fitment right. The V1s are great for long-range riding where you won’t need to remove your helmet, but you might want to explore other options for stop-and-go riding.
The Fox V1 helmet is priced at $209.95, which is actually on the lower end of helmet pricing.
Going along with the helmet are the Drive goggles. Eye protection is important while riding, and that’s why Fox used vent foam to block sand, dirt, and other small debris from getting into the goggles. Fox’s new goggles come in three variations, the Main, the Airspace, and the Vue. The Main are going to be the goggles to get if you don’t care about maximum performance and just want something to protect well while riding. As you go up with price to the Airspace and Vue, you get more protection from rubber guards on the side and a wider field of vision. You’ll pay dearly for them, though, since the price is $49.99 for the Main and bumps all the way to $129.95 for the Vue.
The Ranger jersey is one of our favorite pieces from the Drive series just because everything on it is so clever. For starters, the jersey comes with a built-in face gaiter to keep dust out of your face. No need to worry about throwing a few gaiters into your supply bag, you just have one ready to go at all times. If you get sunburned easily, the jersey is UPF 50 rated for protection. You’ll also have handy side pockets to keep your belongings safe. It comes with thumb holes in the sleeves to keep your sleeves planted behind your gloves. Fox has a few different colors available on its website, all of which are priced at $74.95.
Speaking of the gloves, there really isn’t a lot that is special about them. They have knuckle protection and rubber on the palm and fingers for extra grip, but they’re just about normal motocross gloves. Where they shine, though, is the fitment. When we say that these are the best-fitting gloves that we’ve ever tried, we’re not kidding. They have just enough elastic to fit with your hand without feeling overstretched, and they almost feel natural while wearing them. Like most things in the collection, they’re a bit pricey at $49.95, but they are well worth it.
The Ranger overpants are another item we’re fond of because they’re so easy to put on. They have elastic at the cuffs, and if you’re still having issues, Fox added a zipper at the bottom to make it even easier to put on. The cuffs aren’t just to make them easier to put on; it also clasps around your boot to keep dirt and mud from crawling up your pant leg.
The pockets on the overpants come with a zipper to keep keys, wallets, and phones safe while riding. The overpants also fixes a major issue that we had with motocross overpants we’ve used in the past, which is accessibility to the pockets. With other overpants, accessing your pockets while sitting down is almost a workout. In motocross, you have no need to access your pockets while riding. Looking at your phone should be the very last thing you should do while on a bike. For side-by-sides, though, your phone is a valuable navigation tool that you can use to help guide you through a trail. If you get lost and don’t want to fight your pants to get your GPS out, these pants are perfect for you. You can grab your own for $119.95.
The Drive series was made to do one thing: Keep dirt and debris out. The products do this so well that we were confident that we could wear our normal clothes right underneath and we wouldn’t even have to change after we’re done riding. The helmets are sleek and look fantastic while offering optimal protection, and the jersey, overpants, and gloves are some of the most comfortable off-road gear we’ve tested. Check out Fox’s website to get some of its gear for you own.
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