RIDE MFG is the most recent gear to hit the UK market that offers semi-custom and full custom mx gear. Having only been around in the last few years you may not have seen it out on track, but they have certainly been making headways. Now, if you have been attending events like the VMXdN at FOXHILL or other national-level championships you most certainly will have seen it, even if you didn’t realise.
A lot of the replica retro kits that you see at the vintage races are made by RIDE. The VMXdN at FOXHILL has become such a spectacle of replica bikes and gear from the ’90s and early ’00s that most of the riders use RIDE to make a nearly identical replica kit to match the bike that they’ve invested a lot of time and money into.
The whole process from picking your base design for a semi-customisable gear, to adding your sponsors, name, and number, up to the point where it is created and delivered to you is straightforward. You head over to their website ridemfg.co.uk and there is a simple step-by-step procedure to get youlooking trick for your next ride.
The fully customisable is obviously slightly more in-depth and there is a bit more back and forth between yourself and the designers. This is just because they want to make sure you are 100% happy with the design before it is sent off to be made. The possibilities are really endless and I have seen it all in the last couple of years, from the mild to the wild.
I went through the semi-customisable approach and picked my base kit, and added my sponsors, name, and number. It was really that simple. I was then sent a mock-up of the gear for me to make changes or approve, once I was happy with the kit it was just a short 7-10 days before it was at my door. All of this for just £189.99.
The kit itself is comfortable and durable, and it looks like the part. It doesn’t have the same athletic fit that some of the other brands top of the range kit, but I know that this is something that is already in the works. The jersey is well vented and the material washes well. Personally, I prefer a more tapered
sleeve than a cuff but that is really a personal opinion. Of course, as this is all custom made there is no printing. Everything you see on the shirt is woven into the fabric. The same goes for the jeans also. This means that no matter how many times you wash your kit, your name, number, and sponsor logos are not going to peel off.
The jeans do have a bit more of an athletic feel than the jersey. The jeans are quite fitted to your knee braces but the material does have quite a lot of give in it, so it is not difficult to get on and off. The jeans are held together by 2 poppers in the middle where you would usually find a buckle. Not a lot of room for adjustment you’re probably thinking. Don’t stress, they have adjustable velcro straps on either side of the pants. To protect from the heat of your engine and exhaust, all jeans are fitted with Kevlar on the inner knee. Not only is it heat resistant, but it is incredibly durable. So there is no need to worry about tearing a hole in the knee of your new kit.
I’ve been riding and racing in the gear now for a little over 6 months and apart from the odd scuff, it is still in good order. Nothing has come un-stitched and all the fasteners on the pants still work perfectly.
Is the time of generic patterned kits from the brands of old over? I’m not sure if I’m ready to say that but there is certainly a new wave of gear coming in the form of custom and semi-custom gear sets. And if you are interested in customising your look and standing out from the crowd, you won’t go far wrong with RIDE.
Tested and written by Brad Wheeler
