Not since the seventies have 1-piece snowmobile suits reached this new level of popularity throughout the performance-crazed industry. And unlike the seventies, when warmth was determined by bulk and insulation, the new generation of onesies must be light, breathable and functional.
During the past two winters we’ve tested two 1-piece suits in western riding conditions: the Motorfist Blitzkrieg and the FXR Ranger Mono. Both provided a stylish look and comfortable fit. Both kept us warm and dry. Both had their benefits and limitations.
The Blitzkrieg is about 13 percent lighter than the Ranger Mono—we’re talking close to a pound (both suits were size Large). This doesn’t seem like much, but it’s still lighter and we didn’t notice any change in keeping warm and comfortable.
For those who have never worn a 1-piece suit, you may suspect that there could be some restrictions in movement. Quite the contrary. Both suits offered great mobility. And the beauty of the 1-piece is that when you bend over, you don’t expose any parts of your body to an unwanted cold draft.
We have noticed two minor drawbacks to these suits.
First, with a 1-piece suit, when you get hot (from either extreme riding or extreme getting stuck, you don’t have the convenience of shedding your coat. Although you can pull off the top of your suit, it’s not like you can lay it across your handlebars to air out. It’s going to be dangling around your waist until you put it back on. That’s just the nature of the beast.
Second, it would be nice to get the overall weight down a little more. Keep in mind these suits may weigh between 5.8-6.6 pounds. The Motorfist onesie is actually a little lighter than its 2-piece counterpart. The FXR onesie is about the same weight.
The nice thing about the modern onesie is that it comes with inner adjustable suspenders so you can pull the legs up a bit if your body style isn’t the 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame that seems to be perfect for the onesie look. Even us 5-foot-10, 200 pound types can still find a comfortable fit (and look surprisingly thinner).
The modern onesies also feature plenty of air vents to regulate temperature. Keep in mind, unlike the 2-piece suits where your body gets separated with two heating zones—top and bottom—the onesie allows body heat to move both up and down your entire body, allowing you to use multiple vents to regulate your overall body temperature.
Both Motorfist and FXR use the best performance fabrics to offer protection from the outside while providing breathability on the inside.
We could go into detail as far as the materials used to make these suits … but all that can be found on the MotorFist and FXR websites. We’d rather just tell you that these suits keep you warm and dry while feeling much less restrictive than the conventional 2-piece.
The FXR Ranger Mono retails between $550 and $620. The Motorfist Blitzkrieg retails for just under $800.
For more information contact Motorfist at www.motorfist.com or FXR at https://www.fxrracing.com/.