It turns out that motorcycling in the winter when you suffer from Raynauds is rather uncomfortable and often painful. The solution? Heated everything! I have spoken about my heated Keis insoles before, but recently I have added to the collection and I am now the proud owner of the Keis J501 Premium heated jacket.

The Good

First and foremost the jacket is easy to use and keeps you really warm in sub-zero temperatures. To get started, all that’s required is for you to connect a cable to your bike’s battery, leaving the plug sit out from under the seat. When you get cold, just plug this into the jacket and use the remote, fitted in the left pocket of the jacket, to choose the desired temperature. There are three temperature levels. To date, I have never gone above ‘medium’. It probably takes less than 2 minutes for the jacket to reach the temperature you have chosen, heating your arms, neck and upper body. Very quick!

One of the best things about how the whole Keis heated system works, is that using the same cable connected to the bikes battery, you can connect any other heated Keis garments you may have, without having seven hundred cables coming out your suit. This makes the process of wearing heated gear far more comfortable and neater.

The Keis J501 Premium heated jacket is also flattering and fits well. I often find that the thickness and snug fit of the jacket means that it traps the heat it generates well and acts as a good windproof layer. This technical layer means that there have been times I don’t even have to turn the jacket on, or keep it on the lowest setting. Designed in simple black and red, it looks good off the bike when you stop for lunch.

The Not So Good

This is a unisex jacket and I have purchased the smallest size available. Whilst it is very snug on the body and fits me well, the jacket is slightly bulky on the arms. In particular, I find my left arm often looses blood supply because the material is trapped under my armpit or in my elbow, resulting in numb fingers. Having said that, I have kept my motorcycle thermal liner in, whilst riding with the heated jacket, so perhaps this wouldn’t occur if I removed this.

The only other issue I find with this Keis jacket is that despite being a great generator of heat, unlike other thermal liners, it doesn’t retain your body heat. Therefore, when you turn the jacket off you are immediately exposed to the external temperatures, leaving you cold.

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