The Richa Airsummer Women’s jacket arrived at the perfect time for a serious test—an Extreme Heat Warning had been issued by the National Weather Service for Southern California with temps expected to hit triple digits. Normally, I would drive to work in those conditions, as it’s no fun arriving at the office damp and disheveled. Instead, I snipped the tags off the bright red Airsummer jacket, threw it on over a mesh gym t-shirt, and headed out into the morning heat.
The Airsummer jacket is my first experience with the Richa brand, a Belgian company that produces motorcycle apparel for various riding disciplines. Associate Editor Jonathan Handler reviewed the Richa Armada 1.1 Gore-Tex Pro jacket and trousers for touring in May.
The Richa Airsummer jacket is an urban motorcycle jacket built to keep you cool and protected on your around-town forays. It’s Class A rated, which means it’s suitable for lower-speed urban riding.
The Airsummer jacket comes with D30 CE Level 1 impact protection in the shoulders and elbows—appropriate for a Class A rating. Back protection is not standard, leaving it up to the rider to opt for a CE Level 1 or 2 protector in the pocket, or an airbag.
I tested the Airsummer jacket with the upgraded D3O CE Level 2 protectors in the shoulders ($37), elbows ($25), and back ($50). I also wore the jacket on high-speed urban canyon rides, such as a friendly tête-à-tête with a Yamaha R1 rider on sinewy Sunset Boulevard west of Beverly Hills—the new Honda Hornet CB750 likes to get frisky. I appreciate the added sense of security that the Level 2 armor provides, especially in a lightweight jacket.
The D30 protectors are soft, flexible, and supremely comfortable as they only harden upon impact. For those who want to secure the jacket’s tail to their riding jeans, utilize either the short connection zipper or the two snap loops inside the back of the jacket, just above the hem.
Sliding into the jacket confirms a casual, boxy cut, just what you want when needing to stay covered yet allowing air to circulate. The outer chassis is constructed from polyester mesh panels across the chest, back, and sleeves to flow air. They are interspersed with abrasion-resistant polyester sections strategically placed for durability. Inside, the poly mesh liner is soft and cool against the bare skin of my arms—there is no removable quilted liner. Before I’ve even gotten on my bike, I can tell the jacket is going to handle the heat well.
Once donned, I can snug up the fit at the sides of the jacket using the hook-and-loop waist tabs, as well as using the snap adjusters at the biceps. Perhaps in the early fall or late spring, I might want to retain some body heat, but for my August testing, I’m leaving the fit loose. I’m also not taking advantage of tightening up the cuff tabs.
There are four pockets to work with for stowing carriables. My phone fits into the 3.5-by-6-inch interior pocket, which is secured with a hook-and-loop flap. A second interior pocket resides on the other side of the jacket. It’s a 5.5-inch square patch-pocket with a strip of hook-and-loop at the top for secure closure. My wallet will have to make do here, as the Airsummer jacket does not have a Napoleon pocket. Two zippered hand pockets are available for stashing small items, with zipper pulls appropriately sized for grasping with lightweight summer gloves.
As soon as you click up a few gears, you will feel air moving through the jacket. As speeds increase, so does the amount of air flowing through the mesh. You can feel the air flow throughout the jacket, passing over your arms, under your arms, and across your chest. Even with the thermometer on the bike in the 90s, the air feels warm, but not at all uncomfortable.
On urban freeways, I enjoy the rush of air flowing through the jacket. Even as traffic slows to the inevitable crawl at the interchanges and I move into lane-splitting mode, as long as I am moving, air is flowing through the jacket.
I had the experience of exiting the freeway and looking at the bike’s dash, noting the temperature reading—105°F. Yikes! Luckily, the light turned green shortly, and I was moving again, the air now cooling the sweat that had started down my back. So, even in triple-digit heat, the Richa Airsummer jacket works.
On the flipside, I also tested the jacket on after-dark summer rides. As the midnight temps dropped into the high-60s on the LA side of the Sepulveda Pass, I was cool but not chilly. So, the Richa Airsummer jacket is comfortable over a 45-degree sweep—at least for me.
The Airsummer jacket uses plastic SBS zippers that glide smoothly and don’t get hot. The chunky teeth haven’t jammed or snagged my shirts. While zipping up the front of the jacket is mandatory to keep it secure on the freeway, I’m disappointed that it doesn’t have a two-way zipper. For casual-speed or stop-and-go street riding, I like to zip the top down a bit and the bottom up to improve airflow.
The monotone jacket features black hardware and trim for low-key color accents, relying on the contrasting textures of the jacket’s outer-shell panels to achieve its appealingly understated style. Branding is discreet with Richa’s logo (a stylized uppercase R) in metal on the left bicep and screen-printed on the back collar. The full name runs in a modest two-inch line atop the left shoulder.
Aptly named for its exceptional ventilation, the Richa Airsummer jacket is my latest go-to hot-weather jacket for urban riding. It’s a lightweight, fully ventilated jacket that will keep you cool as long as your wheels are rolling, and there’s also a version for men. The included impact protection is invisibly comfortable, does not compromise airflow, and the armor can be upgraded to CE Level 2 for increased impact protection. The unpretentious, versatile styling works well on Hollywood Boulevard and off the bike at Astro Burger or The Hat, making the Airsummer jacket a well-rounded, practical summertime choice.
Photography by Don Williams
Richa Airsummer Jacket Women Fast Facts
- Sizes: DS-DL; DXS, DXL-D4XL
- Colors: Black; Light Grey; Red
- Armor: Shoulder and elbows, D30 CE Level 1 (D30 CE Level 2 optional); Back protector optional, D30 CE Level 1 or 2
- Certification: EN 17092-4:2020 Class A
Richa Airsummer Jacket Women Price: $163 MSRP ($275, as tested)
