Spidi is an Italian manufacturer of protective and race clothing for motorcycle riders. Spidi Sport slr owns Spidi Incorporated, a United States-based subsidiary. The company is headquartered in Sarego, Italy and has a subsidiary office in California. The US subsidiary was incorporated in 2013.
History
Spidi was started by Italian Renato Dalla Grana in 1977,
and initially only manufactured racing gloves for motorcycle riders.
The company was incorporated in Italy in 1985 and began producing motorcycle apparel in 1989.
Spidi has sponsored riders such as
Kenny Roberts
Kenneth Leroy Roberts (born December 31, 1951) is an American former professional motorcycle racer and racing team owner. In 1978, he became the first American to win a Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championship. He was also a two-time w ...
,
Marco Melandri
Marco Melandri (born 7 August 1982) is an Italian people, Italian retired motorcycle road racing, road racer who is a five-time MotoGP, premier class race winner. He is the 2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing, 250 cc World Champion and runner- ...
,
Sete Giberneau,
and
Colin Edwards
Colin Edwards II (born February 27, 1974), nicknamed the "Texas Tornado", is an American former professional Motorcycle sport, motorcycle racer who retired half-way through the 2014 season. He is a two-time List of Superbike World champions, Wo ...
.
Notable technology
Spidi received the first
CE for their motorcycle jacket protectors in 1996. and produced their first universal motorcycle airbag in 2010. An integral cooling system called the Anatomic Intercooler System (AIS) intercooler system, developed from astronaut's space suits, was introduced in 2004 through a technology transfer project with the
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency (ESA) is a 23-member International organization, international organization devoted to space exploration. With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,547 people globally as of 2023, ESA was founded in 1975 ...
.
In 1995, Nobuatsu (Noboru) Ueda fell off his bike, breaking his arm and receiving nerve damage that nearly paralyzed his right hand.
To assist him in continuing to ride, Spidi designed a glove with a mechanised band system that allowed Ueda to grip the throttle and brake levers, which was nicknamed the "Magic Glove".
In 2018, a glove based on the same technology was created for rider Jorge Martin who was suffering from neuritis of the hand after an injury caused by unexpected nerve inflammation.
In 2019, Spidi released a prototype jacket, called the Mission Beta, created to assist riders who travel through areas with high pollution, smoke or other particulates. Citing that commuter motorcyclists can experience particulate levels 100 time higher than car drivers, the jacket contains a built-in mask system which contains an
air pollution sensor. When the air quality reaches a high enough level, a small screen on the arm of the jacket alerts the rider to the situation so they can put on their mask.
Spidi’s Ducati Corse C3 was the world‘s first glove to achieve a 4-star rating (the highest result at the time) in MotoCAP’s independent safety tests.
[MotoCAP (2018). Ducati Corse C3. Available at: https://motocap.com.au/product/corse-c3. (Accessed: 25 June 2023).]
References
{{reflist
External links
Spidi websiteThe Motorbike Gloves History Motorcycle safety gear manufacturers