During a recent launch event D-Store Orange County, Dainese USA announced that the company’s state-of-the-art D-air Racing technology will be made available to North American customers in September of this year.
Following an exhaustive R&D period that included vital input from MotoGP riders like Valentino Rossi, Dainese launched version 1.0 of D-air Racing in 2011 and D-air Street in 2012, both for European customers. Last year saw the introduction of D-air Ski, as well as Ducati’s launch of the Multistrada D-air, a production motorcycle with a factory-fitted wireless system that communicates with D-air jackets. Now, the latest iteration of D-air Racing will also be available in the U.S. market by September with the off-the-rack Misano race suit, and afterward with the made-to-measure Mugello version. D-air is the first wireless airbag system available to motorcyclists in North America.
The Misano suit’s aerodynamic back-hump houses seven sensors, three accelerometers, three gyroscopes and a GPS. The rider’s movements are monitored constantly, and when an eminent crash is detected, a sophisticated algorithm is used to trigger a Cool Gas Generator. The 4 liter airbag opens in just 45 milliseconds (15ms triggering time plus 30 ms deployment time), protecting the shoulders, neck and collarbones; a blink of an eye typically takes 300 to 400 ms. D-air Racing also includes a data-acquisition feature that monitors riding performance. Information on lap times, speed, acceleration, braking distances and cornering lines can be downloaded to a computer.
The Misano suit will be available for $2,499 through Dainese D-Stores, D-Corner dealerships, top Dainese resellers and www.dainese.com. An optional Extended Service Package is offered for $299, providing unlimited re-arming for two years, plus a 15 percent discount for crash-damage repairs.
