After much messing about due to our new favourite world-wide friend Rona, I was finally able to get out on the Flat Track bike and test the JW Seat Cover that I installed over a month ago. The NZFT community got the call up to run at Waihi Beach Dirt Track and this was the perfect opportunity to give the seat its first outing.

Getting the seat cover done was as easy as picking up the phone. I have had a DR Trim seat cover on the old 09’ since about 2016. It has lasted about 5 years, done a quite a few miles and held up very, very well. But it was time to give it a birthday and also make sure it fit with the new decals that the FT bike was going to be running.

JW Seat Covers is owned and run by Jake Whitaker and wife Jane. I’ve known Jake for many years now through the enduro scene and have seen his rise from intermediate rider, to one of the top experts on the circuit. A furniture restorations expert by trade, a few years ago Jake branched out into making seat covers for dirt bikes. Being in the community that he is servicing was clearly a great help as his personal experiences make for a good test bed and knowledge base of what might be required out of a seat cover.

I decided to go with the JW team because I had herd good things about them, and I would class Jake as motorcycling friend of mine. A phone call and a chat was all it took to get the ball rolling and I sent the seat away to get tickled up. If you are running a modern bike, chances are that Jake will have your seat pattern on file and he can simply make one up for you and send it without you having to send the seat to him. But as my 09 is now 12 years old, he needed the seat cover to make the pattern. So, anyone with a 09-12 CRF450R or 11-13 CRF250R he has your sorted.

I told him what I wanted regarding colour and grippiness. The turnaround time was about a week and it showed back up ready to fit to the bike. As you can see, I went for a somewhat dangerous colour choice, as this was going to match my graphics. After the seat arrived, I instantly regretted my choice of white as I would be running on a lot of clay track this season – I’ll get to that later.

On inspection, the craftsmanship was fantastic. The stitching looks solid, the ribs are locked in, and the gripper material of the seat felt very durable and, well…grippy. Plus, it looked sexy AF on the bike – obviously one of the most important features of a custom seat.

So like I said, I was finally able to actually use it at Waihi Dirt Track a week back, and not just look at it in the shed and wonder. I had not sit on the bike with riding pants on before so it was quite the surprise when I plonked my ass on the seat and it instantly stuck there. Jake uses some grippy material. I don’t know if the white is extra grippy but I wasn’t going anywhere in a hurry and I wasn’t mad about it.

I slid off the ribs and further forward onto the flat part of the seat and that gave me a little more leeway, in regards to moving around the bike, which is handy when wanting to get your weight over the front. With Flat Track you are either hard on the gas down the straights, or hard on the rear brake trying to slide into the corner. Being able to stick to your seat really helps and the JW Seat Cover did a fantastic job at that. I felt very connected to the bike and had no issues with gripping the seat with either my legs or ass cheeks.  

Then came the dreaded clean up time – bits of clay smeared on the beautiful white fabric. I was preparing myself for what might turn out to be a bit of an off-white outcome. But I can happily report that some Motomuck and a quick brush had that seat looking as white and bright as the day it was weaved.

Unfortunately, with Rona still making things hard for everyone, Flat Track is struggling to get the season up and running – meaning I have only had the one chance to use the seat. It’s a beautiful thing that is currently in a holding pattern till only Jacinda knows when? So until then, I just have to look at it and appreciate its good-looking-ness.

Having said that – the new long term test bike, Rhonda the Honda needs a seat cover and maybe even a little raising. And I think I know just the team to have a crack at that too. Expect a call again soon, champ.

CLICK HERE to contact Jake at JW Seat Covers to have a chat about what your want for your bike. With a huge range of custom colours and designs available you could make pretty much anything you wanted.

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