Board Racer - J100

One of our best-selling motorcycle jackets, the ‘Board Racer’ has a long and storied history that dates to the early 20th century days of motorcycle racing in the United States – an exciting, fast-paced and dangerous form known as ‘board track’ racing. The design of the jackets worn by these riders was heavily influenced by the demands of the sport, which required riders to be both aerodynamic and protected from the elements. This resulted in a sleek, form-fitting cut to minimize wind resistance.

Inspired by those early designs, Aero’s Board Racer is cut with the same extremely close fit and has several other features optimising the jacket for riding. The curves cut at the collar and elbow are the optimal angle to combine comfort and practicality for riding and the front zipper stops short at the bottom so as not to pucker the jacket while seated. There are a few alternative configurations to our Board Racer available which have alternate back, collar and pocket set-ups. The most popular variation is our J-100 Board Racer inspired by Buco’s historic J-100 design.

Few names are regarded as highly in the history of leather jackets as ‘Buco’ and this version of our Board Racer uses the same design features as arguably Buco's most iconic jacket – the J-100. The J100 version of the Board Racer is the same cut and fit as the regular Board Racer but with three design changes. Is has a centre a snap collar instead of an off-set collar, horizontal chest pockets instead of angled chest pockets and finally the back is configured with a single horizontal rear yoke instead of the Board Racer's vertical centre split seam and kidney panel set up.

The Board Racer remains a hallmark piece of motorcycle and vintage fashion history embodying the brave and daring spirit of early motorcycle racing and continuing to inspire new generations of riders and vintage fashion enthusiasts alike.

Design Etymology

Perhaps no version of motorcycle racing has ever been more notorious than early 20th century ‘board track’ racing. Highly powered specialist machines built by the likes of Harley Davidson, Indian and Cyclone raced on steeply banked wooden tracks, usually oil-soaked from earlier races, with riders reaching speeds of up to 100 miles per hour – often resulting in carnage. The danger and excitement of the sport drew crowds of spectators and inspired a new wave of motorcycle enthusiasts. A series of fatalities saw most, if not all, the board track venues closed by the mid-1930s, but the board racer jacket remained a popular style among motorcyclists and became a fashion statement in its own right, eventually metamorphosising through the famous Buco J-100 into what we now call a "Café Racer".