One morning, not so long ago, God was out enjoying His motorcycle on the back roads of So. Cal. while wearing a beautifully tailored leather jacket made from the hides of sacrificed cows. Being aged and broken in this was God's favorite jacket. The only downside? The jacket was brown and God, although He looked and looked, couldn't find any decent brown motorcycle gloves. This meant He was forced to wear black gloves with His brown jacket which greatly chafed His sense of style.

While He was stopped under a beautiful Oak tree relaxing with His gang the "Archangels", a nearby group of motorcycle riding atheists used the black gloves and brown jacket as proof that He didn't exist. Their argument went as follows: If God existed then He would just create and market His own brand of brown gloves so He wouldn't ride around looking like some third rate, has-been deity.

Unfortunately for the atheists they caught God on one of His “smiting” days. Once the ground closed back up (some observers swear they heard it burp) God decided that He would indeed create His own gloves. Of course He couldn't just market the gloves under His own name due to a complicated and binding “Deity Self-Promotion Agreement”.

Instead He gave the gloves to Michael (one of his Archangel lieutenants) with the instruction to “go far and wide into all the land seeking one who is found worthy to represent My creation”.

Of course the story then gets kind of muddled and we are unsure how Roland ended-up being the most “worthy”. There may have been some under the table dealings as Michael was seen to leave the RSD shop wearing a new Ronin jacket while riding a RSD Cafe Sportster.

How the Domino gloves from RSD actually came into existence is irrelevant. What IS relevant is that they do exist and you can buy them. If you're cool enough. And by cool enough I mean have deep enough pockets. And by deep enough pockets I mean....well you get the idea.

My Mom and Grandmother used to wear Isotoner gloves when I was a kid living in the Great White North. Or Philadelphia. Whichever sounds more dramatic to you. I remember trying on the gloves and thinking about how soft they were; like a second skin. YOU! Yeah you.....get your mind out of the gutter and focus! They were gloves for God's sake and that's not really my fetish.

Right so where were we? Oh yeah soft gloves. Upon first putting on the Dominos I was instantly reminded of those gloves from my childhood. Soft, flexible leather is nice in a jacket but of the utmost importance in a pair of gloves.

There are extra layers of padded leather in all the high abrasion areas which are done in black leather which gives gloves a very cool two-toned look. Being of the gauntlet persuasion there are two velcro straps; one at the wrist and one on the cuff. RSD spec'd the nicer type of Velcro and not that grabby type the sticks indiscriminately to anything with fuzz. It's little touches like this that show the thought that went into the Domino gloves.

On the outer side of the Domino gloves you find some smooth little rivets. There are also a few on the padded knuckle area as well. I'm guessing these will provide more in the visual area than the protection area but they're a nice touch that breaks-up the look a bit.

Now before you think that I've jumped on the RSD bandwagon and I'm one “back of the tour bus blow-job” away from being a total RSD slut, I'll tell you that they missed the mark in one critical area. Critical to me at least. Very possibly RSD's target audience won't care.

Knuckle protection.

As in there ain't none. Nada. Oh sure they put some padding back there and an additional layer of leather but I doubt that will cut it if you're sliding down the road with your hand trapped under your body knuckle side down. Don't scoff – it happens.

I'm a big proponent of some type of hard knuckle protection. Doesn't have to be crazy carbon fiber or blinged-out metal....some heavy-duty plastic wrapped in leather is better than nothing. Someone from RSD is going over my knee if I meet them for this egregious oversight. Bad RSD bad.

So does that mean I won't wear the gloves? Hell no. I just won't land on my hand if I crash. I can control that – I'm THAT good.

Soft, flexible leather, good palm protection, a gauntlet and some knuckle protection all equal up to a very nice glove that I would not hesitate to buy – even without a hard knuckle protector. Maybe I can retrofit one.....hmmm.

The Domino gloves retail for $160 and also come in black for those who like their gloves like they like their coffee. RSD also offers two other styles of gloves as well in case you aren't a fan of gauntlets.

More information can be found here at www.rolandsands.com

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Pros:

• Leather that feels buttery smooth and supple.
• Style that is both modern and yet classic.
• High quality materials found throughout.

Cons:

• Lack of a hard knuckle protector.
• Price may be a bit steep for some pockets.
• Umm....yep that covers it.

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