I upgraded my kit and tested all the stuff over the months and feel confidant about writing about them now. I blame a lot of this discovery on Adventrue Rider Radio as they first brought much of this to my attention.
Possum socks… OK first thing is proper nomenclature – if your like me and live in North America there is an important difference between “Opossum” and “Possum” although in the US we pronounce it “Possum” but spell it “Opossum”. In North America we have Opossum ; they have hairless tails, are marsupials, look like large rats and pass out or “play dead” easily. However around Australia / New Zealand they are actually pronounced and spelled Possums and are fuzzy, cute looking and have more characteristics of a chinchilla and not a large rat.
These socks are a mix of merino wool and 40% possum fur (New Zealand Brushtail Possum). I am just going to assume that people know benefits of merino wool and focus on the 40% possum fur which has some interesting characteristics. The possum fur is hollow like that of artic mammals so the insulation value increases over just the wool alone. The fur is also very soft and comfortable and has a lanolin property as well.
The socks are incredibly thick and actually act a little bit like shock absorbers for your feet. I put them on along with my heated jacket when crossing the Rockies in May and found they were all I really needed to keep my feet warm and comfortable. I would advise these socks over any electronic items that might keep your feet warm such as electronic insoles. These socks just work and don’t require any fuses or other electronics they just work – and if your camping at night you can use them there as well to keep your feet warm (adventure items packed must be multi purpose).
So there you have it – Yes the Possum socks are a real thing not just a novelty and if your thinking about doing any cool / cold weather riding or camping they are super easy thing to add to the kit. They really do work.
The MotoLizard
