Motorcycling is fun and all, but it comes with some downside. Spiders in your face, rain soaked clothes, and a lack of mobile navigation are generally on the list. And until in-helmet HUDs are a common thing, you’re generally stuck doing what I do – memorizing the major turns and final address and hoping you’ll arrive where you need to be. Well some MIT eggheads said “nuts to that!” and handlebar mounted phone cases have been slowly creeping throughout the motorcycle world. Sick of being lost in the depths of East LA trying to get to my next meeting, I decided it was time to give one of these mounts the ol’ college try.
Last week we tried out the Element Case Ducati line, so I gave them a ring and did my best poor college student impression while begging to try out their motorcycle mount. Nailed it. Soon I had their Zip Mount in my hands and a desire to hit the open road – only without getting lost this time. I hunkered down in my garage and prepared for the dirty and painful task of installing this piece of kit onto my mount. And you know what? It couldn’t have been easier. Do you know how to effectively work a zip-tie? Then you know how to install the Zip Mount. My dreams of struggling away in my garage with wrenches and dirty gloves while listening to classic rock dashed, I decided to hit the road.
In theory, what a motorcycle mount needs to do is exceedingly simple. It needs to hold on to my phone. In practice though, at 100mph, this simple task has never been so important. You’ve got to be able to trust that the mount is going to hold on to your precious Facebook machine, and that gentle reader is why you have me. To test these things out on my phone first. You’re welcome.
A couple of notes: The Zip Mount only slides into the Element Case Fuse Dek, which itself only fits onto the Rogue case we tested last week (at least out of the two cases we tested. I’m sure it fits onto other cases of theirs as well). With that realization, I installed my phone into the chunky Rogue case, installed that into the Fuse Dek mounting system/belt clip, and slid the whole contraption onto my bike mount. It sounds clunky, and is clunky to hold, but once installed it looks pretty minimal.
Enough dillydallying, let’s get this mount on the road. My phone didn’t immediately fall when I set off, nor did it drop when I picked up to 25mph. Still solid at 35 and 45mph. So far so good. 55 and 65 came and went with no issues as well. Now, 65mph is the legally-recognized top speed in the great state of California so I couldn’t possibly tell you how I ramped up to a heady 100mph on my local streets to test the Zip Mount. For science. Nope, couldn’t possibly tell you about that or at attacking intersection corners to test with some lateral G-forces. That would be irresponsible and downright dangerous of me. So I won’t tell you about any of that *alleged* activity. But you’ll be safe to assume that this mount will hold up to canyon carving and street fighting use.
If I’m honest, I’ve been trying to rely on turn-by-turn navigation less and less. I find I don’t remember how I got to places or how to get back if my little hand computer is telling me everything. But this motorcycle mount certainly made a case for itself and I have already found myself wishing it were there now that I’ve uninstalled the tester Element Case provided. If I continue being honest, it’s likely that I’m going to forget to send it back…
