Engineers have been searching for years for a way to make motorcycle riding, an inherently dangerous hobby, a little bit safer.

Options have ranged from thicker jackets to actual airbags inside the motorcycle, akin to a car, but I don't have to tell you the dangers of having an inflatable bag that propels out towards the rider in a vehicle lacking safety restraints.

Now there are two companies, Dainese and Alpinestars, who are developing wearable jackets that inflate via micro sensors that detect impact and take less than a second to achieve maximum size. While not yet available in America, they give hope for every rider who has taken a spill... or thought about taking a spill, but were too afraid.