Motorcycle Riding Gear
The choice of motorcycle riding gear is one of the most important aspects of sport touring. That choice is huge, and some of the factors that will influence your decision will generally be the balance of the three: comfort, protection and obviously price.
Safety First!
Certainly! Just be aware that in many cases some motorcycle riding gear may compromise your comfort to some extent. However, many brands offer excellent combination of protection and comfort. They are not generally the cheapest but often worth every penny. So learn how to recognize a cheap motorcycle gear that offers the same level of protection as the top brands. Make sure you know enough about the safety standards the gear is rated on before shopping.
Visibility
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If you consider black is the only colour you wear on the bike you may want to think twice. This is your life and safety should be your primary consideration. There is no need to mention it, is there? I was once making a U-turn in a dark and I thought I had more space for the turn than I really had. The bike was loaded with three GIVI cases that you may have seen on the other page, myslef and the pillion when I didn't make that turn. What happened was that I had to lay the bike down. The lights were off when we struggled to pull the bike up and a car was just approaching. My only hope was that high viability vest that I wore and it did the job. The car stopped as the driver had seen us from a safe distance. phiu.. |
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Motorcycle riding gear - look for the optimum
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To have the most suitable motorcycle riding gear for touring weather is probably your next point to consider. Obviously the question you should be asking yourself is: can I predict the weather in the place I'm going to and what temperatures am I likely to see? Say you're going somewhere hot but rain is likely too. You think there will be approx 35C (95F) all the time. Well, that's hot (at least for me) and if you've chosen your riding gear to be full leather suit at least consider the two piece suits. I've just seen so many heroes in this situation when they stop and fight to take their leathers off as they're boiling, it's not fun, believe me. The reality in temperatures above 35C is that the wind will have little effect on cooling and to refresh you'll need to stop in a shade and that gear off. |
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One summer I was touring Spain for couple of weeks and fortunately had the body armour underneath the leather. This was a life saver as I took it off and stayed cool and felt comfortably protected. On the other hand if you’re likely to be visiting places like Scotland you’ll need something worm not only under your suite and most importantly under your helmet. Obviously thinner base layers provide more comfort but generally less warmth. But with the latest development of materials for outdoors activities you will find something suitable for you. I recommend to have handy one piece thermal underwear if you riding in temperatures below 15°C (59°F), not to mention winter gloves. |
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As for the rain you will need a proper motorcycle rain gear which you’ll put on top of your clothing whether it’s a leather or textile. They will absorb the water sooner or later if you haven’t got your rain gear ready. I will describe it in the subsequent section when you’ll find more details. Just to mentioned it is not an expensive kit to have but it is crucial when riding in the rain.
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