Leather Motorcycle Gear

Optional gear and clothing help protect motorcycle drivers on the road.

By Dennis McCafferty

Thanks to innovations in the motorcycle industry, you can ride as safely as you can stylishly these days.

That’s because more and more motorcycle manufacturers and aftermarket customization shops — and even apparel and helmet makers — are finding ways to introduce products that offer head-turning aesthetic appeal while reducing the accident factor of the ride. So riders now have expanded options where they can pick and choose ways to customize their motorcycles and gear to improve safety. Here are some of the more high-profile technologies now making an impact: Read the rest of this entry »

We use our hands and our feet to control and maneuver our motorcycles, and when it comes to safety, it’s important to ensure our hands and feet are safe and secure when riding our motorcycles.  Unlike driving a car, driving a motorcycle requires a good deal more precision.  It’s also possible for hands and feet to be struck with debris from the road, and even a quick jerk of the hand or slip of the foot could result in an accident.  It’s important to wear motorcycle gloves and motorcycle boots when riding.  Having sturdy leather gloves and boots will protect our hands and feet against the odd piece of debris on the road, and also help keep warm during colder weather. 

In addition to wearing motorcycle gloves and boots, it’s also always a good idea to wear a motorcycle jacket and of course a helmet with a visor.  There are hundreds of different styles when it comes to motorcycle apparel, so don’t feel that just because you’re keeping safe that you can’t look cool! 

When it comes to buying riding gear, no piece of equipment is more important than a good motorcycle helmet. Protecting a rider’s head is serious business, but with so many styles and brands on the market, choosing a motorcycle helmet can be as difficult as choosing the right motorcycle. Sorting out the helmet basics and what to look for when making the most critical of gear purchases can be tough, but MotocycleUSA is here to help. Read the rest of this entry »

When it’s time to buy new motorcycle gear, it can be hard to know where to start. Maybe the last time you bought gear when in 1972 when you first got your bike. You could also be a new rider who doesn’t know what’s important. Regardless, there are several pieces of gear that are essential for every rider, and that you should purchase for yourself. You need gear not just for safety reasons, but also to keep yourself as comfortable as possible. If you need assistance in deciding what to get, check out the following motorcycle gear tips. Read the rest of this entry »

Motorcycle Clothing is as much a part of a ride as your motorcycle. Motorcycle gear has a minefield of clever marketing and hype. Buried somewhere underneath all the marketing hoopla are some excellent products. When buying motorcycle gear where do you start? How do you make informed decisions on what motorcycle gear is best for you?

The basics…

Why do you wear motorcycle clothing in the first place? For most, the answer is obvious; it is purely a safety issue. In Europe, any safety clothing, whatever its use, has to be certified as suited for its intended purpose by a battery of test carried out by laboratories that are accredited to do so. If they pass, they may be sold bearing the CE mark. As a result of testing and the associated research it is clear that well made motorcycle clothing helps lessen the severity of injuries in an ill-fated event of a crash. Read the rest of this entry »

Your motorcycling apparel choices should consider comfort and protection from not only crashes but the everyday challenges of riding a motorcycle.

The right gear makes motorcycling safer and more comfortable through a wide range of conditions. Yet apparel-buying decision may be based on little more than what the wearer sees while standing in front a mirror. Consider a riding jacket. Most riders buy on style, but a real riding jacket should do much more than look good. With a bit of augmentation (layering), it should actually increase your comfort throughout the range of temperatures you ride in, serve your needs on the road, prevent damage to your machine, ward of gravel and bugs, and on that day when something goes wrong, provide significant protection from abrasion and even impact. That’s the difference between a motorcycle jacket, and good-looking but functionally empty jacket. Read the rest of this entry »

Your motorcycle boots need to be able to do a variety of things. You want them to be comfortable, but also sturdy and protective. They must also have great traction and not wear out quickly. The reality is that a motorcycle boot must also be able to protect you properly as well as also look attractive and be comfortable. If on a long ride your motorcycle boots are uncomfortable then it will add stress and fatigue to your ride. Ideally you wouldn’t even notice that you were wearing a pair of boots, but would be able to focus on the ride ahead of you. Read the rest of this entry »

It is important to comprehend that motorcycle luggage is distinctive from standard luggage typically used for travel. Motorcyclist do not have the convenience of being protected from the whether etc. Fortunately, motorcycle luggage manufacturers have realized the importance of developing luggage and saddlebags that offer the necessities for easy transport of personal belongings while riding a motorcycle. Now, there are high-tech features in luggage for these means of transportation. Read the rest of this entry »

Following a search that spanned several months, I finally found a job after college, and it wasn’t easy.  When I interviewed for the job, I took a cab because I couldn’t ride my motorcycle in my suit.  But on the first day, I had to take my motorcycle and from my interview experience, I didn’t think anyone else in the office was a motorcyclist.  I wore my suit underneath my jacket and chaps, which I had done before, but I was still a little bit nervous that someone would comment on my wrinkled clothes.  When I got to the office, I realized that I had forgotten my dress shoes!  My suit looked fine, but I was wearing my Xelement boots.

I didn’t have time to return home to get them, so I just bit the bullet and walked into the office.  When I arrived, I met with my supervisor for the first time, who of course commented on my boots.  When she mentioned them at first, I thought “Oh God…”, but then she said that she rode a motorcycle too!  I told her I wouldn’t forget the dress shoes again, and she told me to not even worry about it because she wore her motorcycle boots to work all the time! 

I recently was part of an online discussion regarding motorcycle helmets. The thread started with a question as to weather or not one should buy a Kevlar non-DOT novelty style helmet for about $100.00 or buy a less expensive DOT-approved helmet. There was a link to a web site for the Kevlar helmets and it had a curious tag line, “Like wearing nothing at all”. I thought to myself how prophetic of a line that was. I’m sure they were referring to the light weight of the Kevlar material but this blogger was looking to buy a non-DOT version although they did have a DOT-approved helmet for about two times the price. Read the rest of this entry »