The Buyer’s Guide for Ladies Motorcycle Clothing

When you look to buy motorcycle clothing, chances are you want what most people want, something that offers you protection, performs well, feels good and looks the part. Protection being the most practical function when looking at motorcycle clothing, but, how practical is protective gear that doesn’t feel good? If you have motorcycle gear that you don’t like to wear, it probably doesn’t feel good either in terms of physicality or how it looks, here is what you should take into consideration when buying your next set of motorcycle clothing;

How well does it fit?

This might sound obvious, but many people will settle with something that feels, ‘ok’ because their primary driver is that of protection or the law. That needn’t be the case in today’s world of ladies motorcycle clothing you will find that; the chances are you will be less likely to wear the protective gear or swap it out for something different if it doesn’t feel right.

You should most definitely try the protective clothing on or, even better still, use it whilst riding your motorcycle. You can’t be sure of the absolute fit until you start to ride your bike, if you are buying from a showroom then you may get the chance to at least sit on a similar type of bike whilst wearing your potential purchase.

This may especially difficult to do in some circumstances, especially if you are ordering online which most people are doing these days. You can be reasonably well assured though that some of the leading companies do offer returns, but, do be sure to check with them about wearing and returning. Some companies will, some won’t allow returns after the garments have been worn or used. If they do then, all you have to do is pay for the return postage.

What material to go with?

Newer motorcycle clothing tends to be textile based so you may be asking the question, should I go for leather or for textile, is it a look thing or is there a real difference in terms of protection? The answer is they are pretty much equal in terms of the outdoors protection they will give you although leathers tend to be more comfortable in the summer, textiles more so in the winter weather where they can offer better waterproofing. If you are going with leather then it should be at least 1.2mm thick, if it’s too thick then it will just be too uncomfortable and perhaps even dangerous as it may restrict your movement.

Ladies motorcycle trousers

For motorcycle riders, the most common injuries will be from accidents involving your feet and or your legs, it’s no good having a really cool looking jacket yet, leaving your legs, ankles and feet unprotected, here are the key features you should look for;

• Abrasion resistance
• Ventilation
• Armour or provision for armour

Ladies motorcycle boots

As above, the majority of accidents, on or, off road involve legs, ankles and feet so, choosing the correct motorcycle boots are really important. Here are the key features that you should look for; 

• Reinforced soles
• Velcro straps

Ladies motorcycle jackets

Whilst there are fewer riders that are injured above the waistline, it is still really important to make sure that you are properly protected. Just because it is less common, doesn’t mean that accidents above the waist line don’t happen, it actually means that they are more serious. Here are the key features to look out for;

• Flexible panels at the elbows and over the shoulder blades for added flexibility
• Removable linings
• Pockets for back protection, shoulder and elbow armour

Ladies motorcycle gloves

Your hands are one of the parts of your body that is going to be getting the most abuse, without the correct gloves you will soon see hard parts of skin forming on your palms and even blisters, especially on your ‘throttle’ hand. Here are the key features to look out for;

• Wrist protection
• Reinforced palms
• Knuckle protectors

Safety Features

Regardless of the clothing you are buying, there are some absolute musts in terms of safety which you should take into account in all areas of your attire. Visibility, you must make sure that the clothing you are buying has good visibility for other road users, it must be of top quality, always check the stitching, triple stitching is the best. Lastly, you want to ensure good ventilation and adjustability, anything that makes you feel uncomfortable could result in an accident.

Image Credits: Collins Lesulie