Motorcycle commuting - Clothing

moss

moss

moss

Soldato
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South Shields
I currently walk to work (which literally takes about 40seconds), but in September im going back to uni, so I'll be commuting about 10 miles eachway and plan on using my motorbike. Its through a city centre and parking is free and far easier on the bike. The whole route is all 30/40mph roads.
Problem is, I always wear decent safety gear when im on my bike, usually Dainese leathers and Sidi Vertigo boots which isnt really ideal for sitting around uni in. I do have some textiles but again these arent really ideal. Ive got some draggin jeans which look great, but are useless when it rains.
The problem im having is finding something that looks fairly normal when im off the bike, is waterproof and offers some protection?

Any suggestions?
 
When i commute on my bike i normally wear toughened jeans by Teknic and a textile jacket. I also have a roll up one piece water proof that i use for my leathers, they work with my Teknic gear aswell.
 
As said above, change at destination or go for a combo of a decent looking jacket and a pair of draggin' jeans with waterproof trousers should you need them.
 
Rilot said:
I wear my normal bike gear when I commute and change clothes when I get to where I'm going.
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Another for that, get yourself a locker or something similar, get best of both worlds, protection on bike, fashion icon off bike :D
 
Have you worn the draggin jeans anywhere yet? like at the pub when you've sat inside? I find them just as hot as leathers tbh because the kevlar adds a lot of weight and heat insulation. If the roads are 30/40mph (and you actually stick to that) then a good pair of levi's should do the trick. The only benefit of the draggin jeans over normal jeans is that they can withstand being flung down the road a lot further without wearing through. That shouldn't be an issue if (god forbid) you fling it down the road at 40 because you shouldn't wear through regular good denim at that speed/distance.

So my view is to wear a leather jacket in nice weather or textile jacket if it looks bleak and pop a good back protector in each, good denim jeans and obviously carry on wearing your good boots, gloves and lid.
 
I've seen the results of 50 mph crashed with jeans and they did virtually nothing to prevent road rash. As strong as they seem, they are not substitute for decent leathers.

I did once witness a medium speed crash between a bike and car and the guy was wearing lycra shorts :eek:. That was a mess and coincidently it turned out that I knew the guy as well. So lycra < jeans but jeans<<< leathers.
 
SpeedFreak said:
I've seen the results of 50 mph crashed with jeans and they did virtually nothing to prevent road rash. As strong as they seem, they are not substitute for decent leathers.

I did once witness a medium speed crash between a bike and car and the guy was wearing lycra shorts :eek:. That was a mess and coincidently it turned out that I knew the guy as well. So lycra < jeans but jeans<<< leathers.
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I agree that jeans, including draggin jeans, aren't a substitute for leathers but from personal experience i low-sided at indicated 50mph and the jeans had fluffy patches but no more than that, so i've always continued to ride with that combo. Maybe I was just very very lucky.
 
monkey_boy said:
Have you worn the draggin jeans anywhere yet? like at the pub when you've sat inside? I find them just as hot as leathers tbh because the kevlar adds a lot of weight and heat insulation.
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I rarely wear my draggin jeans tbh, think ive only ever used them to pop to my mates house. I wear full leather 99% of the time.
I think a decent textile jacket, my gloves, boots and draggin jeans with some slip over water proof trousers is my best bet. I'll try to arrange a locker to store a my gear when i get there and a lighter jacket for use around uni itself.
 
I only commute on a nice day.
My protection involves boots, a leather trench coat and a helmet.

I wear my normal suit underneath and the boots I just keep on.
 
For commuting I've got a pair of rukka armax trousers which I just wear over my work clothes... I also wear them over jeans etc, they originally came with a removable liner. Bit sweaty in high summer though, I've got an old pair of belstaff vented textiles for that.

Draggin are very good though, for what they are. Right, time for the hip armour rant! Lots of bike gear either doesn't have hip armour pockets, or has pockets but no armour. Your hips and pelvis are very exposed, and useful for many tasks such as standing and walking. You're more likely to sustain a crippling hip injury than shoulder injury, but everyone expects shoulder armour in their leathers. I broke my hip while wearing full, high quality bike gear- but no armour in the hips. I'd never even thought about it, if I had I'd not have lost a year of my life, and I'd not still have a banjoed leg. It's a good idea, in other words :D But most especially in textiles and armoured jeans- leathers offer basic impact protection on all areas, textiles and jeans offer essentially no impact protection at all, just abrasion.


Obviously, I'm not entirely objective on this point :D
 
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