MotoYard.com Blog

Have you had some non-motorcycle initiated friend ask you why most motorcyle riders insist on wearing special clothing? I have, and I was under the assumption that the answer to this question should be obvious. We wear -

• helmets
• protective goggles, or at the very least, sunglasses
• gloves
• a leather jacket
• long pants
• motorcycle boots
   

We wear, or should wear, the items in the above list, all in the name of safety. Now, I’ll admit that while I sometimes leave off one or more of these items, I never ride without a helmet! But the other things in the above list can save your hide when you have an accident. I have seen too many people who dress like myself - helmet and goggles, sneakers and jeans or shorts when it’s hot outside. I have come to the conclusion that I have been very lucky to still be in one piece, really. These articles of clothing were chosen as safety products for motorcycle riders for a reason, and who am I to assume I know better than the “experts”?

There are some places, I’ve heard, where policemen will stop and ticket a biker for not wearing safety gear! Not in the United States, though. Do we need a law like that in this country? Do we want a law like that in this country? Maybe we as motorcycle riders should begin to self-police. Since most of us know what we should be wearing to keep ourselves safe, and a good percentage of us don’t bother, preferring to live dangerously, taking the initiative to dress ourselves properly just may keep such a law from ever coming to fruition in this country.

I’m glad my friend asked me that question - it made me think!

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