You won’t find an exhaustive list here on why you should always wear riding jeans. After all, the reasons are blatantly obvious aren’t they? I don’t know anyone looking to undergo a skin graft.
Then why do most riders, at least some of the time, default to normal denim? Motorcycle jackets don’t suffer the same compromise. It’s likely because for either fashion or comfort reasons you can simply take your motorcycle jacket off. Unfortunately we do not have the same luxury with motorcycle jeans.
According to The Motorcycle Council of NSW “Most riders wear a motorcycle jacket (97%) but fewer wear motorcycle pants (45%). This is despite the fact there is actually far more risk of injury to the legs than to the upper body or arms”
So to save the effort of having to get changed, or for the sake of a bit of uncomfort, the majority of riders are putting themselves at a higher risk of injury. Traditional Kevlar jeans perform extremely well, there is no doubt about that. Brands like Draggin Jeans revolutionised the market decades ago. I mean, could you imagine riders getting around the shops in full leathers?
The trade off is and will always be performance vs practicality.
Now, I absolutely fall into this category. I remember a not so enjoyable ride to the Hunter Valley viaThe Putty road on a 45 degree summer’s day in Kevlar jeans. Not stopping at the Grey Gum Cafe for a water break (last stop for around a150 kms) was also a rather large oversight. Brutal, in fact.
Regardless of the reasons why riders don’t always wear motorcycle jeans, there is no doubt they absolutely should always be wearing them.
Here’s Why:
Between 2008 and 2015 there were 20,805 hospitalisations. During this period an average of 170,000 motorcycles were registered over that time.
In a seven year period that’s close to one in eight hospitalisations for every motorcycle registration. Yes that’s an average and yes we could go further down the semantics rabbit hole of where and when, active vs inactive riders/registrations and so on, but I can only imagine these stats get even scarier.
Fortunately new technology such as single-layer motorcycle jeans containing UHMWP (Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene) fibre offer a high standard of protection whilst also being comfortable and friendlier in summer. Camino have developed a motorcycle jean that is aimed at those who still wear normal denim. We want you to look good, be comfortable and survive the summer without having to change out of your kevlar jeans. Even if you want to ride the Putty Rd with no water breaks.
Learn more about why Camino Motorcycle Denim are just like regular jeans.
For some more sobering stats you probably don’t want your non-riding significant other to see, click here https://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/downloads/trauma-trends-motorcycles.pdf or here for VIC http://www.tac.vic.gov.au/road-safety/statistics/summaries/motorcycle-crash-data
