Jeans or proper bike trou?

[Padmei]

About to spend some hard earned money on some trou & wondering your thoughts on Draggin jeans vs dri rider type trou for adv riding? Or both - what's usually the appropriate attire for a sortee?

[Jantar]

For adventure riding you must expect to come off at some stage, so leathers are the only way to go.

Either Draggins or cordura will protect you - once.

[mowgli]

What Jantar said.

I chose cordura then wished I'd bought Draggins. The cordura is great in the rain but this summer jeans would have been heaps more comfortable. With winter coming I won't be shelling out for jeans until spring.

[yungatart]

About to spend some hard earned money on some trou & wondering your thoughts on Draggin jeans vs dri rider type trou for adv riding? Or both - what's usually the appropriate attire for a sortee?

Its your body and your skin. What you cover it with is entirely up to you based only on how much you value yourself.....

[Motu]

You are not going to be sliding down the road at 140kph,but you might be falling onto rocks at low speeds,you also might spend most of a hot summer afternoon trying to push your bike and helping others up a muddy hill.You need impact protection rather than abrasion protection,and you also need something that breaths.

[NordieBoy]

Draggins are great in the summer and in the winter I wear a baggy pair of jeans over top of them for day to day use.

Can't stand leather pants.
Just sold my pants as they wouldn't let me move around on the seat as much as I'd like.

Adventuring, I go for cordura. Breathable, baggy enough to wear armour underneath if wanted, pockets galore, dries quickly when wet.

I think the faster you go the more toward the leather side you should look.

But then I've got a bin liner with holes in it for my head and arms as a wet weather top so be careful with my advice.

[marks]

But then I've got a bin liner with holes in it for my head


we have to see pictures of this ... please

presumably if you don't get the holes lined up you crash a lot?

[toebug]

But then I've got a bin liner with holes in it for my head and arms as a wet weather top so be careful with my advice.

Do they come with holes aready in them? What about different colours? I'm looking for some new wet weather kit!:laugh:

[JATZ]

we have to see pictures of this ... please

presumably if you don't get the holes lined up you crash a lot?
Personly I wear leather 'cause thats all I have.Takes a while to dry though but leaves lovely marks where the dye gets onto my skin when wet, looks like horrendous bruising.

I've seen Nordies "wet weather gear" even has a draw cord 'round the waist, quite a fashion statement

[Quasievil]

I wear perforated leather pants, Racer 9 ones from quasimoto.co.nz and a Cordura vented jacket.
Jeans are not the ideal really, and personally I dont like cordura as they are sweaty as fuck

[CBobR]

I have Draggins and Dririder Rallycross cordura pants (lots of vents, no sweat, unlike my previous roady cordura pants, might not crash as well though).

My adventuring often involves falling over offroad and dragging bikes backwards out of mud and ditches, for this I like my Dririder stuff, it's much cooler than my jeans (which makes a big difference to how knackered I am at the end of a ride), and you get little a bit of padding for the impacts with rocks (I'd still like to add some extra knee protection though)

I like the draggins for commuting around town.

I have (non vented) leathers for my sportsbikes, but I'd probably get heatstroke low-speed bushwacking in them on a sunny day.

[bart]

Being a short tubby bastard, I had a real battle getting good pants. The knee part ended up half way down my shin with most.

Went for some fancy Fox ones in the end. They have hip protection, but no knee. I just wear knee pads underneath. Work great, breath well. Nice and stretchy through the crutch for getting my leg over a bike thats way to tall for me. Highly recommended, but not very waterproof.

[Grub]

Beware of draggins. Yes they have the sliding protection but they have no impact protection - they don't have any armour in them. Everyone forgets this little fact - until they fall down.

Armour is a multi-million industry and it's found in all cordura and leather riding gear ... there's a reason for that.

[Padmei]

:doh:Thanks for the info guys. My initial thoughts were for draggins but I think the impact protection armour is probably more important than keeping skin on. I will try to find some vented dririder trou I think.

Nordieboy your wet weather gear takes me back to a rock festival in Denmark in the early 90s where I had to resort to wearing a bag to keep my fringed leather jacket dry. - didn't think about making holes for my arms though:doh:

Needless to say eating was tricky

[Wingnut]

I dont feel all that safe in my draggins! Havent used them since getting a pair of leathers actually..

[XF650]

Rode a track yesterday where gorse was encroaching in places.
Glad I was wearing my Spool (armoured) riding pants & not jeans.

[Coyote]

Either Draggins or cordura will protect you - once.
Phff, my unarmored Draggin chinos lasted several crashes before the arse became exposed, so too has my Cordura jacket which I still have. Currently riding in normal pants which survived a fall without getting scratched. My helmet lasted 5 hard knocks too before it was stolen, the current one has been dropped countless times.

People are so poncy over their safety, sheesh.

[CBobR]

but I think the impact protection armour is probably more important than keeping skin on. I will try to find some vented dririder trou I think.


I have to say that the armour in my DriRider Rallycross pants is a bit average (just flat pieces of foam). I got the optional upgraded armour for my Rallycross jacket which is much better than the standard stuff (not sure if they do an upgrade for the pants?)

If I had more money, I would like to look at getting full on endurance suit like the BMW Rallye or Rukka stuff. They pretty much have all the venting, insulation, armour, abrasion resistance you want for adventuring in one package... but it's a good idea to be sitting down when you read the prices

[boomer]

About to spend some hard earned money on some trou & wondering your thoughts on Draggin jeans vs dri rider type trou for adv riding? Or both - what's usually the appropriate attire for a sortee?



..JANDALS...

[Padmei]

I have to say that the armour in my DriRider Rallycross pants is a bit average (just flat pieces of foam). I got the optional upgraded armour for my Rallycross jacket which is much better than the standard stuff (not sure if they do an upgrade for the pants?)

If I had more money, I would like to look at getting full on endurance suit like the BMW Rallye or Rukka stuff. They pretty much have all the venting, insulation, armour, abrasion resistance you want for adventuring in one package... but it's a good idea to be sitting down when you read the prices

The only thing, to be honest, that puts me off the full on cordura 'ends of the earth, tops of the gnarliest mountains' type stuff is that being a newbie to adv riding, I may feel, well, a bit of a tosser when I put it on for a little jaunt over the hill for a coffee & back again.

Perhaps if I grow a bit of a beard & practise my windswept & interesting face people may be intimidated & not question where I've been & where I'm going...

Looking around there is a huge variation of prices for different gear so I think I'll look at something in the middle price range. Appreciate all the info guys please keep it coming if you haven't already posted.

[jrandom]

Its your body and your skin. What you cover it with is entirely up to you based only on how much you value yourself.....

[insensitive joke along the lines of 'yes, but we don't all consider wearing out our gear to be an essential part of performing a U turn' goes here]

[NhuanH]

..JANDALS...

wise word from the whitey!

[Quasievil]

If I had more money, I would like to look at getting full on endurance suit like the BMW Rallye or Rukka stuff. They pretty much have all the venting, insulation, armour, abrasion resistance you want for adventuring in one package... but it's a good idea to be sitting down when you read the prices

The world adventurers that stayed with us for about a month where disappointed in their BMW rallye suits, didnt like them at all which was surprising. they leaked badly for a start.

[toebug]

Beware of draggins. Yes they have the sliding protection but they have no impact protection - they don't have any armour in them. Everyone forgets this little fact - until they fall down.

Armour is a multi-million industry and it's found in all cordura and leather riding gear ... there's a reason for that.

You can buy armour for the draggins, but it generally only for the knees.

[Henk]

It depends on what you call adventure riding. I've been out in full road Cordura gear on some rides (Tarmac and Gravel roads with the odd stroll out to a beach) and full motoX gear (lots of farmland and bush, almost an Enduro organised rides) Decide which end of the spectrum you are looking at and buy accordingly. Adventure riding means different things to different people and a quick stroll up to Waiwera using the Inland route suits different gear than a weekends mission up the Wires track.

[Jantar]

Henk has hit on a very important point here: Just what do you mean by adventure riding? A lot of the descriptions given here are more aligned with trail riding rather than adventure riding, so the type of gear worn is also different.

Maybe this question is worth a thread on its own.

[Motu]

Dualsport riding is colourful,not black and white like sportsbike or cruiser riding.There are always endless discussions on tyres and gear - they are always a compromise,and what someone thinks is the bees knees,another will hate totally.

[Padmei]

I think at this stage I will be doing mostly seal to get to gravel roads then getting more confident tackling more challenging sections. Compromise does seem to be the bugbear of adv riding so I guess I'll start with something waterproof with armour & maybe get some more appropriate hard core enduro stuff if that is the path I choose to follow.

[mbazza]

Tar and gravel, trou are weather dependant. Draggin Chino's ok in summer, warm. Any sign of rain or cold I go for winter weight cordura. Various cordura jackets, coloured. Only use the leather bike jacket for a quiet ride to the beach. Happy adventures. Cheers.
:apint:

[Padmei]

been checking out the gear forum & found out a lot more info as well as the bitch slappingbetween quasi & 1 tonne:hug:

keep it coming though

[Toaster]

Its your body and your skin. What you cover it with is entirely up to you based only on how much you value yourself.....

So a diamond studded 5mm wetsuit should be my next purchase??!!:bleh:

[CRM]

Yeah the Dri-rider Rallycross gear is great - I use mine for everything - road, adventure, even trail rides you take out the lining and they breathe well. The padding in the hips is a bit pathetic though but a whole lot better than jeans. Also you can't tuck the pants into your boots which doesn't look so cool with your MX mates. They last well too -I've had mine for nearly two years and no problems at all.

[Padmei]

Got some Strada pants & stylmartin boots the other day & tried them in the rain yesterday. The pants felt like they were getting wet around the crotch & above knees however when I took them off my shorts underneath were dry.

Waiting for the jacket next week to try out in the rain.

The armour seems a bit pathetic but as I can get access to it I may make something out of a milk bottle & bit of chewing gum.

[NordieBoy]

Got some Strada pants & stylmartin boots the other day & tried them in the rain yesterday. The pants felt like they were getting wet around the crotch & above knees however when I took them off my shorts underneath were dry.

Waiting for the jacket next week to try out in the rain.

The armour seems a bit pathetic but as I can get access to it I may make something out of a milk bottle & bit of chewing gum.

My StylMartin Stormy boots leak like a sieve.

Use bluetac, chewing gum would be overkill and also too brittle in the colder weather.

[GaZBur]

I haven't got a lot of adventure experience but if I intend to go fast I wear the leather, but ususlly I just wear heavy drill camo pants. They dont rip like jeans, don't sweat or over heat like codura or leather and dont protect you as much either. I fall - i graze and bleed but the pants dont rip. I would rather bleed a little every 10th or 15th trip than sweat myself damp and sticky on every trip. If you can afford to buy good stuff I think ventilation rather than waterproofing will be more important on adventure rides. You can always chuck on wagerproof overtrou.
My botton of the line dririder jacket is good though as its got armour - now I have given up on trying to keep it clean as dust gets into the weave and is hell to clean out. I would prefer more ventilation though as the holes I have worn in it let the water in but not air.

[clint640]

I've got a bit of a selection of gear now. In the warmer 1/2 of the year I reckon that my Axo MX pants + Fox strap on knee armour are by far the most comfortable & have heaps of protection, but take a bit longer to put on, make you look like an MX wannabe & you need to carry overtrou or rainsuit. The hip armour is a bit skinny but I'm going to replace that with the better stuff out of my old trashed RJays pants. Definitely the pick for adv touring though, & not expensive.
My Draggin jeans are good for going to work/cafe/round town in warmer weather but the kevlar can be a bit uncomfortable on all day runs & there's no impact protection. I can't fit the knee armour under mine, although Rosie can with her cargo draggins.
My waterproof armoured Mobig cordura pants, like the RJays ones before them, are good for the colder weather & for throwing on over normal clothing to go somewhere, as you get insulation + armour + waterproofness all in one go.

The Teknic Sprint Jacket I've got now is the shit for adv touring, good quality armour, super warm with the thermal liner in, quite good in the rain, & then the outer zips off to leave a mainly mesh jacket when it gets hot. Similar intent to the Rallycross stuff but having the waterproof part on the outside rather than the inside must make it a bit warmer & drier IMHO. It passed the 80 km/h tarmac crash test pretty well too.

Cheers
Clint