A major risk for any Texas motorcycle rider is that a collision will occur or something will happen to throw the rider off the bike and cause the rider to skid across an abrasive concrete surface. This impact may result in road rash that permanently damages the skin of the rider and may require extensive treatment and reconstructive surgery. Wearing the right clothing is important to help prevent these kinds of severe injuries.
Ride Apart explains the various kinds of clothing that motorcyclists should wear and how they protect a rider. In general, good riding clothing is stronger than most regular clothing. Strong riding clothing is designed and made so that it can absorb the blow of a harsh surface better than ordinary clothing and stand a smaller chance of coming apart if it hits and skids across concrete.
Many people think of jeans as tough clothing, but when it comes to weathering the impact of a motorcycle accident, ordinary denim jeans will do little to actually protect you. Pants that are made of leather or textile material actually are far more resistant to abrasion than cotton materials. You can also evaluate the protectiveness of a pair of pants by whether it contains CE-rated armor in the knees or the hips.
Also think of what will happen to your hands if you are involved in a collision. A good set of gloves should offer protection, but a bad pair will likely tear apart on impact and expose your hands to serious injury. Protective riding gloves contain materials that will resist abrasive impacts. Armor in the palms is also advisable since in a crash your palms may hit a pavement. Even as they protect your hands, your gloves should also grant you proper freedom to operate your bike.
An auto accident can also do serious damage to your feet if you do not have the proper footwear. While motorcycle boots should allow you to stand your bike up even on surfaces that are slick or slippery, they should also protect your feet from sustaining serious and permanent damage in an auto crash. Good riding boots shield the feet of the wearer, help prevent serious injury, and cut the severity of an impact.
No riding gear would be complete without a good riding helmet. When they work as intended in a crash, motorcycle helmets take the impact that would ordinarily strike your head and dissipate that energy elsewhere. Helmets ordinarily have a five year shelf life, and should not be bought used, since a used helmet may contain undetected damage and not adequately shield your head in an accident.