Gloves for a motorcycle or scooter are a very important piece of equipment for a motorcyclist, they are primarily to protect against injury. It is the cheapest and most essential part of a motorcyclist's clothing after the helmet. Often the clue to buying special gloves is the first fall from a motorcycle and the subsequent long treatment of the hands. Durable motorcycle gloves soften the impact, protect against cuts and abrasions.
During a fall, the hands are the first to contact the ground, and every person has an evolved reflex to support themselves with them. Especially their inner side, the bones of the wrists. This is quite a challenge for motorcycle glove manufacturers, since the protectors should be on the underside of the gloves. Unfortunately, it's not possible to put them there, since the motorcyclist must have uninterrupted contact with the handlebars and all the infrastructure on them.
Another factor is speed, which causes rapid cooling of the hands, which results in a feeling of numbness, thus impairing their motor skills. Since safety and comfort cannot be separated, as one affects the other, safe gloves are those that allow you to "feel" the motorcycle well.
Motorcycle equipment manufacturers produce different models of gloves, from classic products to hi-tech. There are several basic types like sport, urban, touring and off-road.
Motorcycle gloves are multifunctional products, they are designed to perform various tasks:
Materials for protective clothing usually include natural leather. The best for this type of use is kangaroo leather. It combines softness with durability. Goatskin and cowhide are also used. When it comes to durability, number one for key reinforcements is stingray leather. Natural leather is generally combined with synthetic materials such as modern high-tech fabrics, Kevlar, carbon and others.
Innovative technologies allow protective gear manufacturers to combine natural and synthetic composite materials to produce ultra-durable gloves that provide superior grip, injury protection, muscle tension relief and the best ventilation.
What the hard protectors are made of is also important. It is worth looking for those manufactured from carbon or titanium. Ergonomics and comfort are paramount, and most modern models also offer thumb pads for touch control of your phone.
Each riding style has its own unique characteristics, and the variety of products can make your head spin. Special attention should be paid to the materials used and the sheer quality of workmanship. Of great importance is the location of reinforcements at the edge of the hand, since this zone is the most vulnerable during grinding.
Why is it important to choose the right size of motorcycle gloves?
While sizing regular clothes is usually not a problem and most people know it without measuring, because they regularly buy T-shirts, jeans and shirts, sizing gloves can cause a problem.
It is not so obvious, a large person does not always have large hands. A person can be 185cm tall and 90kg in weight and have a size XS hand, and sometimes the opposite happens. Fortunately, there is a relatively precise way to find out exactly what size gloves you need. This method is very simple and should take you no more than a minute.
To find out your glove size, all you need to do is take a tailor's tape and measure your hand, or more precisely, its circumference. The measurement should be taken at the level of the knuckles of the hand, we count the circumference without the thumb. Which hand it will be doesn't really matter, but it's better to measure the dominant hand - it's usually a bit bigger, because it has better developed muscles.