[dmack]

Jeans are definately better than nothing. I went down with jeans once and they do come apart pretty quick. One good skip off the payment completely ripped away the jeans covering my right a$$ cheek.

The second skip put some subatantial rash on that same cheek. I spent a couple hours in the emergency room with a rather butch nurse scraping gravel out of my a$$. That was one of the most painful experiences of my life. And it wasn't jean material that was being scraped out, but rather rocks and asphalt.

Now I'm all about ATGATT!

ALL THE GEAR ALL THE TIME!

If I go to the 7-11 four blocks from my house, I go in all my gear...period.

[jhonda41]

Originally Posted by pmlavigne

Does his argument have any merit in certain situations?

I want to agree with sheep, but my momma always said, if you have nothing nice to say, dont say anything........

actually thats a lie, my momma would have called him a fricken idiot too.

Of course I too was just as ignorant in my early years.... so if he is really your friend have him read this: Motorcycle Tips: Hot Weather Riding

Originally Posted by Fastrr

half helmets are better than nothing, but deffinately not full protection.

wearing a half helmet is like wearing knee pads on your forearm.

-jh

[Fastrr]

The alcohol helps evaporate the water or something like that..and keeps the yuckies sterilized somewhat i guess. I just heard it from someone who rode in AZ desert.

[tootall]

sweet...i'll have to try that!

[3dpragmatik]

Nothing beats some of the guys I see down here in Florida looking like they are going to the beach (maybe they are, who knows). Flipflops, shorts, no shirt, sunglasses. I wear a full face helm, no perf leather jacket, gloves and work boots, jeans. Still feel vulnerable...

Riding down interstate 75 with all the crazies on their cell phones, smoking a cig and putting makup on/or eating their breakfast... dangeroussss...
but thats another rant.

[129CBRider]

Jeans work as long as you remain airborn. As soon as you hit the asphalt they tear open like a wet napkin at the point of impact, which is usually your knee. Most of the skin will be gone so you don't have to pull anything out of it. Also, on the second bounce you will land on the side of one hip or the other and push your hip bone out through your 'love handle' if you don't have on a padded jacket. Photos later...

Oh, your street shoes will be ripped open by the shifter so spend the money now and get some real boots. After I broke a helmet in half in a header in the dirt, I wear one just to ride around in the yard...all of them are full face.

Crashing in the rain is the best but you slide really, really far which gives you a lot of time to think about what you wish you could have been wearing.

[steingar]

The thing I like best about my blade (about which I bitched on another thread) is that it reminded me how dangerous bikes are and how I should always wear gear. I second the mesh pants, they're not that expensive and you can wear them over shorts. I would love a pair of perforated leather overpants, but my wallent won't permit it. Mesh isn't as good as leather, but it beats the hell out of skin.

[SpikedLemon]

Of the times I've crashed in Jeans (or just normal pants); I will say: YES they help.

The direct impact area (knee) was chewed right through (and bugger did it hurt) but the denim worked to protect the rest of the leg (thigh/calf). The jeans had a torn spot in the knee and gravel/dirt was all ground into the rest of the pant leg. I will say that had I not been wearing the jeans: I would have definitely have had some bad road-rash down my leg.

Now; the times I've crashed in a full race suit: my full leg was protected.

I'll take a race suit over jeans... But I'll never ride in shorts.

[SamoanzRR]

i know a guy who was showing off to his ex and pulled a wheelie next to her car on the freeway, he slid off the back of his bike and slid on his ass for less than 100 yds. his draggin jeans worked great with minor scuffs but no road rash. he doesn't do wheelies anymore since his 600RR was 2 weeks old when he crashed it.

[f1_hurricane]

there's a bunch of companies that sell armoured jeans and stuff not just Draggin so have your buddy look into those companies if he wants to keep the casual look but be protected. And if he refuses to listen..visti him at the ER with a camera and get a picture of his face right after you say "i told you so dumbass" right before the nurse starts pickin gravel.kodak moment for sure

[SamoanzRR]

is that one of those "Priceless" moments lol

[Charles486]

"read this: Motorcycle Tips: Hot Weather Riding"
-Im not sure about some of these guys tips, im just an engineer but to me more air movement=more evaporation=more cooling, and even if its 200 evaporation cools a lot better than insulating.

"The alcohol helps evaporate the water or something like that..and keeps the yuckies sterilized somewhat i guess. I just heard it from someone who rode in AZ desert."
-Thats a cool idea, never woulda come up with it. Alcohol evaporates about 10x than water=fast cooling.

[riddickj]

Originally Posted by Quick 26

its still better than nothing. what about those dragon jeans?

i bought a pair of the cargo style Draggin Jeans for i think $90. they are kevlar lined everywhere they should be and look good enough to wear to work. just don't get bleach anywhere near em. it'll destroy the kevlar's protective qualities. hopefully i'll not have to find out if they do their job anytime soon
Draggin Jeans: Fast Company's Kevlar® lined Motorcycle Jeans

[f1_hurricane]

Originally Posted by SamoanzRR

is that one of those "Priceless" moments lol

Well in canada it would be with our healthcare but how much does roashrash treatment and a skin graft go for in the states anyway?

[t_hampton]

Oh man,rubbing alcolhol!!!! Just missing the razor blade to slide down, which is just where I place gear-less riding.

I have slid on asphalt twice with zero damage (if you don't count the collar bone--not the suit's job). I won't ride with out something you'd throw yourself down a cheese grater while wearing.

[Phadreus]

I watched my step-son lay his Hurricane down on asphalt from 50 mph. His jeans offered a surprising amount of protection, they were literally smoking when he came to a stop (after 35 paces of sliding on his backside). The big problem was the pant legs both rode up to his knees and allowed his claves to get burned up pretty badly. The seat was worn through to just threads, but overall very few tears.

I can't say that I would ever want to wreck in just plane ol' jeans, but I was pretty surprised how much protection they gave.

[129CBRider]

He was lucky to lowside it. When you high side it and get tossed through the air, it is that first bounce that tears the jeans open. They are definetly better than shorts which ride up even farther (.)

[MotoGPRacer]

wear gear all the time.period

[Phadreus]

Originally Posted by MotoGPRacer

wear gear all the time.period

Can't go wrong with that...

[Phadreus]

Originally Posted by 129CBRider

He was lucky to lowside it. When you high side it and get tossed through the air, it is that first bounce that tears the jeans open. They are definetly better than shorts which ride up even farther (.)

I've only taken one ride in shorts on my 954, and I turned around within a mile and went back home for jeans. The aluminum frame rails felt like they were going to melt through my leg!

I had a buddy once that used to ride in flip-flops and shorts, no shirt or helmet. If he ever went down...it would be a life changing experience for sure.

[slickwill]

One day a couple months ago I was meeting some friends at the local park to play frisbee. It is only about 1 mile from my house. I decided that I could wear shorts. I have never felt so naked, unprotected, and stupid. I will never do it again. Until that day I had always worn at least boots, jeans, jacket, and helmet. Since that day I always west at least, boots, jeans, jacket, and helmet.

I decided that I need more protection than what my JR jackets offer so I ordered a new A-stars MX-1 this morning.

[129CBRider]

I finally bought some pants with knee pads, hip pads, butt pad and zippers that lock onto my riding boots so they won't slide up my leg. I have six jackets, for different weather or types of riding, all with hard pads everywhere, gloves for all weather, and 6 helmets, depending on which bike, road or dirt, raining or sweating, night or day. Riding and crashing dirt bikes hard gives you an appreciation of how well gear works and usually you don't tear up the bike! Still the one time I went for a short ride with boat shoes, Levis, t-shirt, gloves and a helmet was the time the old man pulled out in front of me in his van and I ate his rear wheel and totaled my Muz Skorpion 660...

[vin]

Just a few weeks ago a buddy of mine was riding on his friend's brand new (just brought it home that day) GSXR 1000... in shorts alone. His wife screamed at him to, at least, put on his riding jacket. Good thing he listened to his wife... wearing shorts and his jacket, he ate crap at 60mph. The bike pinned his leg under it, and the Mojave Desert heat went to work on his unprotected skin like a hot butter knife. He ground his knee and ankle down to the bones/tendons. I ride with jeans, but only because I cannot afford the fancy pants. It is a scientific fact that denim is the next highest protective material after leather (and some of the newer materials). Still, there is a dramatic gap of protection between leather and denim. Even so, I have had 8 wrecks in my life (45 yrs old now) and I will always wear protective gear of some kind (helmet, jacket, gloves, denim, non-steel toed boots).

[slickwill]

The bike pinned his leg under it, and the Mojave Desert heat went to work on his unprotected skin like a hot butter knife. He gorund his knee and ankle down to the bones/tendons

That will definitely leave a mark.

[jeremy1018x]

I would hope that the part of the your statement "he gets fuzzy in the head when he gets hot" would raise more questions that the shorts/pants debate do.

RC-51, Florida, humidity, full gear, traffic, no problems here.

[jhonda41]

Originally Posted by vin

It is a scientific fact that denim is the next highest protective material after leather (and some of the newer materials).

where are you getting your data from?

[loadedthorn]

Yeah, there was a motorcycle article I have around here somewhere that showed leather to be 10 times as abrasion resistant on pavement than denim. Kevlar was a close second behind leather and cordura-based fabrics were halfway between as I recall. Sure as hell beats nylon, cotton and polyester blends

[vin]

I guess maybe I should have been more specific with my statement... sorry. I was not trying to mislead anyone. I have not been attending Forums of any kind, until now. So, I probably should be more cautious about how I state things. I was speakiing from a years-ago perspective... before there were Kevlar pants and Hitena fabrics. Years ago there was leather, and denim... and to a much lesser extent rip-stop nylon. At that time, there were scientific studies regarding the use of denim and how it tested to be the "next best thing to leather". This is why I made the "(there is a dramtic gap of protection between leather and denim)" exlusion. Years ago, there were no fancy materials to bridge the rather large gap of protection between denim and leather. All of that aside, I was simply trying to state that denim (although less than perfect) is not a bad riding pant... and is certainly much better than shorts (regardless of the reason for wearing shorts). Besides... if the guy gets dizzy on his bike I would think that reason dictates the necessity for a heavier duty material while riding that bike. In all my years of riding (30+), I have been dizzy from the heat once. I was arriving in Palm Springs in summer (@ 120 deg), and lacking hydration. I pulled over at the first convenience store and drank about 10 liter bottles of water, before continuing my ride. Had I been wearing my jacket that day, I probably would not have had the problem I did. Anyway, sorry everyone... I will try to be more detailed regarding my posts.

[129CBRider]

And he might want to check his cholestrol...here's a photo of how well jeans hold up in a 30 mph crash into the side of a van in the rain...one bounce on my knee, the second bounce landed me on my left hip driving my hip bone completely through the meat on my 'love handle', then I flipped onto my back and slid another 50', hydroplaning on the big vinyl patch on the back of my cotton t-shirt.