1. Make sure your bike’s servicing and WOF are up to date. A well-maintained bike is key to performance and safety.
2. Take a moment to check the essentials: tyre condition and pressure, lights, indicators, brakes, and oil levels. A quick pre-ride inspection can make all the difference.
3. Always wear the right protective gear. A quality helmet, gloves, jacket, and boots are your best defence on the road.
4. Stay alert and aware of your surroundings. Watch out for other road users, changing road conditions, and unexpected obstacles.
5. And most importantly, enjoy the ride. Today’s about celebrating what it means to be a rider. Stay safe, ride proud, and make the most of every kilometer.

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When riding your motorcycle you are putting all your trust and confidence in your bike and ability. However, there is a common saying associated with motorcycling that you may have heard “There are those that have crashed and those that will”.  Yes, you may have excellent motorcycle handling skills and ability, but you can’t control poor road conditions, bad weather, other road users and so on. So you always need to be prepared and protected.

Making sure your bike is roadworthy is extremely important, but just as important is protective gear. So what is the best road protection?  It can often be difficult to know what gear would save you in a life-or-death situation. 

That’s why we have compiled a list of the best road protection – gear that will give you the best chance of keeping safe in the event of a misadventure on your motorcycle.

Helmets

We cannot emphasise enough – helmets are the most crucial piece of gear.  Plus it is required by New Zealand law to wear one while riding.

When looking for what helmet to buy it’s wise to always check the safety rating before purchasing. Websites like SHARP provide extensive information about a wide range of helmets. 

For our recommended brands to buy from, read our Best Road Helmets blog post, where we cover all of the aspects that a good helmet should have and what to know before buying a helmet.

Jackets

Working from the head down the next must-have piece of gear that all motorcycle owners should have is a protective jacket. There are many excellent options to choose from depending on your riding style, however, with so many options the choice can be quite overwhelming. 

To help narrow down your choice here are some things to consider when choosing:

Built-in Armour: Most jackets will either have armour built into the actual jacket or include armour pockets so that they can be added separately and swapped out. It is a matter of personal preference which type you choose. But a non-negotiable is that you don’t buy a jacket that doesn’t have one of these two options. 

If you are looking to save some money and hassle then having built-in armour is probably a smart choice for you. The thicker the better as this is what is protecting your limbs from the impact on hard surfaces. 

Materials – Leather is a classic choice and there are a lot of reasons why you might want to have it as your material of choice. They often feature high-quality thick layering and heavy stitching, not to mention they last a lifetime when cared for properly. What puts people off is often that they aren’t very breathable and although you can find some with waterproofing a lot of them aren’t.

Textile is another very popular option. They come in different grades which means that there is more of a price range and differing protection levels between all of them. Some prefer textiles more than leather because they can be slightly more versatile. They often have great waterproofing and feature reflective strips, they are also lighter weight compared to leather.

Insulation and ventilation – New Zealand’s climate is unique and unpredictable, so it’s important to ensure that your jacket is built for the changeable conditions. There are a lot of jackets available that have removable linings so that you can customise your warmth level and it’s fairly easy to find a well-ventilated jacket. 

Armour

As mentioned before, armour is essential and it is recommended that you treat it like you would with a helmet. You would never think of going on the road without a helmet and the same should go for armour, particularly back protection. 

In the case of an accident you want to have as little damage to your body as possible so making sure that you protect all of your weakest areas is a no-brainer. Considering the importance of your spine, for example, the fact that an injury can cause not only paralysis but damage to your vital organs, back protectors are probably starting to sound more appealing. But ideally, you want to have protective armour for every joint, not just your chest and back.

Whenever we are asked what we recommend for armour our first choice would be Dririder. Their range of armour has a good balance between affordability and quality. 

Pants

Surprisingly, there is more risk of injury to the legs than the upper body in a crash. Legs and feet are often forgotten about when it comes to protection because of the simple fact that if they get injured the results won’t be fatal, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t worth protecting! 

Like jackets motorcycling pants come in a wide range of materials and styles, but is often easier to determine what a good choice for you is. 

Mobility – The last thing you want is to be stuck in pants that restrict your mobility and cause discomfort, especially during long rides. It’s always advised to try on the gear in person before purchasing and that is especially relevant for choosing pants.

Material – As mentioned leather by far provides the most protection due to how strong a material it is, it’s especially great protection against abrasion. A big downside to leather is the weight, for jackets that weight isn’t as much of a big deal because it is spread out more evenly, unlike pants.

Like jackets textile is also a very popular material of choice and while they do protect you from abrasion it isn’t to the same standard as leather. Why most people choose textiles is because of their lightweight properties.

Denim is an excellent choice for anyone who values both style and safety. There are plenty of options for riding jeans that look good both on and off the bike, while not compromising on your safety. They are often enforced with fabrics such as Kevlar and Cordura which provide excellent protection against abrasion. Oxford Original is a great place to start for riding jeans.

In terms of comfort, it depends on personal preference, what might be comfortable for one person might be incredibly uncomfortable for someone else. The important thing is to purchase your gear wisely and not let pricing or other people’s suggestions sway your choices.

Boots

Last but not least – boots! While riding you can’t just wear any old footwear, they simply won’t cut it. With 25% of all the bones in your body being in your feet, not to mention the hundreds of muscles, tendons and ligaments, it’s incredibly important to keep them protected.

Here is a quick rundown on what a good pair of boots should have:

Boot height – Your boots should cover your ankles at a minimum, but the taller your boots are the better protection you will have, not just to your feet but also to your legs as well.

Reinforcement – It’s a good idea to get a pair of boots that have a reinforced ankle and toe section to provide extra support to those vulnerable areas and help prevent damage to them.

Closure – Ensuring that your boots have a durable closure system and offer a firm fit will save a lot of hassle. Whether that’s laces, velcro or a zip make sure that it’s comfortable and feels natural to you. 

For casual-looking boots, we suggest you check out both Dririder’s Classic Touring Boot and Oxford’s Kickback Boots. If you’re more interested in some higher protective boots have a look at Gaerne’s Prestige Gore-Tex Boot and Alpinestars Web Gore-Tex Boot.

If you have any questions or want further information get in touch with us, we would love to discuss gear with you!

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Fit, comfort and construction are all important for a helmet, especially for riders who enjoy long adventures out on the road. But at the end of the day, their purpose is to provide safety and that should always be the top priority. When buying a helmet the aim is to find one that is constructed out of the best materials possible to give you ultimate protection, while still being within your budget. 

What Brands To Start With

The helmet market has no shortage of great brands to choose from! But our recommendations are Shoei, LS2 and Bell. They are well-loved by many motorcycle riders and are a great place to start if you are still deciding what brands you should look at buying from. They each have a large range of helmets to choose from, as well as a variety of construction methods and a good selection of prices to suit.

Materials Used For Helmets

As mentioned before, the materials of your helmet should always be taken into consideration and the decision shouldn’t be taken lightly. Helmets are one of the most important pieces of  protection that we have when out riding, so we need to ensure that we are making the right choice.

The most common materials used to construct helmets are carbon fibre composite, fibreglass composite and polycarbonate plastic. Each type provides varying strength and properties, so it’s important to research how much safety you will be getting from the materials used, especially if you already have a helmet in mind. A great website for seeing each helmets protection ratings is SHARP, it’s an excellent resource for helmet hunting!

Features To Consider

Part of choosing a helmet is also considering what features you want it to have. While most of the extra attributes of the helmet are minor they can make a world of difference. Here is a quick rundown on what to look for when picking the right features for you…

Visors – Make sure that the visor you get on your helmet has good UV protection, glare resistance, anti-fog and most importantly blocking harsh sun rays, such as blue light. These are particularly important for our unique environment here in New Zealand as the sun can get intense. 

Misting in visors is also a big problem, but luckily many manufacturers now use the pin-lock visor system which helps prevent fogging, so check to see if the helmets you are interested in has this feature included, it will save you a lot of headaches.

Chin buckle – The buckle so often gets overlooked but it shouldn’t be! While out riding you want an easy-to-access buckle that won’t cause you any trouble when trying to undo it. Especially since wearing gloves makes unclipping them unnecessarily fiddly. 

Communication – It’s become very popular in recent years to have some kind of speaker and microphone inside of a helmet. While there are helmets with these features already built-in they can be a bit pricey. If having a communicator in your helmet is something that appeals to you, make sure that there is enough space inside. There are many options for helmets that have removable sections of padding to accommodate this.

Ventilation – This shouldn’t be too much of an issue as pretty much all helmet brands have excellent ventilation. But it’s good to check just in case.

Accessibility – With any type of helmet, whether on-road or off-road, it’s important to be able to operate the features of the helmet while riding, particularly when wearing gloves. A great brand for consistent easy-to-access features is Shoei. They have some of the highest development for their price range.

Budget

When it comes to prices, like anything the more you spend the better the quality is. But that isn’t always the case, mid-range helmets can also come with many features that the higher-end helmets include. But you need to know what brands actually provide those affordable high-quality helmets.

For a well-rounded choice that you won’t regret buying from the Shoei range. Their carbon fibre strength and weight reduction are guaranteed protection and comfort, pick the design and size that appeals to you and you’ll be happy with money well spent. 

But if you are unable to afford the $1,000 plus price tags then the midrange alternatives such as LS2 and Bell are still a solid choice. They use alternative materials and construction techniques, which allow for a lower price but they still aren’t sparing with the high-quality features. But just be aware that some polycarbonate helmets will degrade in UV light over time if solvent from stickers is added. 

If you are still unsure contact us and have a chat about what options are available for you with your price range.

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A motorcycle service ensures that your motorcycle is in good working condition and helps detect if there are any potential safety risks.  Here are the top 5 things to check regularly on your motorcycle, either yourself or by a professional …

Oil

Oil is essential to be able to maintain a healthy bike. Without it, your motorcycle’s engine is sure to grind itself to death, but having even the slightest film of oil could prevent this (although your engine should have more than that at any given time). Your oil should be checked and replaced regularly – at least every 3 to 6 months to ensure everything runs smoothly and goes undamaged.

Brakes

Every vehicle owner understands how crucial brakes are for your safety. By getting regular servicing on your motorbike you ensure that you aren’t at risk of potential fatal accidents if your brakes fail. We check, clean and lube brake calipers when servicing your motorcycle. Besides maintaining your brakes, we suggest checking your shoes and pads. 

Suspension, Bearings & Linkages

Correct functioning of your suspension, bearings and linkages is crucial to safety.  While these can be easy to forget about; water, dirt, mud and gravel can damage them over time, leading to a progressive degradation of your bike’s handling. The bearings aren’t easy to access, but by continually keeping on top of them you will be saving yourself expensive issues later down the road.

Tyres

Tyres set to the correct pressure help them last longer.  A good habit is to give your tyres a once-over every time you head out for a ride, that way no damage, deflation or potential issues will go unnoticed.

Poor grip or a puncture for a four-wheel vehicle is not nearly as big of a deal as it is for motorcycles where those problems can be life-threatening.   Also, keep in mind that a tyre’s lifespan is typically 5 years.  If your tyres are over 5 years old or nearing that age, it’s best to get them checked by a professional. 

Chain & Sprockets

As chains and sprockets are exposed to the elements, they require regular checks, lubing and adjustment.   It’s advised to clean the chain every 1,000 – 1,500 km to ensure the best performance. When it comes time to clean, give it a spritz with chain cleaning spray and go over it with a stiff nylon brush, give it a wipe-off with a clean rag and let it dry fully before applying the lubricant. 

Every time you give it a clean also check the tension and adjust it if needed. Your bike handbook should have the details of the correct amount of slack needed.

It’s good to also keep in mind that your riding style does affect the chain and sprockets. If you enjoy a hard acceleration it will stretch the chain and wear down the sprockets quicker.

Levers & Cables

The levers and cables are exposed to the elements, so require regular checks, cleaning and lubing.  For the cables, you need to check for water leakage, flaying and any cuts to the cable’s rubber housing. 

Your life depends on the performance of your motorcycle so ensuring that everything is as it should be will protect your safety.  If in doubt, our experienced motorcycle mechanics here at Wilks Penny Motorcycles can help keep your bike in top shape for safety.

Get in touch with our team and schedule a service now – Contact Us >>>

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