THE GEAR HIERARCHY
If you only have a fixed budget, here's the order to buy. Skip levels at your peril.
Statistical fact: most fatal motorcycle injuries are head injuries. Everything else
follows from there.
THE HONEST MATH ON DENIMOTTO'S
PLACE IN THIS
Our riding denim handles items 5 (jeans) and partly 2 (when combined with a
Denimotto jacket and armor). It is not a substitute for items 1, 3, 4, or 6. We make
great jeans. They won't save your head, your hands, your feet, or stop a car from not
seeing you.
BEGINNER RIDING TIPS worth following
-
Take an MSF Basic RiderCourse (US) or equivalent local training. Sounds basic; isn't.
The course teaches counter-steering, emergency braking, and survival reactions that
aren't intuitive. Insurance discounts pay for the course. -
The first 1,000 miles are statistically the most dangerous. Your reflexes haven't built
yet. Slow down. Ride familiar routes. Avoid highway until you've ridden 500+ miles. -
Practice emergency braking weekly in an empty parking lot. The technique is
counter-intuitive (front brake does 70% of the work) and you don't want to learn it
during an actual emergency. -
Assume drivers can't see you. They can't. Position in lanes for visibility. Cover the
brake at intersections. Stay out of blind spots. -
Cover your hands and feet even on short rides. Almost all "I just went to the store"
crashes happen in t-shirt and sandals because the rider didn't think they needed gear
for 1 mile.
WHAT WE'D DO IF WE COULDN'T RIDE IN DENIMOTTO
We'd ride in Rev'It Eclipse 2 jacket + Rev'It Lombard 3 jeans + Sidi On Road Air boots
+ Arai Quantum-X helmet + Knox Hadleigh Pro gloves. That's roughly a $1,200 kit
that's about as protective as it gets without going full track-day.
We don't sell those. We're recommending them anyway because that's what hones
t advice looks like. Our riding denim is one piece of that picture, not the whole picture.
A WORD ON GROUP RIDING
Riding with experienced riders is the fastest way to improve. Riding with reckless
riders is the fastest way to crash. Pick your group carefully. Slow groups are safer than
fast groups for the first year regardless of skill.
RESOURCES WE TRUST
- FortNine on YouTube — the most honest gear reviews online, no sponsorship hedging
- MotorcycleSafety.gov — US government statistics and rider training pointers
- MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) — basic and advanced rider courses
- RevZilla CTXP series — long-form reviews of gear with real test footage
This guide is for educational purposes and reflects our opinion as people who ride. It isn't professional
safety advice, and it isn't a substitute for proper rider training. Wear gear appropriate to your local
laws and riding conditions.