By LA Times
Protective garments can, at the least, offer essential abrasion
resistance.
By SUSAN CARPENTER
October 10, 2007
When I'm riding around and looking at other motorcyclists, the most
common outfit I see is jeans and a jacket. I used to dress like that
too, until I dropped my bike, ripped my jeans and tore open my knees,
pretty much ensuring I will never wear a miniskirt again.
Legs are the most frequently injured body part in motorcycle crashes,
followed by arms, then the head, according to the 2004 Motorcycle
Accident In-Depth Study, or MAIDS report.
Yet the legs are the least protected body part, followed by the feet
and hands.
Because 90% of motorcycle crashes result in injury, it's a wonder
more riders don't cover up, but there are reasons. Often, it's
blissful ignorance or an under-assessment of the risks, but it's also
the weather where you ride, the culture of your bike and the expense
of gearing up, which can cost upward of $2,000 if you buy the best
stuff.
Personally, I chalk at least some of it up to confusion. It's just
hard to know what to buy. Unlike Europe, which standardized
protective gear in the late '80s, the U.S. doesn't have a system to
ensure that protective items will perform to a certain standard in a
crash. And, like most safety issues having to do with motorcycles,
much of the publicly available research on materials is old.
In the early '80s, a materials scientist at Cambridge University
analyzed 100 sets of crashed-in-the-street motorcycle leathers,
looking at where they were scarred to learn about the highest points
of impact. Elbows and knees ranked highest, followed by shoulders and
hips, which is why jackets and pants are often equipped with armor in
those areas.
That armor is more effective when it's hard plastic, rather than
soft, foam pads, and built in to protective apparel so it won't move
on impact. But that raises two questions: What are the most
protective materials for motorcycle garments, and how should those
garments fit?
Because most injuries are caused from skidding along the ground,
abrasion resistance is vital. One of the best sources on abrasion is
the famed "Torn in the U.S.A." drag test conducted almost 20 years
ago by now-defunct Cycle magazine. For that test, clothing samples
were stitched to a 75-pound sandbag and thrown out of the back of a
pickup truck to see how long they'd take to disintegrate. Competition-
weight leather (1.5-1.7 mm thick) lasted longest -- about four times
longer than Kevlar, five times longer than 440 denier Cordura nylon
and 20 times longer than denim jeans, which take about half a second
to give out in a 30 mph crash.
Regardless of a material's abrasion resistance, how well a garment
holds up on impact depends on an array of variables that are rarely
cited on a garment tag.
In the case of leather, there are wildly different grades and
thicknesses -- from beefy competition weights to thinner, buttery
soft "fashion" leathers that offer less than 5% the protection of
their weightier counterparts. That issue is complicated by the
caliber of the hide from which the leather is cut. A natural hide is
more consistent in its thickness than a hide that has been corrected.
In the case of textiles, it isn't just the caliber of the material
but its construction. Kevlar ranks second overall for its abrasion
resistance, but it's more protective when it's knitted, rather than
woven. Cordura nylon ranks third, but it needs to be at least 440
denier and should also be coated.
Of course, all the abrasion resistance in the world means little if
the seams or zippers on a garment burst or tear on impact, or if the
garment fits too loosely or isn't worn at all.
Motorcycle apparel should always feel comfortable but snug. It should
also be something the rider likes the look of; otherwise, he isn't
going to put it on.
As Marc Bay, head designer for Canadian motorcycle apparel
manufacturer Joe Rocket, astutely observes: "The most protective
motorcycle jacket is the one a person will wear."
susan.carpenter@latimes.com
Protective garments can, at the least, offer essential abrasion
resistance.
By SUSAN CARPENTER
October 10, 2007
When I'm riding around and looking at other motorcyclists, the most
common outfit I see is jeans and a jacket. I used to dress like that
too, until I dropped my bike, ripped my jeans and tore open my knees,
pretty much ensuring I will never wear a miniskirt again.
Legs are the most frequently injured body part in motorcycle crashes,
followed by arms, then the head, according to the 2004 Motorcycle
Accident In-Depth Study, or MAIDS report.
Yet the legs are the least protected body part, followed by the feet
and hands.
Because 90% of motorcycle crashes result in injury, it's a wonder
more riders don't cover up, but there are reasons. Often, it's
blissful ignorance or an under-assessment of the risks, but it's also
the weather where you ride, the culture of your bike and the expense
of gearing up, which can cost upward of $2,000 if you buy the best
stuff.
Personally, I chalk at least some of it up to confusion. It's just
hard to know what to buy. Unlike Europe, which standardized
protective gear in the late '80s, the U.S. doesn't have a system to
ensure that protective items will perform to a certain standard in a
crash. And, like most safety issues having to do with motorcycles,
much of the publicly available research on materials is old.
In the early '80s, a materials scientist at Cambridge University
analyzed 100 sets of crashed-in-the-street motorcycle leathers,
looking at where they were scarred to learn about the highest points
of impact. Elbows and knees ranked highest, followed by shoulders and
hips, which is why jackets and pants are often equipped with armor in
those areas.
That armor is more effective when it's hard plastic, rather than
soft, foam pads, and built in to protective apparel so it won't move
on impact. But that raises two questions: What are the most
protective materials for motorcycle garments, and how should those
garments fit?
Because most injuries are caused from skidding along the ground,
abrasion resistance is vital. One of the best sources on abrasion is
the famed "Torn in the U.S.A." drag test conducted almost 20 years
ago by now-defunct Cycle magazine. For that test, clothing samples
were stitched to a 75-pound sandbag and thrown out of the back of a
pickup truck to see how long they'd take to disintegrate. Competition-
weight leather (1.5-1.7 mm thick) lasted longest -- about four times
longer than Kevlar, five times longer than 440 denier Cordura nylon
and 20 times longer than denim jeans, which take about half a second
to give out in a 30 mph crash.
Regardless of a material's abrasion resistance, how well a garment
holds up on impact depends on an array of variables that are rarely
cited on a garment tag.
In the case of leather, there are wildly different grades and
thicknesses -- from beefy competition weights to thinner, buttery
soft "fashion" leathers that offer less than 5% the protection of
their weightier counterparts. That issue is complicated by the
caliber of the hide from which the leather is cut. A natural hide is
more consistent in its thickness than a hide that has been corrected.
In the case of textiles, it isn't just the caliber of the material
but its construction. Kevlar ranks second overall for its abrasion
resistance, but it's more protective when it's knitted, rather than
woven. Cordura nylon ranks third, but it needs to be at least 440
denier and should also be coated.
Of course, all the abrasion resistance in the world means little if
the seams or zippers on a garment burst or tear on impact, or if the
garment fits too loosely or isn't worn at all.
Motorcycle apparel should always feel comfortable but snug. It should
also be something the rider likes the look of; otherwise, he isn't
going to put it on.
As Marc Bay, head designer for Canadian motorcycle apparel
manufacturer Joe Rocket, astutely observes: "The most protective
motorcycle jacket is the one a person will wear."
susan.carpenter@latimes.com
