Choosing Your Helmet

Helmets in Australia have to be Australian Standards certified and will have a sticker on the rear of the shell saying which standard they conform to.

Features

All helmets have different features such as venting, weight appearance and price. You should spend the most you can afford on your helmet, it's going to look after your head. Weight is also very important especially if you're going to be wearing the helmet for long periods of time.

Types Of Helmets

There are all kinds of helmets carbon fibre/kevlar, fibreglass shells, composite fibre shells and polycarbonate. Different brand helmets have different size areas for goggles, so the rule of thumb here is to get your helmet first before you buy your goggles.

Make Sure It Fits

Everyone's head is a different shape so it's important to first find a helmet that suits you and then find one that looks good. Your new dirt bike helmet should fit uniformly on your head and not as tight as you can comfortably wear it, bearing in mind that the liner will compact after a while and the helmet won't feel so tight. So if it feels just a little too tight initially it will probably end up just right.

Push the helmet back and forward on your head, it should not move forward or backward when you are pushing it. If it does then it's too loose.

CAUTION

Never buy a secondhand helmet and always be wary of what you are buying if you buy it online noting that any savings can be lost if you have to return your purchase.

Choosing A Pair Of Goggles

Goggles are there to protect your eyes and keep your vision clear, they are there to keep dirt rocks, and other rubbish from getting wedged into where they shouldn't be.

Features

Goggles can have different features, anti-fog, double lens, tinting, and can even have holographic images on them. Just remember it's how well you can see through them that counts.

Try Them On, Take Them For A Test Look

Take your helmet with you when you try some dirt bike goggles. Put your helmet on and then the goggles, make sure that you can see well through them and also make sure there is minimal or no impact on your peripheral vision. Goggles may steam up when you are standing around trying them on inside a shop, this is normal.

How Do They Fit

A good pair of motocross goggles should fit nicely against your face and the frame of the goggles should also comfortably fit inside the helmet. The foam should be thick enough to touch and seal against your face and feel comfortable. Some goggles have a layer of soft foam that acts to draw sweat away when you are hot instead of it condensing on the lens.

Long Lasting

Today's goggles are generally long-lasting, make sure you get a pair that has a removable lens. This allows you to replace the lens as it gets scratched.

Price/Quality

Generally, the more you pay the better the goggle you get. Don't go overboard though, you don't want to pay too much. It's always good to wait for your local shop to have a sale, you can usually get what you want at a better price.

Fogging

All goggles fog, especially when it rains or is cold and you are all hot and warmed up. The best lenses to combat that this are the dual lens with or without thermo flow. These lenses cost a bit more but are really worthwhile.

Choosing A Backpack

Choosing a backpack is a very personal thing to do, cost, style and functionality all need to be considered. So we have included some pointers on buying a backpack here, please read on:

Easy To Use

Is it designed so that you can easily put it on and take it off, especially with your motorcycle jacket on.

It Is Comfortable

Does weight distribute uniformly offering you both comfort and safety. Make sure it fits snugly enough and doesn't bounce around all over the place when you are riding. Consider your body needs - body size, weight and height, your hip size. You should always choose a motorcycle backpack thst perfectly fits your body to feel comfortable and free while riding.

Is It Practical

Will it meet all your needs, it's not too big or small, You might also want to consider using a bum bag in addition to your backpack.

Does It Satisfy Your Hydration Needs

It should be able to hold at least 2 litres of water.

How Tough Is It

If you travel under the scorching sun or in difficult terrain, you will need a durable backpack to stand in the harshest conditions. Enduro backpacks generally need to be tough.

It's All About Image, Right?

Motorcycle jerseys are made for you to look good while riding? There isn’t a wide variety of differences in how jerseys perform, however there are some basics to go through.

They Offer Some Protection

First of all, they give you some protection from the elements and crashes, however, they are not a replacement for body armour.

Because of the physical nature of the sport, off-road riders tend to work a little harder, so they are made with thin materials that promise to have moisture-wicking abilities to keep the rider cool and dry. This means they soak up the moisture that your body gives off and pulls it to the outer most part of the fabric so that it can evaporate faster to keep you dry and cool.

They should also have vents to help keep a rider cool, Off-road riders want a jersey made of a breathable material such as mesh that will allow the heat to escape as they ride. Many jerseys will also have vents to allow the maximum amount of breathability possible.

What Material Are They Made Of

Jerseys are typically made from lycra or mesh that is thin but fairly abrasion-resistant for when you crash. Everyone crashes, some riders tend to crash slightly more often depending on how hard they’re pushing themselves or perhaps their level of skill too. This means that they need a layer that can protect them from leaving any bits of their body behind. Jerseys are great for giving you an extra layer between your cells and the dirt. Some jerseys even come with a slight bit of built-in armor to help pad impact-prone parts.

Body Armour

Armour offers protection from falls as well as protection from roost and rocks thrown up by the bikes in front of you. Although not an essential requirement it's highly recommended.

Types Of Body Armour

The cheaper armour is worn outside of your jersey and generally comes with plastic breastplate, back plate and elbow guards held together by stretch elastic straps.

More expensive armour comes in the pressure suit style and generally comes with all the above plus shoulder pads, a backbone extension and a kidney belt attached.

Make Sure It Fits

It should fit nicely, not too loose as it won't stay in place when you fall off and not too tight to restrict your movement when riding.

CAUTION

You can save money by buying secondhand body armour, just make sure that any straps and buckles are in good condition and are not worn and broken.

What's In A Bum Bag

All the basics to manage a bush repair successfully, but not so bulky that riding is burdensome

Road test your bumbag when you are working on your bike at home that way you get a feel for what you have missed.

So Here's The Basics.

• 3 tyre levers

• Pressure Gauge

• CO2 cylinders (Optional)

• Pump

• T-bars with 8,10,11,12,13,14,17 sockets

• Phillps head and flat reversible screwdriver

• Multisize wheel spanner

• Valve puller and remover

• Electrical Tape

• Zip ties

• Pliers

• Puncture repair kit

• Place for emergency details

• Spare Cash

• Hex Keys, (torx maybe too)

• Spare nuts and bolts

• Small Tube wd40

• Spark Plug and remover

The lighter and stronger the tools the better

Strong And Flexible

When riding off-road, you are constantly using your motorcycle’s controls, especially brakes and clutch. You need gloves that are strong, tough, have protection, are light and flexible. Thicker gloves are not preferred as they limit your ability to operate controls quickly and efficiently.

So for enduro, extremely lightweight options with no insulation, waterproof liners and armored protection are what you need. The result should be gloves that allow you to constantly interact with the controls with minimal resistance. Keep in mind there are trees or rocks out there so a bit of padding and armor can save you from pain and injury.

Good enduro gloves also need to breathe so your hands can cool as required.

If you are Adventure riding then you may prefer something beefier, especially as you won't need flexibility and nimbleness so much. So you can go for the warmth and water-resistant options here

Glove Options

When it's really cold put on a pair of surgical gloves underneath, which allows you to be flexible and you retain some of the heat.

Another good option is to have a good set of barkbusters on your bike

What Types Of Pants Are There

You can go from full-on adventure pants to enuro motocross style, it all personal and what you prefer. However they need to be light and tough enough to protect you when you crash.

Adventure pants generally have inbuilt protection and padding and also will feature varying levels of waterproof and thermal layers with built-in armour. Off-road pants are generally lighter, less bulky and rely on separate knee and hip armor, however as the armour isn't built in you can be more flexible in your protection.

Quality And Price

Generally with Pants quality comes with price.

The Bees Knees

Make no mistake, knee Braces are much much better than knee Guards. Yes they are costly but think of how much your knees are worth and do you want to wait till the horse has bolted and you have had expensive surgery protecting your knees, shins and feet is essential, don't skimp here

The extra cost of good knee braces is money well spent. When you consider the cost of surgery, time off work, loss of riding time, or living with a long-term knee injury, knee injuries can happen so easily. Just touching your foot on the ground in the wrong way can do enough damage and give you years of pain.

Hopefully, Enough Has Been Said Here.

Knee braces are designed to prevent knee injuries from happening, they have been shown to at least half the risk of injuring your knee.

At the very least, you must have knee guards as an absolute minimum protection for any dirt bike rider or adventure rider.

Also, ensure that your knee guards offer adequate protection for your shins as well.

Boots Are Super Important

Next to Knee Guards, Boots are the next most important piece of gear for riding off-road. The first time you smash your foot into a rock or get your ankle trapped underneath the bike you’ll be thankful for the protection they offer

Even with full-on dirt boots you can manage to break toes, bruise ankles and suffer foot compression injuries.

If you don’t go off-road, you might think you can get away with street-road boots. What they sacrifice in protection they make up for in comfort during long days in the saddle. Just remember they are not as tough as dirt bike boots, don't offer the same protection and the first time you actually get on the dirt you will probably destroy them. Is comfort worth it?

Dirt boots feature extremely rigid soles for standing on the pegs as well as large amounts of to guard against regular crashes and blows. The trade-off for that level of protection is a boot that can be quite stiff, heavy, and uncomfortable compared to a road boot.

Don't Go Cheap.

Cheaper boots don't offer the same protection as the more expensive ones, they are also generally less comfortable to wear.

Also, new boots may take some time to wear in and also give you a good feel, especially the more expensive and protective ones.

As always you need to work within your budget, but you should always allow for good boots

Neck Braces

Neck Braces provide spinal protection, neck injuries are potentially life-threatening and certainly have the potential to be life-changing, so taking steps to minimise your risk is pretty clever.

Pros

Can stop you from becoming paraplegic or quadriplegic.

Cons

Can be uncomfortable and restrictive

Expensive