Motorcycle Gear: What Our Guides Use and Trust (2025)
Our trips require a unique approach to motorcycle gear. While it’s critical to have enough protection to survive a tumble, it’s best to not over-gear. We spend quite a bit of time off the bikes, so heavy suits are not ideal. Given the nature of the roads our speeds are quite low, so venting is an issue on hot days as most suits need higher speeds to flow air.
Over hundreds of days of Himalayan travel, we have finally found what works best for us.
WOMEN’S SUGGESTIONS: While many of these items are offered in male-only variants, many items have women-specific options.
This is the road team. One leader on the front, two in the rear with tools and supplies.
HELMETS
Our preferred lids are open-faced 3/4 helmets for a variety of reasons. Since we travel at slower speeds due to the nature of the roads, ventilation is a big factor in warm months. Full-faced and modular helmets don’t often flow enough air for hot days on small tracks. We also recommend “adventure” or “dual sport” helmets for those wanting more protection without sacrificing ventilation.
We like 3/4 helmets as it’s easier to communicate with other riders and the many locals we interact with during the day. We are aware they provide less protection.
Oneal Volt Trials: Our staff helmet was chosen because it’s light, has a drop down shield, visor, and open ear pockets that allow us to hear well. Not ideal at speeds over 45mph, but for what we do it is perfect. THIS IS A DISCONTINUED HELMET BUT THERE ARE MANY LIKE IT ON THE MARKET.
Biltwell Bonanza: Superb quality. Extremely comfortable. One of our favorite and most well-worn helmets by our staff and travelers. For those who like retro styling, it’s a great option.
REAL Venger: A Thai made helmet, it’s a typical adventure design. We rarely use this style of helmet, but sometimes grab it for cold season riding or long days in the saddle on our scouting trips.
Boots
It’s never an easy choice, but boots are a critical consideration as foot injuries are all too common in the rough terrain of the Himalayas. Our guides prefer boots with exceptional comfort off the bike as we spend a lot of time exploring and walking in the small villages of Nepal.
REV’IT! Pioneer GTX: The lower cuff and extreme comfort of these boots makes them perfect for travel and active days walking around. Proven time and again to be very waterproof, the only drawback is the cost. Our expedition leader spends more than 100 days a year in these boots and swears by them.
Stylmartin Matrix: Not easy to find, we used these boots for several years and loved their glove-like fit and comfort. Not the most waterproof, there are many boots on the market just like them as an alternative.
Jackets
We are strong advocates of layering. It’s difficult to rely only on vents to regulate temperature in the rapidly changing and extreme temperatures of Nepal. The range of temps on any given trip can dip as low as freezing, and climb to near 80F on the same day. For that reason, we typically wear mesh jackets and layer under and over as necessary.
REVIT Eclipse 2: This is our staff jacket. Lightly padded, it packs small, wears comfortably, and pairs well with an inner insulated jacket. For cold or wet days we slip a REVIT rain jacket over the top. Often found for $150 USD, it’s a great value.
REV’IT Component 2 & Territory Jackets: We wear this combo on many of our scouting trips in harsh weather. The Territory Jacket is not much on its own, but works for hot days at slow speed. The Component 2 jacket is a heavy-duty rain jacket that accommodates its own pads. The removable hood is great for what we do, particularly in spring with more frequent rains. This is a brilliant setup, albeit not cheap.
A number of companies make similar jackets at various price points.
Pants
This is another tough decision. For the most part, our guides tend to wear lighter pants suitable for travel as much as riding. We like pants with at least CE Level 1 armor in the knees. We often pair non-motorcycle pants with knee pads, like the Leatt 3DF 6.0 Knee Guards. They fit nicely under most pants.
REVIT Cargo 2 Jean: We like the comfort of a motorcycle riding jean or pant, and the peace of mind knowing they have knee protection and fabric worthy of a get-off. Comfortable enough to wear every day during a long trip, they look - normal - and can be worn on short domestic flights and around town without feeling like an astronaut.
Klim Outrider Pants: This might be one of our favorite pants. Tough and comfortable, they have vents, zippered pockets, and the stretch panels are reason alone to buy them. They are relatively weather resistant, but the comfort is sublime. With no pads, we often slip mountain bike knee pads under them for our longer, rougher days.
Bonus Option
The Kuhl Above the Law pant ($160) - This is a rugged and heavy duty pant, but lighter and much more comfortable than many motorcycle pants. Likely too warm for the hottest days (over 80F), they are great for fall travels. They will need to be paired with rain pants as they do not dry quickly.
Hiking boots: We may wear them on some of our light and short rides, but we don’t make it a habit. If you do elect to wear non-motorcycle boots, just ensure they are heavy duty and up for the challenge.
A FOCUS ON TRAVEL & COMFORT
The most important factor with selection our gear is finding systems that perform as well on the bike as off. Heavy riding suits like the Klim Badlands, REV’IT! Defender, and others built for high-speed, high-impact crashes, tend to be too hot, and too cumbersome for our guides. We like to be able to step off the bike and not only be comfortable when walking around villages and small communities, but also sitting at a lunch table, or in a villager’s quaint home.
We also - don’t like looking too much like space men. That alone helps us feel more connected to the people of Nepal and not like aliens on invasion.
CHOSING YOUR COLORS
Few things make us as nervous as a rider clad in all black. On our routes we will pop around thousands of blind turns on narrow mountain roads. We will pass by thousands of side roads and intersections. If you are dressed like a shadow, our lead guide will ask you tuck in right behind him for the entire ride. Visibility is serious business in Nepal. Save the black for Johnny Cash and Batman.
COLORS FOR PHOTOS: Most of our riders can’t wait to return home with a bunch of amazing images of their adventure. In the high contrast environments of the Himalayas, or the dappled light of the foothills, capturing good images of riders clad in all black is virtually impossible. If you want the best photos of you in action, toss in some colors.
This is in the wide open sun of the high Himalayas. Down in the dappled light of the mid-hills and jungles black on black is really hard to see. On one-lane roads, that is not a good thing.