As a biker, what comes to your mind if someone talks about safety gears? If the answer is ‘only helmet’ then you may want to reconsider your biker status. Find out why…

Superbikes are uncompromising machines placed on a two wheeler frame made to enthrall only serious biking enthusiasts. If you own one then you already know about its massive power and performance. No one rides one to do usual grocery shopping. You explore their potential only on highways and race tracks. These bikes need careful handling and open roads. Riding them without prior riding experience can lead to disasters. Apart from throttling acceleration, a biker should also know about importance of safety gears while riding. Safety gears are the most important aspects of riding a motorcycle. And if you think a helmet is enough to protect you from fatal injuries then you may want to reconsider your knowledge about biking. In fact, helmet is your basic protection but there are many other gears that protects you from grave injuries. Thus, never hesitate to invest on a good set of safety gears if you own a superbike. Are you still considering ‘why’? These facts will justify, check them out.

1.Helmets

This is your basic protection and you must not miss it! Reason - Head injuries are life-threatening. Consider buying a good quality, DOT - approved helmet which can go a long way to save your brain and skull in case of an accident. Apart from protecting your skull, they also block wind noise and turbulence.

2.Eye protection

Ever experienced temporary blindness because some stupid bug rammed into one of your your eyes while riding? It’s the most common trouble for bikers on Indian roads. Good helmets come with useful visors that stops the wind from making you teary eyed and keeps all manners of dust and bugs at bay. You may want to consider wearing a pair of specs as separate eye protection but make sure you buy a good one. Apart from these, a good quality visor protects your eyes from UV rays and comes with night-vision facility so you can ride effortlessly in night as well.

3.Gloves

It’s a normal human tendency to gain support with our hands in case of a fall. And when it comes to a bike crash, the impact can be fatal and result in abrasion, broken fingers, broken joints and ligament tear. Invest in a pair of sturdily constructed, well-padded and gauntlet-style gloves that extend past the wrist and protect your palms, knuckles and fingers.

4.Jackets and Chest guard

People mistake a simple leather jacket as biker jacket. But in reality biker jackets offer a wide range of protective measures such as back protection guard, shoulder guard, elbow guard and chest guard etc. Your shoulder bones, elbows and spine can suffer considerable amount of damage when you are thrown off a bike! Jackets are complete upper body armors that protects your upper body from abrasion and broken bones in case of an accident. Apart from protection, they also ventilate air and makes a great style statement! Go for it.

5.Pants

Your lower body takes the most impact in case of a fall and protecting it is a mandatory task. Riding pants provide a plenty of protective measures - knee and tibia protection are the most important ones. They also provide ventilation and protects your legs from any kind of abrasion.

6.Earplugs

Imagine the amount of windblast at 200km/hr. It’s enough to crack your eardrums and make you permanently deaf. Wear earplugs, they don’t even cost much, consider adding them in your next weekend ride.

7.Boots

Can a normal pair of shoes protect you from bike related injuries? Up to an extent yes, but not completely. There are different varieties available for different purposes - from motocross and road racing to tourer style. And all of them have different safety measures. Apart from protecting your feet from pebbles and sudden impacts, they also help you keep your feet firmly on the pegs.

These are basic protection measures you should consider adding in your collection. But apart from these, there are additional gears such as neck, elbow and neck guards that you can buy separately if you are a off-road biker. We can’t imagine you sliding across the tar road and concrete at 150km/hr wearing only shorts and a t-shirt. In reality, you should not expose any part of your body while riding a super bike. No second thought, go and buy your gears.