New Rider, Very Petite

Hi there, great website! I am just starting to learn to ride a motorbike so currently looking at some gear. I am also petite, 5'0 & 49kgs (108lbs). I was wondering if you'd ever tried Held motorcycle gear? Looking online, I have found that some of their jackets go down to size 34 but I am unable to find a women's size chart guide for their products! Keep up the good work.

Cheers, Elisa (Melbourne, Australia)

Hi Elisa,

I haven't tried Held recently, but from what I know, I'm guessing the 34 would work. Revit 34 is also a good bet.  If you can find older Revit gear (~5 years ago) the fitments on 34s were very narrow and smaller than current 34s. Longer arms though. I don't know if you're looking at the Xena in a 34, but that might fit you, it seems to run fairly small.

Women's Gore-Tex Motorcycle Pants for Summer? Fall?

 

The Travelguard Gore-Tex pants are one of the newest options for women from Dainese. Could these work in warm, wet summers? 

$379.95 MSRP, Sizes 38-54 (~US 0 - 16), Revzilla.com

I really like the features they offer including adjustable knee armor (haven't inspected in person but that's what the description says!) and the ProShape armor in the hips. I also dig the thigh vents. For this reason, I think they might work in summer/spring too. Especially if you're living in a wet summer climate like I am.

AND they're available in 38!! Euro 38 is basically a US 0. The smallest possible size for petite women. If you've been searching for extremely petite ladies pants, these are one of the best options aside from any of Revit's Size 34 pants. The Euro 54 is approximately a 16, which is definitely a difficult size to find in women's Dainese gear.

I've never had to deal with warm, wet summers before. I have my Revit GoreTex suit, so I'm hoping it won't suffocate me with the heat/humidity I'm going to be dealing with. We'll see.

If you like the idea of a slim fit pant v. a bootleg pant, then I would suggest any of the pants that Dainese has to offer.

As far as what else you could wear if it's hot and humid and raining, I would also recommend something like the Olympia Airglide Jacket and Pants (for a fuller, curvier cut) or the Revit Sand Pants and Jacket (for a more slender, athletic cut) or any Gore-Tex suit like this one or Klim's Altitude for the dual sport crowd.  For a brief overview of these outfits, check out the links from this blog post back in February.

Full Textile Motorcycle Suits for Women?

I Love Reader Questions! This just in from the interwebs:

"Hi Joanne, are there any full textile suits for women? I'm only 5'2", about 130 lbs, my inseam is about 28 or 29. I'd like to try a suit, they look like such a simple solution." -Alison

First off, thank you Alison for writing in!

Teiz Motorsports

There are 2 options for full, 1 piece textile suits for women. The first option above is from Teiz Motorsports. The nice thing about Teiz is that every suit is fully made to measure, to your measurements! I've seen the suits in person myself, and I like what I see. The quality is there and the materials are great. Great body armor options, technical fabrics like SuperFabric.

The nice thing about their suits is that they're a little form fitting and fit especially well for petite body types. Hani (cofounder) the model in the photo is very petite, a little smaller than me and I love how the suit fits her. Here's a link to a blog post I wrote awhile ago, as well as a Facebook thread with some comments about 1 piece v 2 piece.

Aerostitch

For awhile, Teiz was the only company offering a full 1 piece, textile suit. But now Aerostitch has one too, as of last year. If you've done any googling on Aerostitch suits, you know how well regarded they are in the riding community. The only thing I am not a fan of with Aerostitch is the fit. It fits like a paper bag, period. I think if you are really slender, especially in the arms/legs, then you will have to make sure they can alter those areas so that the armor fitment is Snug. Since they don't do a full, made to measure suit like Teiz, I would be really careful to pay attention to this.

As far as 1 piece vs 2 piece, I'm a huge fan of 2 piece because simply, they fit better. I am a small person, (5'3", 135lbs). I do NOT like looking heavier/larger than I am. So I opt for form fitting, really tailored 2 piece outfits like this one:

I also prefer to have 2 pieces so I can take my jacket off when I go inside. But that's just me. It depends on how you like your gear to look, fit and function. I also don't mind wearing motorcycle pants inside a restaurant or whatever. I would recommend hard luggage if you want to opt for separates so that you can store your boots/helmet/jacket, etc. in your topbox.

Do whatever works for you, your lifestyle and your budget!

Motorcycle Gear for Very Petite Women

We got an email the other day via Moterrific.com, regarding a listener who's searching for gear for a very, very small woman. She weighs 80lbs and is 4'8". Unfortunately, at anything below 100lbs, there are no options available off the rack. If you or someone you know weighs less than 100lbs, then I would recommend one of the following options:

1. Youth Dirt Gear

Something like the Youth Protection Jacket above with this Tourmaster Youth Jacket. For the lower half of the body, I would recommend knee guards like these over jeans.

2. Kinder Rider

Kinder Rider offers a 2 piece jacket and pants suit, as well as gloves. The outfit is constructed of real Cordura and fully armored from head to toe! There are also a few different color options for the jacket as well. The size chart doesn't have any measurements, but hopefully contacting them will help you choose the right size.

3. Custom Gear

There's always the option of getting a custom 1 or 2 piece suit from one of the brands on my directory.

4. Youth Racing suit

Who knew? Dainese makes a Youth Racing Suit! The sizes are defined on the size chart here.