Best Gear Tips for Cold Weather Adventure Motorcycle Riding

Adventure riding is among the toughest forms of motorcycling. It keeps riders engaged at all times during the time. It is also very thrilling and fun. If you have never been on an ADV ride, you genuinely miss a lot in life. Being a motorcyclist, you must give it a try.

There are many adventure riders around the globe who love to go on adventure rides throughout the year. No matter what the weather is, the ADV riders are always looking for more adventures.

However, as we all know, riding becomes much more difficult in cold weather, particularly in states where the temperature drops below zero. Adventure motorcycle riding becomes even more challenging in cold weather. ADV riders need to be packed enough to keep themselves warm, but the riding gear must not compromise the body’s ability to stay flexible.

For those adventure seekers who are always ready for a new adventure ride throughout the year, a few things can help you stay warm without compromising on the fun factor. Continue reading this article to learn the best gear tips for cold-weather adventure riding.

Wearing base layers is the most fundamental step in keeping yourself warm in cold weather. Remember! The temperature can decrease and can be much cooler if you choose to adventure ride in remote areas. Therefore, wearing a thermal base layer is important for several reasons.

While choosing the perfect base layer for adventure motorcycle riding, ensure it is soft and comfortable. It must also be flexible enough to allow active body movements during the adventure rides.

Even if it's too cold outside, your body will start to sweat as you ride. ADV riding is a complete exercise. It keeps your body muscles engaged throughout the ride. You must keep moving on your ADV bike and shift your body weight for better maneuverability.

Base layers not only keep body heat inside but also help you absorb or move away sweat. Therefore, they are essential for adventure riding in cold weather.

Base layers include a T-shirt, trousers, socks, and glove liners. It is preferred to wear base layers inside the thicker insulated riding gear to keep the heat trapped inside.

The base layer includes the following items:

Before you buy a suitable base layer for ADV riding in cold weather, you must be familiar with what kinds of base layers are available in the market. The base layer for cold weather ADV riding is made up of:

• Silk base layer

• Merino Wool

• Synthetic Fabrics

Out of all the base layer materials, silk is one of the most common for ADV riding and other sports activities that demand exertion. Silk is super soft, lightweight, and has antibacterial properties, which is why it is preferred.

Those who use merino wool also find it perfect for ADV motorcycle riding.

Merino Wool:

• Absorbs moisture well

• Super soft

• Warm from the inside

• Doesn’t stink even if you are sweating heavily

• Doesn’t make you feel cold even if it is wet

Points to Remember

• The base layer should be soft and flexible

• The base layer should be comfortable enough not to restrict your body movement while ADV riding

• The base layer should absorb or wick away moisture or sweat

Keeping your body warm with base and thick layers is a good idea. However, there are a few sensitive areas that must be properly covered. Otherwise, your body will lose all the heat, and you will start feeling cold. No matter how much you cover your whole body, if these body parts that are sensitive to the sensation of cold are exposed, you will catch cold. These body parts include:

• Head

• Face

• Neck

• Hands

• Feet

• Ears

The first thing to cover your head for cold weather or winter adventure motorcycle riding is a balaclava. It is a base layer for your head. It also covers your:

• Face

• Forehead

• Cheeks

• Ears

• Neck

This is why it is highly preferred for ADV riding in cold weather.

While buying a balaclava for winter ADV motorcycle riding, ensure it is thermal. You can get a nylon-made balaclava for better heating properties.

If you don’t need a full-face balaclava, small nylon caps are also available to cover your head.

A neck gaiter is a tube-shaped protection made of thermal fabric that protects the neck, cheeks, chin, and ears from cold and wind. Motorcyclists use it widely in cold weather to avoid dust while riding.

We call it extreme because the ADV riding gear for dual-sports action in cold weather needs to provide extreme protection. It is not only expected to be warm but also to provide safety from road rashes and abrasions from extreme ADV riding. Also, the ADV riding gear must be flexible enough not to restrict or slow down body movement.

The best jacket and pants for cold weather adventure motorcycle riding must be:

• Breathable

• Blocks Cold Wind

• Waterproof

• Must have joint protections and patches

• Lightweight

• Flexible

• A bit loose

These are the features that you should look for when buying the best ADV riding gear for cold weather.

Fore-Tex Jackets and Pants are highly suitable gear options for ADV dual-sports riding. This gear is made of specialized material, including “Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).” This material has almost every property and feature mentioned above. It is also very durable, proving the best choice for ADV riding.

Most Gore-Tex ADV riding gear has several other features, including:

• Zip-Off Sleeves : You can easily remove and reattach sleeves if exhausted after the ride. It will also help when the temperature rises a bit in the afternoon.

• Fleece Liners : When buying ADV riding gear, you can choose one with fleece liners inside to keep yourself warm. It doesn’t make the jacket and pants too thick, but it helps tremendously in providing comfort.

Big Pockets : Big pockets are also quite helpful for carrying useful stuff.

If you ride a motorcycle in winter, you know gloves are the most essential gear. It keeps your hands and fingers warm and safe from getting scratched in a crash.

Leather gloves are one of the most popular options for winter riding. They keep your hands warm and are the best insulators, keeping the heat inside.

However, thick leather gloves aren’t handy for ADV riding. You require thin gloves to have a better grip on the handlebars. Riding an ADV bike on dirt tracks while wearing thicker gloves can be difficult. With thin gloves, you can handle and maneuver an off-road motorcycle effectively.

However, you should also wear gloves that keep your hands warm in cold weather. Therefore, the ADV riding gloves must be warm enough to grip better during winter ADV riding.

There are many different types of specialized ADV motorcycle riding gloves on the market. These are made of breathable material and are waterproof as well. Having waterproof gloves for ADV riding in rain and wet conditions is good.

The glove liners you choose for ADV riding must absorb moisture or sweat to allow a strong grip on the handlebars. Otherwise, off-road ADV riding can be difficult if your hands are wet inside the gloves. You can lose your grip, or your hands may slip, resulting in a difficult situation.

Socks are part of the base layer that keeps your feet warm. If you get cold feet, your body will get cold, too. Feet are sensitive to the sensation of cold, so wearing thermal socks that block wind from entering your feet is a good idea.

Suppose you are adventure riding in a remote area and suddenly the rain starts, or you have to ride through puddles or water. Waterproof socks can help a lot. They are available in multiple sizes. You can get full-sized waterproof socks that cover your feet and almost half your calves.

Riding with wet feet, particularly when your socks and motorcycle boots are wet, is quite painful in winter. Therefore, you must always carry full-size waterproof socks if you have to deal with rain or puddles.

If you love to go on adventure rides regardless of the weather, consider having some storage options on your ADV bike. Installing a dventure motorcycle hard side cases and l uggage bags can help you safely carry useful stuff on your winter ADV rides. These bags are hard, tough, and durable.

If you are going for an Adventure motorcycle ride, you must also carry an extra pair of socks in case it rains, or your socks get wet.

For ADV motorcycle riding, particularly while off-roading, you require specialized ADV motorcycle boots. You can’t just go for an adventure ride wearing ordinary motorcycle boots. You require strong protection as you have to go through narrow dirt trails. You may not see many obstacles that can hit your feet while off-roading on an ADV bike.

Therefore, the ADV motorcycle boots that you choose to buy must be hard and sturdy enough to withstand a strong beating.

As an ADV rider, you may also have to maneuver over different types of terrains, including:

• Mud

• Puddles

• Rocks

• Grassy

• Dirt tracks

• Sand

There are better chances of your boots getting wet or muddy. Therefore, to avoid this, you must buy waterproof ADV motorcycle boots. ADV Motorcycle Boots are long shoes. They cover almost half of your lower shins.

There are buckles installed on these ADV motorcycle boots to tighten them up to stick to your lower legs.

Moreover, the ADV motorcycle boots also have a rough bottom surface. They are not slippery, particularly in wet conditions. Also, ADV boots with rough and knobby bottom surfaces stick better to the foot pegs. They also assist in standing on the pegs while overcoming challenging terrains. These boots also provide strong ankle protection.

These ADV motorcycle boots are ideal for keeping feet warm while adventure riding in cold weather. They block the incoming wind from entering your feet, preventing cold feet. 

Helmets not only make your rides safe and keep your head and face protected in the worst situations, but they also keep your head and face warm while riding in winter .

ADV helmets are built a bit differently. They may have multiple visors installed in the same helmet. They also have adequate room and face opening to wear goggles.

While buying an ADV helmet, you should look for adequate ventilation to avoid fog inside the helmet, and is lightweight.

Other than the best ADV riding gear for cold weather, there are several accessories designed particularly to protect riders against cold. These include:

Hippo hands are large, thick, and insulated handlebar grip attachments. They are attached perpendicular to the grips, with openings for riders’ hands. They are like big gloves attached to the handlebar to keep the hands warm. They are made for extreme cold conditions and are a good addition to install on your adventure bikes for winter riding.

Hand guards are another useful add-on that is mostly installed on adventure and dirt bikes. They are protectors attached to the bars that block incoming wind and keep hands safe from getting scratched. They are not very helpful in keeping hands warm, but they are a necessary item for adventure dual-sports riding.

Wrapping your motorcycle levers with fabric strapping provides a lot of relief. It helps you avoid the instant chill sensation when you touch the brake or clutch lever in the cold.

Heated grips are another useful option pre-installed on certain top-end luxurious adventure touring bikes. Though heated grips make the grip a bit thicker, which may not be good for ADV riders with smaller hands, they are still very useful for ADV riding in cold weather.

Many luxurious adventure touring bikes come with standard heated seats and grips. The heated seats have a heating system that keeps your body warm, especially your buttocks.

As motorcyclists, we know that laying up for winter riding is essential. However, it is more complex if you are an adventure rider. You must consider many things before buying the right gear for ADV dual sports adventure.

Adventure riding involves riding on the road, dirt tracks, mud, rocks, and other challenging terrains. For such extreme riding conditions, the riding gear has to be durable, sturdy, soft, comfortable, and flexible.

When you go on an adventure motorcycle ride in cold weather, things get more challenging. You must wear enough thermal layers to keep yourself warm while not compromising your body and muscle movements.

If you want to gear up appropriately for cold-weather ADV motorcycle riding, the abovementioned gear tips can help you a lot. If the weather gets extreme, consider accessories for ADV winter riding.

It is better to consider waterproof ADV riding gear that is also breathable. Also, before buying the appropriate ADV gear, you must know that your body temperature rises, and you may start sweating after riding, even in cold weather. This is because ADV riding is quite exhaustive. Above all, make sure not to compromise on your safety.