How much protective gear should you put on your enduro motorbike?
What do you think are the essentials?
If you look at the pro level enduro riders, they often add nothing at all.
Not even a carbon fibre exhaust guard.
As an experiment, I kept my brand new Sherco 300SE completely standard.
I wanted to see how long it took to mangle it.
More on that later.
First.
Why do the pro enduro riders use so little protection
(except for condoms with all their groupies)?
Did you know most of the best hard enduro riders are actually aliens and freaks?
They rarely crash.
Their technique is so good they rarely need exhaust guards or linkage guards.
At their skill level, even a set of full-wrap handguards adds enough weight to affect steering.
And they add a bit more width to handlebars so they hit trees more.
The emphasis is on keeping the motorbike as light as possible.
If they do wreck an exhaust pipe they have spares back in the pit.
And exhaust guards can hold in too much heat in race conditions.
The only added protection used regularly by pro riders seems to
be a front brake disc protector, and occasionally a rear disc protector.
And bigger clutch covers which allow slightly larger oil capacity and a bit more strength.
Most of us are dirt muppets.
We crash far more often.
We slam our skidplates into logs.
We ride through rocks with all the grace of a bull in a china shop.
So the question is how much motorbike protection do we need?
There's no right answer for everyone.
Here is a sample of what you can fit your beast.
This protective gear can easily weigh 12kg or more.
Are you obsessed with keeping your motorbike light?
You will probably choose a bit less protection.
What about riding style?
Do you 'think' your way through tough terrain?
Or do you throw yourself into gnarly conditions and just hope for the best?
If you never ride in rocky terrain, there is a lot of gear you probably won't need.
Are you happy to fix things yourself?
Some riders spend a lot of money on heavy guards for two-stroke exhaust pipes.
But for half the price, you can buy a repair kit that uses air
pressure or water pressure to fix a bent pipe.
The same with radiator guards.
An alternative is just carry some JB Weld in your toolkit to plug any leaks.
And when you get home, straighten your radiator again.
Ditto with crankcase protectors.
If you carry JB Weld in your toolkit you can usually do a
repair job that will get you home again.
I remember fixing a busted crankcase and kept using it for another 18 months.
So what happened with my experiment and the brand new Sherco?
It had one benefit. It definitely made me 'think' my way through tough terrain.
I really focused carefully on log-hopping technique so I didn't wreck the exhaust pipe.
My first damage?
After three months I dropped the Sherco at a standstill and it broke the clutch perch.
$330 to replace.
Ouch! I fitted full-wrap handguards the following week.
A month later, a crash at walking pace bent the radiator.
It still works but I'll straighten it soon and fit some radiator braces.
The Sherco came standard with a very solid plastic bashplate.
If it didn't, I would have fitted a bashplate immediately.
We ride over so many logs and rocks I would have caused expensive damage very quickly.
And that's my total damage list after about forty enduro rides.
Not bad.
My personal recommendation?
I think full-wrap handguards will be a great idea for all average dirt riders.
We have a video about the pros and cons of different types.
Ditto for the bashplate or skidplate.
Even if you only occasionally hop logs or ride through big rocks,
the potential repair costs make this a good investment for most riders.
For all the other protective gear, I think it depends on all those factors mentioned earlier.
How important is light weight?
Your riding style.
The amount of rocky terrain.
Are you into hard enduro?
Are you happy to fix stuff?
I think the next level of protection potentially includes radiator braces,
disc guards, and exhaust guard for two strokes, and a linkage guard.
The rest?
Just optional in my opinion.
A speedo protector?
If your motorbike is regularly upside down you should probably
work more on your technique than protecting your speedo.
Case saver?
If you maintain your chain properly you should have minimal risk with breaking your crankcase.
Chain guide?
Some enduro models have fairly weak chain guides,
if your chain regularly comes off in rocky terrain a heavy duty chain guide could be worthwhile.
Frame guards and swingarm protectors?
These are really just preventing scratches so certainly not essential in my opinion.
What do you think is essential?
What is optional?
What is the current setup on your motorbike?
Let us know in the comments.