Motor Scooter Gloves: Essential Protection

Even Motorcycle Gloves Will Work

Motor scooter gloves, or more accurately, motorcycle gloves, are an essential scooter accessory for protection... from both the elements and road hazards.

Scooter gloves come in a variety of sizes, styles, and materials...

Do you have to wear scooter gloves if you ride a scooter? That's the question I asked at first, because I don't really like wearing gloves... they make my hands hot, even in the winter.

But the answer to that question is, of course, no you don't have to wear gloves. But... you'd be foolish not to. Here's why...

Scooter gloves offer protection, plain and simple. Like a motor scooter helmet, gloves can protect your tender skin should you fall off your scooter for some reason, whether on your own or due to an accident. It won't take a very high speed impact to scrape several layers off unprotected skin.

Second, motor scooter gloves will protect your hands from the elements, whether we're talking wind, rain, sunshine, or the cold. Your hands are sitting there on your handlebar grips totally exposed. It just makes sense to protect them.

Thirdly, the right kind of scooter gloves will also provide cushioning and support for your hands and wrists. Don't underestimate the importance of that feature... especially if you typically ride your scooter more than a few miles at a time.

Styles of Motor Scooter Gloves

Like most scooter gear, scooter gloves come in a pretty wide variety of styles.

You can get them in leather, goatskin, and nylon, or even a combination. Linings may be made from thinsulate (my favorite) or other materials. Do be sure, though, that you go with a quality fabric... not knitted or cotton or some such.

Some have breathable mesh or perforated leather for summer riding and higher temps. Others have solid, reinforced construction, with padding over the knuckles and on the palms. Still others are "fingerless" like the ones pictured at the top of this page, but I don't think they're the best choice for protection.

I've seen scooter gloves that are precurved for comfort like the one pictured here.

And then you can also get motor scooter gloves in different colors too. Womens' gloves are often done up in pastels and other "pretty" colors, while men's may be found in more "sporty" or masculine colors.

And there's another point... scooter gloves do come sized for both men and women, because let's face it... our hands are sized and shaped differently, aren't they?

How to Choose the Best Motor Scooter Gloves for You

So, with all these choices, how do you know which motor scooter gloves are right for you? Well... I might sound like a broken record, but it really depends on how and when you plan to use your scooter... and on your personal preferences.

For me, I didn't want a super heavy glove for most of my driving. As I said, my hands tend to get hot in gloves. The only time I wear a really heavy glove is when I'm skiing or snowshoeing.

So, I looked for a lightweight glove. But I also didn't want to have to buy more than 1 pair of scooter gloves, so I decided against the ventilated kind, because I knew they wouldn't be warm enough in the cooler weather. I may have to use liners inside my gloves in really cold weather, though.

I kind of wanted gloves that were a pretty color, but... I really preferred good old leather. So, I ended up with black leather medium-weight gloves. It was a hard choice though.

I also opted not to get heavily cushioned gloves, though mine do have some cushioning in the palms, because I don't really expect to be making tons of long-distance trips on my scooter and the cushioned ones just seemed to heavy to me.

If you're a woman, be sure you shop in a store that offers women's motor scooter gloves, because they'll definitely fit better. And, man or woman, be sure you have the right size. You want flexibility, but you also want control. If your gloves are too tight or too loose, that could be a problem.

One last question... do you need to buy special motor scooter gloves? Or are motorcycle gloves OK? The answer to that one is either is OK. Actually, I suspect they're basically the same thing... just packaged and marketed differently!