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Motocross BootsWhat sort of mechanical protection does the boot offer? Look for protection for your shins, toes and ankles. Most boots will have hard plastic shields in these areas. They also usually have a steel plate that curves up over the front of the boot to protect your toes. These guards will save your feet and lower legs from impacts from rocks etc. as well as contact with other bikes. I've seen a rider have his leg dragged over the top of the back wheel of another bike and wedged down against the swingarm, the rider of the bike didn't know what the resistance was and was trying to accelerate away wih the wheel spinning against the downed riders leg. He got himself untangled eventually but not before it made a real mess of his boot. Better his boot then his leg though.. 
Do the boots have a replaceable sole bed? Alpine Stars, amongst other manufacturers, have this feature, once the section in front of the heel wears from the footpegs, particularly on the left boot from pivoting over and under the gear lever, you can remove the worn section and screw and glue a new one in.Are the buckles easy to use? Do they seem durable? You're obviously not going to know until you use the boots yourself but you can ask other riders who wear the same dirt bike boots what they think of them or do some research online and find out some opinions from forums etc. That also applies when deciding what brand of motocross boots to buy, decide on a dollar figure that you'll spend and do some research to find what boot has the best features and track record. Most of the different manufacturers have a range of boots, from cheap all the way up to their most expensive. The first pair of motocross boots that I ever owned were made by AXO, I didn't have any complaints about them but when they wore out I bought a pair of Alpine Stars and will never buy any different again. I like Alpine Stars for the quality of finish and also for their excellent durability, I do some horrible things to mine like wash them in bike wash detergent (that's frowned on apparently!) but they still come up looking good. Oil your boots regularly to look after the leather and also to help waterproof them. There is a slight catch here though, don't oil them too often or the leather will get too soft and you'll lose a lot of protection against twisting your ankle because the boot becomes too flexible. A good quality pair of motocross boots should last a reasonable amount of time, just remember to take good care of them (no washing them in bike wash!), they have to survive some pretty horrid conditions. Now you know what to look for in a good pair of motocross boots, click here to find out about other essential bits of riding gear. You can browse a range of motocross boots in our RideGear catalogue here Please note that to protect our younger visitors to Motocross 101, SafeSearch is turned on in these search results.
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