What to Wear to Your MSF Course

The non-negotiables

Over-the-ankle footwear. This is the one that gets people turned away. Boots must cover the ankle bone completely and stay on your foot — no low-cut trainers, no slip-ons, no sandals, and generally no heels. Sturdy work boots or hiking boots are accepted at most sites; motorcycle boots are better if you already have them. Laces must be tucked or tied so they cannot catch a footpeg or chain.

Long trousers. Full-length, durable, non-flared. Denim jeans are the standard answer and are accepted everywhere. Avoid anything loose enough to catch on a lever or shifter, and avoid shorts under any circumstances.

A long-sleeved shirt or jacket. Full arm coverage is required. A denim or canvas jacket is fine; a proper riding jacket is better; a t-shirt is not acceptable.

Full-fingered gloves. Every finger covered. Leather work gloves are accepted at most sites. Motorcycle gloves are better and not expensive at the entry level — see our budget glove ranking. Gardening gloves with the fingertips out will not pass.

Eye protection.A helmet visor, goggles or your own glasses, depending on the site's rules and the helmet they lend you.

A DOT-certified helmet. Most sites lend one; some do not, and some allow you to bring your own. Check. If you are bringing your own it must carry the DOT FMVSS No. 218 label — see how to read a certification sticker.

What the school usually provides

Almost always: the motorcycle, fuel and the range. Usually: a helmet, though it will be a loaner that has been on a great many heads and will not fit you especially well. Sometimes: gloves and eye protection, though relying on this is unwise.

If a loaner helmet is your only option, bring a thin balaclava or skull cap. It makes a shared helmet much more pleasant and it keeps sweat out of the lining. This is a two-dollar purchase that improves your day considerably.

Should you buy your own helmet before the course?

If you can afford it, yes — and buy it for fit rather than spec. A helmet that fits your head shape is more comfortable for two long days than any loaner, you will not be sharing a liner, and you need one afterwards anyway. Work out your shape with our head shape and budget matrix and measure with our sizing guide.

If money is tight, take the loaner and put your budget into gloves and boots instead. Those are the two items you must supply yourself, and they are the two the course will not lend you.

The part nobody tells you: you will be standing outside all day

The range portion of a Basic RiderCourse is many hours in an open parking lot, with long stretches of standing and listening between riding exercises. This shapes what you should bring far more than the riding does.

Sun. A parking lot in summer is brutal and there is usually no shade. Sunscreen on your neck and the back of your hands, and a hat for the classroom breaks. Sunburn on day one makes day two genuinely unpleasant under a helmet.

Water. Bring more than you think. Dehydration degrades concentration quickly, and you are being assessed. Most sites have a water fountain and it is always busy.

Layers. Early mornings are cold, midday is hot, and you cannot leave to change. A jacket you can take off beats a heavy one you are stuck in. Our layering guide applies directly.

Food. Bring lunch and a snack. Breaks are short and the nearest food is often a drive away, which you cannot do because you arrived in the car you now cannot leave the site in.

Earplugs. Optional, and worth having. Several small motorcycles idling in a parking lot for eight hours is more tiring than it sounds. See our earplug ranking.

What not to wear

Anything loose enough to flap or catch: wide-legged trousers, a long scarf, a loose hoodie drawstring. Jewelry that can snag. Heeled boots, which make it hard to feel the shifter and the rear brake. A backpack, which changes your balance on a bike you are still learning to balance.

And do not wear brand-new boots for the first time on course day. Two days of standing and riding in unbroken-in footwear is a specific kind of misery, and blisters will affect how well you ride.

After the course: what to buy first

You will finish the weekend knowing far more about what you want than you do now, which is why we would not buy a full kit before it. The order that makes sense afterwards: helmet (fitted to your head shape), gloves, jacket, boots, back protector.

Our beginner gear guide explains the reasoning, the $500 loadout is the complete plan, and new rider gear mistakes covers the errors that cost the most money in the first year.