#boots

This guide contains a selection of boots ranging in price, manufacturer, style, and a little sex. We included a ladies-specific waterproof boot, the Dainese Svelte, but more exist for women from all of these manufacturers, as well as male-oriented boots from Dainese. Style, while largely sport-touringish, also includes adventure-touring, and traditional. Again, most manufacturers offer more than just the style boot chosen for this guide. About the only thing boot manufacturers don’t offer a selection of when it comes to waterproof winter boots is color. We hope you like black.

A motocross-related foot/ankle injury once kept me in non-weight-bearing medical status for six incredibly painful months. Twelve years of recovery and therapy later, the range of motion in my right ankle remains at only about 15%, and lingering pain is a regular reminder of my injury. Considering this history, it should be no surprise that I highly value foot protection.

Lately, there’s been a rise in popularity in cafe- and naked-type bikes. Take the recently reviewed Royal Enfield Continental GT, quirky Moto Guzzi V7, old-is-new-again Yamaha SR400, and of course the venerable Triumph Bonneville as examples. They are simple motorcycles that take you back to a simpler time. And these days, wearing full-fledged, Power Ranger-like protective gear just seems, well, silly.

Southern California residents who are also fans of the Dainese/AGV brands are likely familiar with the D-Store Orange County. One of three official full-fledged Dainese/AGV retail stores (the others being San Francisco and Chicago), what you might not have known is that the OC store, which is roughly equivalent to a large two-bedroom home, also housed Dainese’s North American headquarters for several years. Think about that – Dainese, known the world over as one of the finest motorcycle apparel companies, ran its North American operations in modest office space at the back of a retail store.