Chris Birch - What Works, What Doesn’t, and How to Select the Moto Gear That’s Right for You
Image: Chris Birch - saynotoslow.nz
When it comes to adventure riding gear, the options are endless—mesh, laminated, vented, lightweight, heavy-duty. With so many choices, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. What matters in riding gear? How much protection is enough? And what trade-offs should you be aware of? To get clarity, we turned to Chris Birch. A lifelong motorcyclist who’s raced local dirt tracks in New Zealand, competed on the world stage in hard enduro, and now travels the globe on adventure bikes, Chris has seen it all. In this episode, he shares hard-earned insights on what works, what doesn’t, and how to choose the gear that’s right for you.
About Chris Birch:
Chris Birch is a lifelong motorcyclist and has been an off-road riding instructor in New Zealand since 2007. He first started as a trials rider and moved on to enduro riding in his teens. He’s an eight-time national enduro champion in New Zealand and is New Zealand’s most successful Dakar Rally competitor, finishing 27th and 2nd in the rookie class in 2012. He’s now one of KTM’s highest-profile Adventure Ambassadors. Chris has a background as a mechanical engineer, which gives him a unique perspective on the physics of motorcycle riding and the techniques. He now runs his coaching business full-time and spends most of the year travelling around the world running coaching clinics and going to adventure bike events.
Web: saynotoslow.nz
