LS2 Como summer motorcycle pants

Straight answer: two CE EN 1621-1 level 1 knee protectors are fitted in the box, come out for washing, and go back in at any of three heights.

Why those three settings earn their keep: on most riding trousers the knee pocket is stitched in one fixed place, set to an average European height. If your legs are shorter, the pad rides above the kneecap and a fall lands the knee on its bottom edge. Longer legs push the pad down the shin. Three settings pull it back to where it belongs.

Setting it takes five minutes: put the trousers on, sit on the bike in your riding position rather than standing on the floor, have someone check the pad covers the kneecap, then move it to the setting that matches. Done once, right forever. The shop sets it for you if you buy in store.

The hips are left open. There is a pocket for a hip protector but that protector is a separate purchase, and LS2 offers a level 1 piece that fits. Anyone riding fast or on rough roads should add it, because the hip is the second contact point after the knee in a fall onto your side.

Straight answer: the shell uses 600D Oxford where the load lands, mesh where air is needed, four-way stretch at knee and crotch, and synthetic leather where things rub. Four fabrics, four jobs.

The 600D figure describes the yarn. D stands for denier, a measure of yarn weight. Heavier yarn means a denser weave and a fabric that survives longer when it grinds along tarmac. That is the seat and outer thigh, the first contact and the longest friction in a slide.

Mesh sits where the airflow already is. In hot city traffic the heat gathers on the front of the thigh, and that is where the mesh works. Inside there is a mesh lining, with an added cooling fabric at the crotch, the stuffiest spot and the first place that turns uncomfortable in stop-start traffic.

The inner leg is faced with suede. That surface meets the tank and the seat. Suede grips better than a smooth weave, so you slide forward less under braking, and it wears slower against the seat edge day after day.

The whole garment carries CE EN 17092 Class A. That standard scores the complete trouser on abrasion, tear strength and seam strength, unlike CE EN 1621-1 which scores the armour alone. Class A is the tier written for city riding gear.

Straight answer: each leg carries a zip that runs both ways along the lower section. Open it and the hem widens enough to pull over tall boots, or to take the trousers off with boots still on.

This detail decides whether you actually wear them daily. Plenty of riders buy protective trousers and leave them in a cupboard because arriving means sitting down, pulling boots off, stripping the trousers, then lacing up again. Three fiddly minutes each way wears thin in a week. With a two-way zip you stand up and are out of them in thirty seconds.

The waist is elasticated with an adjustable flap and the fly closes on two snap buttons. Elastic means the waistband follows your real waist, so a full stomach after lunch does not press. The flap pulls things in when you wear these over thin trousers.

Both outer pockets zip shut. They are not open slots, so a phone or wallet stays put when you put a foot up or lean the bike on its stand. They are not waterproof, and heavy rain gets to what is inside.

The legs carry reflective strips. Legs move while you ride, and a driver behind picks up movement faster than a still patch of brightness, so reflective material on the leg does more than the same strip across the seat.

Straight answer: the Como Air has no waterproof layer and no removable rain liner. Ride in rain and water comes through the mesh, the fabric soaks up weight and dries slowly.

What year-round riders actually do: keep a thin rain suit under the seat. When rain arrives, pull it on over the Como Air and strip it off on arrival. That is cheaper and far more flexible than buying a waterproof trouser to wear through a hot season.

Cold is the other limit. Mesh lets wind through, so night rides and high ground get to your shins quickly. A thin thermal legging underneath covers the southern cold season, while winter in the northern mountains calls for a trouser with a windproof membrane instead.

In return, traffic is where this pair beats a thick one. Sitting still in midday traffic turns every closed fabric into an oven. Mesh releases heat even when the bike is not moving, and that is the real use case for most people who buy these.

Take the Como Air if you ride in town daily or tour for a few days in the dry season, want knee armour included rather than bought on top, and need a trouser that comes off fast when you reach the office.

For several days of rain take the RS Taichi RSY270 Drymaster Kompass instead, with a waterproof membrane, CE level 2 knee armour and a cut you can pull over ordinary trousers.

To look like normal clothing off the bike take the Komine WJ-7495R, a jeans cut with the armour hidden inside.

For a leg shaped around the riding position take the Komine PK-761, a mesh trouser with a three-dimensional leg cut.

To match a full LS2 outfit pair these with the LS2 Airy, LS2 Breeze or LS2 Alba jacket, all three mesh jackets in the same summer group.

Buying at BigBike: genuine stock, a 6-month warranty on manufacturing faults, nationwide delivery with cash on delivery.