Racer High Speed Gloves Review | Long-Term Test
Let’s talk motorcycle gloves – or, more specifically, sport-riding gloves. With about 30,000 miles yearly combined under my leathers/textiles on the street, track, and off-road, I put gloves through some serious testing.
Throughout the past decade, I’ve found gloves I absolutely love, and others that simply suck. I have a favorite glove for every situation of riding, whether that’s touring in 35-degree rain, ADV riding in 95-degree desert heat, or enjoying the typical triple-digit speeds at a track day.
My largest battle was always with the latter, considering I could never find a glove that truly performed optimally in everything needed; from fit to protection to wear to ventilation, some were great at one thing, but horrible at the other. But this changed last summer when I met the Racer Gloves High Speed – a gauntlet-style glove for the serious road racer or sport rider.
At $280, the gloves designed in Austria may be expensive, but for the true sport rider, track frequenter, and racer that seeks all-day comfort and safety, there’s no questioning the validity of price. I’ve put many of Racer Gloves’ top competitors through some serious sport testing, and nothing compares. Nothing actually comes close when you consider the major points such as comfort, protection and longevity.
These words derive from no-nonsense beatings. I have put the Racer Gloves High Speed through over 5,000 miles of testing throughout summer/fall/winter/spring months on both the track and street. They also have been my go-to gloves for new-product launches – such as the Ducati 959 Panigale in Spain and the Bridgestone S21 in Abu Dhabi.
Up front I can say the ventilation is slightly poor in temps over 95 or so degrees, but I’ve had much worse in regards to sportbike/racing gloves. That’s my only qualm.
Talk about longevity; regardless of the weekend-to-weekend pounding at venues like New York Safety Track and New Jersey Motorsports Park, to day-to-day pounding on my personal Mountain Course, the High Speed Glove held up.
To put this “held up” notion into perspective, my last two pair of gloves from other manufacturers that are used by some of the top names in MotoGP didn’t hold up. Both pairs – just as expensive as the High Speed – suffered torn seams and were only comfortable for maybe five or so track days – something a customer shouldn’t have to deal with.
With that said, let’s talk specifics of the Racer High Speed glove.
The Racer High Speed glove features a palm designed of kangaroo leather, which is reinforced with Pittards leather for added grip on the controls. The palm also features Dual Density Knox SPS palm sliders, which ease sliding during a crash so the glove doesn’t catch the road surface, a situation that is known for breaking all parts of the hand, including the ever-so fragile schaphoid that many racers have broken. The High Speed gloves are extremely lightweight, and after a few laps on the track or a mile or so on the street, you forget they are there. That’s the ultimate comfort level.
The actual chassis of the glove is built from tried and tested cowhide leather, and additional protection arrives from TPU hard plastic in all the vital areas – the fingers, knuckle and wrist. The knuckle area’s TPU is further covered with SuperFabric, which scientifically utilizes armor plates and provides a flexible barrier from “abrasions, scuffs and scrapes.”
A simple hook- and-loop adjustment tightens the gloves at the wrist, and a Velcro piece further secures the opening of the gauntlet. This simple design aids in taking the High Speed on and off, and there was never a lack of adjustment regardless of how wide the opening cuff was on the various jackets/leather suits worn. And as in all racing gloves, the ring and pinky fingers are sewn together to prevent finger roll in case of a crash.
The High Speed Glove fits true to size; I wear a size large due to a 9” palm measurement. The Racer Gloves size chart takes all of the guesswork out of sizing. Be warned – they may feel a bit tight on the initial ride, but give them a few miles for break-in period. Then the old adage “fits like a glove” will never sound so official.
I’m known for keeping things until they don’t work, such as a 2002 V-Strom DL1000 with over 80K, a 1998 VFR800 with over 50K, and a Multistrada 1200 with nearly 40K. Once any of these motorcycles break, I’ll simply rebuild. As for the Racer High Speed gloves, I will continue to use them until something blows apart. Once that happens, my obvious next step will be simple – get another pair. That is until a better glove comes along.
The Racer High Speed Glove is available in sizes S-3XL and in two colors – black or black/white. For additional information, visit Racer Gloves.
Racer Gloves High Speed Glove Long-term Review, Photo Gallery
