u/davidsaidwhat

In April, I spent 8 days riding solo around Morocco on a rented Himalayan 411. No drama, just great fun. I got home on the Saturday, and the very next day managed to drop my BMW F850GS on my foot - damaging both metatarsals and my lisfranc ligament, which required surgery and a plate. I was wearing a pair of J&S 'urban' style ankle boots - super comfortable but clearly not the most protective.

In Morocco, I wore Alpinestarts SMX-6 boots. They're pretty decent, but I'm not convinced they would have saved my foot if the injury had happended out there and I was stranded in the middle of the Atlas mountains.

So roll on three months and I'm looking for something more protective, but comfortable enough to wear off the bike for walking around for an hour or so. My shortlist:
Alpinestarts Tech 7
Sidi Adventure 2
Leatt 4.5, 5.5 or 7.5
Gaerne Dakar

The AS Tech 7 seem to be the benchmark, but they're pretty pricey and sound like overkill for my needs. Most of my riding is on tarmac, with ocassional off-road stuff (think gravel, broken North African roads, dirt tracks, etc). In the UK, I might do the ocassional green lane, but very much at the easier end of the scale. In a few months, I'm planning a trip from UK through central Europe, down to Sicily and across to Tunisia (where I'll spend 8 days exploring remote areas) - this is fairly typical of the mix I need to accommodate.

I generally reel away from anything with 'adventure' in the title (or indeed Dakar), but the Sidi Adventures and the Gaerne Dakars do seem to hit a strong middle ground. Likewise the Leatts 7.5

I'd love to hear what others use. thanks.

pics: The boots I wore when I dropped the bike on my foot

After 8 days touring Morocco, I got home and promptly (well, next day) dropped my own bike (230 kg BMW) on my foot. I thought I was wearing perfectly decent enough boots, but clearly they weren’t (BKS Tornadoes from J&S). Broken metatarsals and a lisfranc ligament injury means no riding for a good few months.

In Morocco I wore my Alpinestars MX5 (road boots), which were super comfortable but if I’d have sustained the same accident, I don’t they would have been a lot more protective and the consequences would have been dire.

So now I’m looking for a ‘unicorn boot’. Protective around key areas (shin, ankle, midfoot and toes), but with enough give to allow me to walk around a little when I get to a village or town.
I’ve looked at so-called ‘Adventure Boots’ and they strike me as being a bit of a gimmick – not really much more protective than a decent road boot, just with clasps on the side instead of a zip.
Motocross boots on the other hand are way over the top. The minimal grip on the soles and lack of articulation both put me off. I might tackle the odd dirt road, but it’ll never be proper off-grid stuff, I’m just not that good a rider.
My biggest fear is dropping the bike on the same foot again, in some remote area, and where help is not a given.
So… any recommendations?