Tactical pants for motorcycle riding make sense on paper. They have a plain look, plenty of pockets and a roomy cut, and you may already own a pair. The catch is that tactical pants are built for standing, walking and carrying gear, while a bike asks for a different cut. Here is what tactical pants get right, four things to check before you ride in them and what a riding cargo pant does differently.
What Tactical Pants Get Right
A tactical pant is a cargo-style work pant with a rugged cut, a lot of storage and no decoration. Three things carry over to the bike:
- Pockets. Room for a phone, keys, a wallet and gloves means less to hang off the bike. Our guide to motorcycle cargo pants covers which pockets earn their place.
- A plain look. Few logos and no gear styling, so they pass as normal pants at a gas station, a diner or the office.
- A relaxed cut. Easy to pull on over a base layer, with room to move.
Can You Use Tactical Pants for Motorcycle Riding? Four Things to Check
You can sit on a bike in almost any pair of pants. Whether you want to spend a few hours in them is another question, because a tactical cut is made for a person who stands and walks, not for a rider's seat. Sit down in a pair and check four things:
- The knees. With your knees bent and your feet forward, fabric with no give pulls tight across the knee and thigh. Fabric with stretch moves with you.
- The hem. A straight hem creeps up the leg, bunches at the ankle and lets air in around the boot. You want a leg opening that goes over the boot and cinches down.
- The pockets. Thigh pockets sit right where your leg meets the seat and the tank. A full one presses into your leg and shifts, and a loose flap catches the wind.
- The waistband. A low back gaps when you lean toward the handlebars. Our guide to high rise motorcycle pants shows how rise changes the fit on a bike.
A riding cargo pant is a tactical pant with those four checks built in: cut for the seat, with stretch at the knee, pockets that sit flat and a hem that opens over a boot.
A Five-Minute Test Before You Ride
You do not need a bike for this. A chair and your riding boots are enough:
- Sit like you ride. Bend your knees, put your feet forward and hold the position for a full minute. Nothing should pull at the knee or the seat.
- Pull the hem over your boots. Stand up and sit back down. If the hem rides up past the top of the boot, it will do the same on the road.
- Load the pockets. Put your phone, keys and wallet where you would carry them and sit again. Anything that digs in belongs in a different pocket.
- Lean forward. Reach out as if you were holding the handlebars. The waistband should stay put.
Five minutes at home beats finding out at the first red light. Wear the layers you ride in, because a base layer under a thick cargo cut makes every one of these checks tighter.
Finish the Fit With a Belt and Your Layers
Tactical pants and a tactical belt are a natural pair. Layers change how pants sit over a day, so you want a belt that adjusts at any point. The Tactical Belt has a 38 mm nylon strap and a friction buckle with no holes, so it keeps up when you add or shed a layer.
Layers matter most at the edges of the riding year, when a ride starts cold and ends warm. Our guide to when motorcycle season starts and ends shows what to wear at each end. Seat comfort is the other half of a long day: a gel rider cushion straps over the seat you already have in under a minute, no tools needed.
Common Questions
What is the difference between tactical pants and cargo pants?
Cargo pants are the broad group: pants with large pockets on the thighs. Tactical pants are a work-minded kind of cargo pant, often with a stretch or ripstop fabric, a more technical cut and extra places to carry gear. Neither group is made for a rider's seat by default, so run the test above on any pair.
Are tactical pants comfortable on a long ride?
It depends on the cut. After an hour in the seat you notice the details: a seam across the knee, a full pocket under the thigh or a hem that keeps riding up. If a pair passes the five-minute test, you have already checked the position you will spend the whole ride in.
Can you wear riding pants as everyday pants?
Yes, if the cut is plain enough. The RoadVault riding pants are cut to look like everyday cargo pants, so you can wear them to the diner and keep going. They come in black, army green and camo, in men's and women's cuts.
Finish the kit
Two Pieces to Pair With Your Pants
Tactical Belt
A 38 mm nylon strap with a friction buckle and no holes to hunt for, in black, gray, olive and beige.
See the belt →
100% Gel Rider Cushion
Honeycomb gel that straps over the seat you already have in under a minute, no tools needed.
See the cushion →