Rukka Trek-R Review

The Rukka Trek-R is one of the best adventure motorcycle suits I’ve ever tested. If you’re a serious adventure rider heading through multiple climates and conditions this is the suit for you. It’s one of the very best on the market and will take you through anything. For our round the world motorcycle trip – you just can’t get better…

By Andy Davidson

Mad or Nomad - RTW motorcycle travellers

Snapshot

Price: £1124 jacket, £899 trousers
Time tested: since mid 2024
Miles tested: 25,000
Testing conditions: North, Central and South America / Africa
Functionality: 5/5
Fit: 5/5
Durability: 5/5
Value for money: 5/5
Total score: 20/20
Where to buy: sportsbikeshop.co.uk

This review is based on our own personal experiences using the Rukka Trek-R on our round the world motorcycle trip.

The Rukka Trek-R is a serious bit of bike kit and it’s quickly cemented itself as my absolute favourite adventure riding suit. It ticks all of my boxes. I believe adventure riding suits should not have any liners inside. The idea of stopping in rain, to take your trousers off on the side of the road, pin a waterproof liner inside them and then put the whole lot back on is mad.

I do see the merits of Gore-Tex laminated suits, where the outer shell is waterproof. But for riders travelling through multiple countries and climates, it just doesn’t work. They can get swelteringly hot, as we experienced in 46C Mexico!

The best and most versatile option is to go for a very well-ventilated and tough motorcycle suit that is not waterproof and comes with no removable inner liners and then just simply carry a pair of waterproof throwovers.

And that’s where the Rukka Trek-R comes in. It’s in this category, and comes with its own waterproof throwovers. It’s at the premium end of the market and is one of the absolute best suits you can buy in this category.

Features

Protection

The jacket is seriously tough and well built. It comes packed with premium materials including D30 Air XTR Armour level 1 in the shoulders and elbows and a level 2 back protector. And the trousers also get D30 knee and hip protectors. Keep in mind, all together the protectors do weigh a bit and that adds a significant weight to the jacket – but keeps you very well protected. It also has space for a chest protector insert.

The material is all 500D Cordura with 1500 over higher abrasion points like knees and elbows. It looks and feels like a premium jacket.

Ventilation

The vents are one of the Rukka Trek-R’s biggest draws. It’s exceptional. You get big vents on the chest, shoulders, sleeves, waist, back and legs. The vents are big, plentiful and, importantly, easy to open and close with chunky zips. The vents do an excellent job of allowing plenty of air to flow through while riding and when off the bike.

The leg and chest vents open easily with one hand, which makes a big difference when you’re constantly adjusting. And I absolutely love long sleeve vents and these are excellent with chunky zips. On cheaper garments you’ll find dust and dirt clog up little zips, but these are beefy and well-made.

Pockets

A big plus for adventure riders are big – and useful – pockets. The jacket has a large rear map pocket, two decent sized chest pockets, two large standard low pockets, inside pockets and a sleeve pocket. The waterproof throwover also has pockets. They’re all easy to use and spacious.

And the trousers have the key pockets up top and two large thigh pockets, which are a must for me personally. They’re easy to use and store your phone, wallet or large items.

Adjustment

You’ve got Velcro adjustments on the cuffs and a big zip release so you can easily fit a large glove in there. There are poppers along the sleeves and waist belt along the jacket. The trouser legs have a long zip too and are finished off with a Velcro tab, so it’s all very easy to slip chunky adventure riding boots on and off.

Waterproofing

The jacket and trousers are in no way waterproof – which is perfect for me as I prefer to use throwover waterproofs. But the Trek-R does come with its own waterproof throwover set – and it’s really good.

It’s made from Gore-Tex and is a seriously premium set. The material is stretchy, light, thin and completely waterproof. The trousers come with knee high zips so you can easily get them on without taking your boots off and they whip off in seconds when you need to stuff them back in the bag.

What’s good about the Rukka Trek-R?

The Rukka Trek-R ticks all the boxes. It’s a proper adventure suit made by a team who know what they’re doing and what adventure riders – and travellers need and want. The jacket and trouser set as exceptionally well made, tough, durable and kitted out with premium materials. There’s loads of pockets, ventilation and everything is well-thought out and easy to use.

For example, riding along and it gets hot, I can quickly and easily unzip the huge vent zips on my thighs and pull down the two big vents on my chest. The pockets are huge, easy to store things in and can be used with one hand. Everything just works perfectly.

What’s not?

The collar is the only slight oversight on this suit. A pin back or loop fastener wouldn’t go amiss. The jacket can clearly be used in hot conditions with all of its excellent ventilation, so I’m not sure why the collar is high and has no pin back. I may just sew my own in.

Weight. The suit is heavy, but that’s because of the armour. It has heavier duty armour than a lot of standard suits and that weighs more. So it makes the suit more suited to off-road riders.

The price tag is worth mentioning too. This is a pricey suit – no doubt there. But it is premium. Everything on it is well made and there’s no cut corners here. If you’re investing in an adventure riding suit and looking for the best, this is it.

Rukka Trek-R adventure suit review round up

The Rukka Trek-R is one of the finest – if not the best – adventure motorcycle suits I’ve ever tested and used. It’s perfect for overlanders, travellers and adv bike riders. It’s so well thought out and made, packed with excellent protection and is tough and hard wearing while remaining all-day comfortable.

All the features you need like great ventilation, easy to use pockets, zips, adjusters are there too. And importantly, it comes with an excellent set of throwovers that easily slip over the suit. They can also double up as off the bike waterproofs. And if it’s seriously cold out, chucking them on acts as the perfect windbreaker. This suit is so good because it’s so versatile. You can easily layer up under or over it to match whatever conditions or weather you’re riding through. So far, I’ve had this suit in everything from 46C in Central America to freezing conditions through the Andes Mountains of South America and it’s been perfect.

If you’re a serious adventure rider heading through multiple climates, this is the suit for you. It’s one of the very best on the market and can take you through anything. For our round the world motorcycle trip – you can’t get better.

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