Cortech GX Sport Pants

We ordered an entire size run of these pants for measurement because in our photo shoot, the first indication was that they run a bit small. And indeed, after measuring carefully, our opinion is that they run about one size smaller than Tour Master’s chart would indicate. We have added a couple columns to Tour Master’s chart to show you what our estimate of both the waist and inseam are. Please use our estimates when selecting the size for you.

When you are evaluating yourself for fit, please be aware that protective motorcycle pants like this ride a bit higher on your waist than jeans or slacks, so you will want to measure yourself just below the navel. For a guy that has a bit of a belly, this can make a significant difference. Also it is best to measure because many jeans today are “vanity” sized, so by relying solely on the size jeans you buy, you’ll be tricked into buying a pair of pants like this that are too small. And it is especially advisable to measure when the vendor has a bit of a sizing issue like we are describing.

The pants are available in tall or short versions. The tall pants are 2” taller than standard in the inseam and likewise the short pants are 2” shorter than standard. Just use the chart below and add/subtract 2” from the inseam estimates we give you for the standard pants.

Need help measuring? Get it here.

The GX Sport pants by Cortech are made for street riders who want crash protection in the knees and hips to match the protection they have on their upper body with a good jacket. The overall design is that of a sport pant (not an overpant), so you’d be wearing these over underwear, rather than over street clothes. There is a zipper on the end of each pant leg that will help you to pull them off and put them on over boots/shoes. These pants are made of ballistic polyester with reinforcements in the knee/hip areas which is very similar to what you’d find in a nice textile jacket. The pants have some nice reflective materials to make you very visible at night. We’ve taken a couple night shots to show you how they work (take the View Larger Images link above). Some reflectives just work so-so, but these work great! As I said, these pants are made to be worn with a complementing jacket and there is a short rear zipper. You can zip the pants to any Tour Master or Cortech jacket that also has the short rear zipper feature. Thoughtfully, they’ve given you the mating half of the zipper so you could ask a tailor to install the zipper in just about any jacket. Being basic black, you could pair these pants with just about any type/brand of jacket that way. If you are not zipping the pants to a jacket, they’ve added belt loops to allow you to use a belt if you like. The waist closes with two snaps. The belt feature might come in handy to take a bit of pressure off those snaps when you are bent forward on the bike (if they pop open on you). Personally, I prefer a hook/snap arrangement, but oh well. These pants come with CE approved “GP” type armor for the knees (hard plastic over softer padding) and foam in the hips. The height of the knee armor is adjustable in the legs by way of some cleverly placed Velcro strips. A windproof/waterproof liner is included with the pants. I notice though that the liner has a cutout behind the fly (for easy access I suppose), but that allows an opening for water to come through the fly zipper and into your soon-to-be wet crotch area. The folks at Cortech acknowledge this issue and now have deemed the liner to be “windproof” for sure and waterproof only from below the crotch. Maybe they’ll correct this in the distant future… if so, we’ll let you know. Anyway, overall, these are nice pants and will work well for their intended purpose. Paul, 10-23-12