Denim and the Motorcycle: Why Riders Have Always Worn Blue

Denim and the motorcycle grew up together. Both are about freedom, self-reliance, and a life lived out in the weather — and the fades on a rider's jeans are a logbook of the miles.

The birth of a uniform

After the Second World War, returning servicemen bought surplus motorcycles and formed riding clubs, and the era's films cemented an image that never faded: the rebel in a leather jacket, a plain white tee, and cuffed blue jeans. Leather-and-denim became shorthand for freedom and refusal — a look that said the open road belonged to whoever was brave enough to take it.

Denim earned its spot on the bike for the same reasons it earned it on the frontier. Heavyweight cotton took abrasion, weather, and road grime; it got better with wear; and it cost a working rider next to nothing. Cuff it and the raw hem shows the road. The whiskers behind the knees and the honeycombs at the back of the leg become a record of every mile in the saddle.

Why heavier denim rides better

Weight is your friend on a bike. Heavier denim has structure, more abrasion resistance, and a break-in that molds to the riding position, so a well-worn pair of raw selvedge ends up shaped like the way you sit your machine. No two riders wear a pair the same way.

The Black Bear Brand take

This is not theory for us. Josh Sirlin rides a 1948 Panhead chopper and has chased indigo and open road from the California coast to the Utah desert to the mountain passes of Japan. Black Bear Brand builds for the ride: heavyweight Okayama selvedge cowboy jeans cut long to stack on boots, wax canvas jackets made in Seattle that have taken desert rain and mountain wind, and gear meant for the road rather than the showroom floor.

Gear up in our Jeans and Pants and Jackets, and read Josh's essay on his 1948 Panhead on the journal.

A note on safety: what you wear on a bike is a personal choice — ride within your limits and gear up for the ride you're taking.