There is a lot of confident, contradictory advice about track day kit, and some of it comes from people selling the kit. So here is what UK organisers actually check at sign-on.
Always confirm with your specific organiser before booking. Requirements vary between circuits and change over time, and the person who can tell you definitively is the one who will be standing in front of you at scrutineering.
Leathers, and they mean leathers
Textile suits are not permitted at MSV Trackdays, and this is typical across UK organisers. Your road-going textile jacket, however good, will not get you on track.
You need either:
- A one-piece leather suit, or
- A two-piece leather suit that zips together around the majority of the circumference
The two-piece rule is where people come unstuck. A jacket and trousers with a 20cm zip at the back is not a two-piece suit — organisers have become notably stricter about this, and riders arriving with three-quarter zips have been turned away.
The test they actually apply: stand up, raise your arms above your head. If any skin or base layer shows between jacket and trousers, you are not riding.
Back protector
A back protector covering the majority of the spine is required, not optional.
Many suits have a foam insert in a back pocket that is intended as a comfort pad rather than a protector. Check yours is a genuine back protector — a proper one is certified to EN 1621-2 and will say so on the label. If yours is unmarked foam, buy a separate one; they are inexpensive and they are the single most valuable item on this list.
Boots and gloves
Boots must be proper motorcycle boots covering the ankle and running up the calf. Short boots, work boots and trainers are refused.
Gloves must be leather and must extend beyond the wrist so they overlap the suit sleeve. Short gloves that leave a gap at the wrist are refused, and that gap is one of the most commonly injured areas in a slide.
What is not allowed
Metal knee and toe sliders. Plastic only. Metal sliders throw sparks and can gouge the track surface, and they are explicitly banned.
Also generally checked: no loose straps, no camera mounts on the helmet at some circuits, and lever guards required on some race-derived days. Worth asking.
The honest bit about certification
Here is a distinction that gets muddled, often deliberately.
Track day organisers do not check EN 17092 classes. They check construction and coverage — is it leather, is it one piece or properly zipped, is there a back protector, do the gloves overlap. Nobody at sign-on will ask whether your suit is Class AA.
That does not mean certification is irrelevant. It means the two things are measuring different risks:
- Organiser rules are about whether you are adequately covered and will not endanger yourself or the track surface
- EN 17092 certification is about how the garment performs when you are sliding down it at speed — abrasion resistance, seam strength, whether the armour stays over the joint
You can pass scrutineering in an uncertified suit. Whether you would want to is a separate question, and it is yours to answer.
Be a little wary of anyone who tells you track days “require CE Level 1 as a minimum.” Level 1 and Level 2 describe armour under EN 1621, not garments, and organisers do not specify them. It is a claim that sounds like a standard and is not one. We have written about that confusion separately.
A practical checklist
Before you book:
- One-piece leathers, or a two-piece with a substantial connecting zip
- Arms-up test — no skin showing
- Back protector covering the majority of the spine
- Leather boots over the ankle
- Leather gloves overlapping the sleeve
- Plastic sliders, not metal
- Confirmed the above with your specific organiser
That last one is not padding. The rules differ by circuit and by day, and the cost of getting it wrong is a wasted booking and a long drive home.
IVY FLAG's motorcycle range is in development. It will be certified to EN 17092, and the certificate number and class will be published on every product page.
Sources: MSV Trackdays FAQ · Bennetts BikeSocial