Gear is Always Important
I am an avid motorcyclist that advocates wearing gear. I had a friend that didn’t really care about gear of any kind, saying “It was too hot in the summer” to wear it. I was finally able to convince him to get gloves and a helmet after a few years of riding. Not an hour after he bought the helmet and the gloves, someone turned left in front of him and he went down.
He was able to reduce his speed before the crash but he still went flying over the hood of a Camry at about 30 mph, landing hands and face first on the asphalt. He had a nasty gash on his leg and some pretty bad road rash on his legs and arms, but his hands and head were A-OK.
The bike was a total loss; insurance paid for it and the helmet and gloves. Once he was ship shape to ride again, he had me help him pick out a complete suit.
Story credit: Reddit / Villa-Strangiato