Spyke Hudson Textile Trousers - Review

To couple up to the Cruiser Jacket by Spyke Leigh chose a set of Hudson Trousers from their range and put them to the test in a variety of conditions.

Initial Thoughts

Having previously tested out a set of Spyke leathers and really rating them I thought it would be quite a good idea to grab a set of textiles for more cooler (and wetter) rides so I thumbed the catalogue to choose the Cruiser Jacket and Hudson Pants - actually I chose the Riddley but at the time they were not in my size. On arrival they look like just about any other black pair of textiles but for once were not adorned in the usual plethora of external pockets and while worn actually look quite smart and less like motorcycle trousers than I am used to.

Construction

Starting at the very beginning I do have to say that Spyke are not particularly generous with sizing, when you get an EU size 60 from most other manufacturers such as Weise you can normally expect a bit of room in which to accomodate the thermal and waterproof liners as well as perhaps a set of long johns on the coldest of days, the opposite is true for Spyke in that a size 60 for me would be snug with all the liners in and just about perfect without anything in - I prefer a bit of room in textiles and after all they are supposed to be more versatile so it is worth looking out for this when purchasing items from this and many other European brands. Looking further at the Spyke sizing chart it would appear that the EU 60 sizing I decided upon corresponds to a 3XL now gets advertised as an EU 56 so perhaps they realised the sizing was a little bit frugal.

When they are on the Hudson Pants are extremely comfortable, with knee armour sitting in the correct location without sagging or twisting and concertina stretch panels above the knee to keep it all in shape while moving around the Hudson trousers are ideal for those that perhaps need to wear motorcycle trousers with smart work wear. You get a pair of pockets which are zipped at the top of each leg and a single, jeans style pocket on the right buttock which is also zipped and covered with a velcro flap, while riding you might not want to use this pocket as you occasionally get a jab or lump from cards or wallets but off the bike it is ideal for people carrying a wallet.

With the liners removed the Spyke Hudson Jeans are light and airy, feeling more like a thick pair of office trousers than your typical Cordura offerings, construction is of a 500 denier Nylon and when you look across the front it would appear that the knee panel shimmers a little differently to the rest of the material, either being slightly different or treated in some way but I can find no mention of this. For true summer use the Hudson Trousers are ideal when you want a little bit of cooling but when yo get stuck in a sudden downpour the material is overwhelmed without the liners.

On the bottom of the trouser you see a storm flap with velcro and zip fastening and a few inches along the very bottom inside of a waterproof liner, this does save the very bottoms becoming a soggy mess and creeping upwards, what is nice here is that you are not getting half a leg of it which you see in other pairs where your lower leg has no airation and gets hot and sweaty from the engine heat.

Specification:

• High tech waterproof trousers
• Outside fabric: 100% 500D polyester
• Inside fixed poly-mesh lining
• Removable waterproof, breathable interior membrane
• Removable interior thermal padding in polyester and polyamide
• Removable CE approved knee and shin protectors
• Double waist zip connection allows attachment to jacket
• Adjustable velcro waist closure