HanLeh Tourer Riding Boots – First Impressions
Breaking in my new HanLeh Tourer waterproof boots on this morning’s ride.
Since 2012, I’ve owned two pairs of Alpinestars Toucan boots. They’ve been fantastic adventure boots, offering excellent protection and saving my feet more than once during falls on off-road trails. However, instead of spending another small fortune on a third pair, I decided it was time to try something different.
The biggest reason is that my riding has changed. These days I spend far more time touring on highways than tackling technical trails. I also enjoy parking the motorcycle and exploring places on foot, and that’s where the Toucans really let me down. They’re incredibly protective, but they’re also heavy and uncomfortable to walk in. I still remember a ride in Mongolia where our guide asked us to park our motorcycles near the base of a volcano and hike to the top. The trek itself was memorable, but doing it in Toucan boots certainly wasn’t.
After looking around, I came across the HanLeh Tourer from an Indian brand by Bulu Patnaik and decided to give them a chance. At around ₹8,000, they’re also a fraction of the price of premium adventure boots while still appearing to offer the level of protection I realistically need for the type of riding I do today.
They’re still a little stiff and will need some time to break in, but even on the first ride they’re noticeably lighter and far easier to walk in than my old Toucans. I’m looking forward to putting a lot more kilometres on them before passing final judgement, but the first impressions are definitely encouraging.
