YT INDUSTRIES TRAIL GLOVE REVIEW

Words and Photos by Travis Reill

In recent years, YT has been branching out from just making quality mountain and e-bikes to apparel and protection, and even launched a new partnership on some shoes with Vans. They sent us some of their new soft goods to ride and review, including these Trail Gloves which have quickly become my go-tos.

QUICK SPECS

• Minimalist, breathable glove
• 6 sizes XS–XXL
• Single-layer palm for max grip and dexterity
• Silicone fingertips for braking grip and smartphone compatibility

WE DIG

WE DON’T

ABOUT THE YT INDUSTRIES TRAIL GLOVES

The YT Industries Trail Gloves aim to offer ultimate comfort and grip from a breathable fabric that YT says will “feel like a second skin thanks to their articulated, preformed shape.” The preformed shape of the glove helps prevent any bunching that could happen from general movement, such as opening and closing your fists. A perforated, single-layer palm boosts breathability and provides improved grip by preventing the stretching and slipping that can come with extra material. Along with the Trail Glove’s body having a preformed shape, the fingers are also contoured, allowing for a closer and more natural-fitting glove. The glove is a mix of poly-blended material along with elastane to give it some stretch and flexibility. A non-adjustable neoprene cuff sits at the wrist.

This very simple and well-fitting glove is also very subtle as far as branding goes. The Trail Gloves and branding are either black on black or grey on black. YT branding can be found between the thumb and index finger, as well as on the first two finger pads, encouraging wearers to throw up the duces to fellow riders. They retail for a reasonable $19.99 in typical YT fashion.

THE DIRT

Honestly, there’s not that much to report on the Trail Gloves. They were comfortable and easy to wear from the first day up to now. The gloves contour to your hand well and fit snugly while never feeling claustrophobic. My only beef was that the fingers were just a touch too long for my hands, but that could very well be the result of stubby fingers and not poor design on YT’s part. This longer fit in the fingers was just enough for me to notice, but certainly not enough to affect performance.

The only “performance” that could have potentially been affected by the long fingers was trying to use the YT Trail Gloves with my iPhone. I have yet to find a glove that works perfectly with a touchscreen, and the Trail Gloves worked as well as any other glove—adequate, but I will still choose to remove them to send a long text.

Along with being comfortable and lightweight, YT’s Trail Gloves also breathed and dried better than any gloves I’ve used in quite a while. This made them great for warmer days, which I was blessed with. However, I wouldn’t necessarily reach for them on chilly mornings. They also don’t provide much in the way of protection so I would probably want something a bit more for going to the bike park. YT offers a burlier gravity glove for those days.

The Wolf’s Last Word

Unless I’m testing other gloves, you will find me wearing the YT Industries Trail Gloves on the trails this summer. While they may have a couple of things I can nit-pick, the lightweight, breathable, and comfortable qualities of these gloves push them high up on my list.

Price: $19.99
Website: YT-industries.com