Review with Video: “Miss Enthusiast” Mid-Weight Black Leather Motorcycle Jacket

I was excited to review Harley-Davidson’s new Miss Enthusiast leather jacket for Women Riders Now. As someone who rides year round in a colder climate, I am always interested to learn about new gear that might fit my needs. Also, as a plus-sized woman, it is often difficult to find riding gear in appropriate sizes.

Harley-Davidson offers the Miss Enthusiast in standard sizes (XS, S, M, L, XL and 2XL), but the company has gone a step further offering this in 1W, 2W and 3W as well. There are also the additional sizing options of Tall and Petite sizes S through XL. Thank you Harley-Davidson for accommodating such a wide range of sizes for women.

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review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket — I wore the Miss Enthusiast jacket all summer in various kinds of weather while riding my 2006 Harley-Davidson Softail Deluxe for this review.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket harley davidson — When I took this jacket out of the packaging, I noticed right away that the leather was of good quality and soft enough to require no break-in period. The styling is eye-catching without being over-the-top, with just the right amount of Harley-Davidson badging.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket interior — There are two deep hip pockets with zippers, and one inner zippered pocket. Because I’m used to putting my wallet in one inside pocket and my phone in the other when wearing my other leather jacket, I missed having an additional interior pocket with this jacket. It’s too bulky to put both a wallet and phone in one interior pocket. Certainly those can be put in the outside pockets though.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket back — The upper portion of the chest and back—as well as the back waist area—have a quilted top-stitching, which enhances the look of the jacket. I chose a 3W for size based on Harley-Davidson’s sizing chart. The jacket fits true to size and leaves me room to wear a sweatshirt underneath, which is good because this jacket is a lighter to mid-weight leather with no liner.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket on bike — As a bustier woman with broad shoulders, I was pleasantly surprised by the room provided in the shoulders by the action back and pre-curved sleeves. There was no pinching or pulling across my back even with my arms crossed, and the sleeves are long enough that they don’t ride up when I’m grasping the handlebars.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket custom fit — For further customization of the fit, the jacket has snap tabs at the waist area, and hip release zippers toward the back. The Miss Enthusiast jacket fits well and is long enough to cover the lower back and hips while riding.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket armor pockets — There are pockets in this jacket that allow the addition of optional riding armor at the elbows, shoulders, and back. The armor is not included with the jacket, but may be purchased separately.

I had never ridden with armor in my riding gear before, so I was intrigued by the idea of trying it out. I found the kind of lightweight CE-approved armor that Harley-Davidson offers very flexible and unobtrusive. I really didn’t notice it at all.

However, it is slightly more challenging to store the jacket on the motorcycle when not in use. The jacket doesn’t fold as easily nor does it pack down small with the armor in it. I recommend springing for the armor though, as it’s nice to have that added protection in the impact zones should I go down. The armor for the shoulders and elbows is the same, so you’ll need two packs of two pieces. Each set costs $25. The back armor costs $35.

I’ll be honest here, I don’t normally wear a jacket on a warm day; however, knowing temps would reach the mid-80s, I was actually excited to test the venting on the Miss Enthusiast on a 250-mile ride. I half expected I’d need to take off the jacket when it got really hot. However, I opened all three vents in Harley’s patent-pending “Triple Vent System” on each side along the torso, as well as the vent under each arm and they worked really well.

review miss enthusiast mid weight black leather motorcycle jacket vents — Showing off the three vents that are open here.

These vents have been engineered in a wind tunnel for maximum airflow through the jacket. Even on a hot day, I was not uncomfortably warm in the Miss Enthusiast and did notice the air flowing through to keep me cool.

On another day, I set out on a ride in the morning while the temperature was in the 40s. I chose to wear my gauntlet gloves to prevent air from going up my jacket sleeve. However, I found that the gusset at the sleeve is too thick to comfortably wear the gauntlet gloves over the top of the sleeve, and a little too tight to be able to slide the gauntlet underneath easily.

To be comfortable in the cooler morning temperatures, I definitely needed to add an additional layer under the Miss Enthusiast, which surprisingly does not come with any kind of liner, as mentioned previously. Can you tell yet that this peeves me?

Also, while the jacket will repel water for a short time, it is definitely not water resistant or waterproof. But it does dry out rather quickly, as I discovered one rainy afternoon ride.

Overall, this is a great jacket with a variety of features. The triple vent system makes this black leather jacket versatile in those extremely warm weather conditions. But know that this definitely is not a jacket for cold weather riding. If you plan to use it for riding in a wide variety of temperatures, don’t forget to pack a fleece liner jacket.

With a steep price tag of $450 (although on par for Harley-Davidson MotorClothes), I would have appreciated a zip-in liner. Additionally, to encourage more riders to wear armor, I suggest that Harley-Davidson provide the armor at no additional cost.

The jacket can be purchased here at Harley-Davidson.com. Part number is 98134-17VW.

3 thoughts on Review with Video: “Miss Enthusiast” Mid-Weight Black Leather Motorcycle Jacket

Terri Timm

Great review! Thank you for the honest review. As a plus size rider I hate wearing jackets because they either don’t fit my bust area or aren’t long enough in the back. You gave a great description, very much appreciated.
Debra Yates

Great review. Thank you for all the detail and pictures. Appreciate your honesty.
Michele Tomasicchio

Thanks for this review! So freakin’ happy to see plus-sized modeled! At first I thought your moniker was Miss Enthusiast! Then realized it’s the name of the jacket.Great review. I do agree with you they should give you options with liners. I just saw at my local dealership Harley has the FXRG cold weather gear for women. Don’t know about the sizing. Looking for more reviews from you.