Keep your cool: Best summer motorcycle gloves

The Stella SMX-1 Air V2 women's glove from Alpinestars uses a mixture of leather and mesh, with leather in the key landing zones and abrasion areas and mesh in non-critical sections to provide exceptional cooling. There is hard polymer knuckle armour with grip panels inside and touchscreen-compatible fingertips. There are also stretch and flex panels in various locations to allow the hand to move in use and the short design means they should fit under jacket cuffs easily. CE rating: 1 KP

These short-cuff gloves from German manufacturer Held feature significant hard knuckle armour formed in TPU plastic with large air vents built-in, to admit cooling air to the hand. They also have perforated leather over the fingers, with padding to protect the digits, as well as kangaroo leather on the palm and Superfabric abrasion-resistant sections on the fingers and the palm and a Kevlar lining on the back of the hand. I've used these and found them very comfortable and cool with great feel. CE rating: 1 KP

The Orsa from Knox is a short glove formed in perforated goat leather with a synthetic lining and additional vents to admit cooling air. They feature ventilated hard knuckle armour and protective pads on the fingers and Knox's hard protection on the heel of the palm and over the scaphoid bone. The back of the wrist is elasticated and the cuff features the cable-operated BOA closure system for fast closure. CE rating: 1 KP

A variation on a theme from British manufacture Spada, with a glove formed in a combination of leather and mesh for cooling. The palms and fingertip are made in leather, the latter perforated while the back of the hand and upper fingers are in mesh to allow huge amounts of air in. The palms feature padded sections at the base and double-layered leather for protection and grip and the knuckles have padded rubber protection. CE rating: 1

Another short, sporty glove, the X4 Coupe from Spidi features a combination of goat leather and durable mesh in non-key locations to allow loads of air into the hand to keep it cool while the leather ensures protection from landings and abrasion. There is hard polyurethane knuckle protection as well as padded nibs on three of the four fingers and the thumb. There is an extra layer of leather over the palm with padding over the scaphoid bone and the heel of the palm. The short cuff is fastened with a hook-and-loop-equipped flap. CE rating: 1

A short glove, the cuff is slightly longer than some and offers protection to the wrist thanks to two padded sections. The main body of the Apex is made from full-grain leather with a soft lining and perforations to allow cooling air to enter. There's hard-knuckle armour as well as padded sections on each of the fingers and the thumb. The palm is double-layered for extra security and has both soft padding and a hard slider section on the landing zone. There is a printed grip panel at the base of the fingers and there are touchscreen-compatible sections on the forefingers and thumbs. CE rating: unknown

The Axis gloves from RST are made in perforated leather with Amara panels in key reinforcement areas and hard knuckle protectors, as well as padding and hard plastic protection over the fingers and padding on the thumb. There are also two padded areas on the 'landing zones' on the hands - the base of the palm and over the scaphoid bone - and there are grip panels on the inside of the palm. I've tried these and found them comfortable and cool. CE rating: 1 KP

An aggressive-looking glove, the Richa Stealth is available in black as well as with white, red, blue or yellow trim and pink too. It is formed in perforated goat leather for protection and cooling and features aramid stitching to improve strength. There's a polyester lining for comfort and hard armour over the knuckles. There are also rubber sections on the fingers for extra security and foam padding on the palm and the outside of the hand and wrist. The cuff fastens with a Velcro flap. CE rating: 1

If you're looking for a bit of a retro vibe for your summer riding, these Nubuck leather gloves from Garibaldi will do the trick. The leather is heavily perforated to allow air in and double-layered on the palm with padding on the heel and an additional grip section at the base of the fingers. Available in tobacco and black, the latter comes with touchscreen-compatible sections on the forefingers and thumbs. CE rating: 1