Why bikers wear leather

I was just talking to a co-worker from Texas* and I learned why bikers wear leather. If a biker crashes, the leather is more likely to protect his (or her) skin from getting ripped off. And here I was thinking it was just because they wanted to look cool. (Insert sheepish smile here.) Now I feel stupid. Serves me right for passing judgement on others.

*I'm not sure why it matters where she's from but I'm sticking that in anyway!