Is it becoming "uncool" to wear protection?
- Thread starter swaussie
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Speaking of... can anyone recommend elbow pads for someone with thick forearms. My arms are the right length for larges but they cut off my circulation. XL's are too long for me. I have tried 661 and TLD.
The Fox Launch elbow pads in L/XL might work for you. The straps are too long for me causing them to slip a bit since I have average width forearms. They definitely provide good protection too but may be too long.
The Fox Launch elbow pads in L/XL might work for you. The straps are too long for me causing them to slip a bit since I have average width forearms. They definitely provide good protection too but may be too long.
i wish somebody came up with a mesh-suit with padding for the frontal hips.
many times i have faceplanted and gotten huge bruises on my hip (just above my shorts pockets)
many times i have faceplanted and gotten huge bruises on my hip (just above my shorts pockets)
Seriously? What makes you say that?
Thx. I'll try to find some way to try them on. I'm hesitant to buy sight unseen due to previous failures.
Me too. But we only have to wait until Interbike I think.
Huge plus to the TLD offerings is the zip. What I don't like is the bulky looking elbowpads. It's abit too much I think.
They also have a short spine protector like the TLD and the 661 EVO. Seems like you don't really need a longer spine protector or they designed it this way to work well with protecting shorts.
Have you tried the new 661 Rage Elbows? The fit is pretty dialed and there's a hard cup in there for better protection. I've had great luck with mine and they don't slide down...
I have not. In the past I have stuck to hard shell style guards with forearm protection. Maybe the answer is to use Rage type, elbow only, guards but I tend to take hits to the forearm.
I think I saw a vest from o'neal that had extra padding in that area and yeah I had that too and it sucked.
I have never worn any of that plastic chest nonsense on a bike (also known as chest protector), have on moto, but never on a bike. That being said, I was riding northstar for a week and wanted some extra protection from the rocks, in case I ate sh1t hard-so I tried our premium protection chest protector https://www.troyleedesigns.com/product.php?cat=98&id=17428 and of course I am biased, but this thing was really comfortable. I wore it under my jersey every day, right on my skin...except the last day of riding I wore it on top with gopro cam attached to it-made for sick footage.
It didn't restrict movement and I felt like superman being that I 'thought' I was protected against collarbone injuries and internal injuries from a big a$$ tahoe rock going into my stomach.
I am trying to get more of my pros into protection, but they are so resistant, no matter how comfortable a piece is.
It didn't restrict movement and I felt like superman being that I 'thought' I was protected against collarbone injuries and internal injuries from a big a$$ tahoe rock going into my stomach.
I am trying to get more of my pros into protection, but they are so resistant, no matter how comfortable a piece is.
Loss of focus caused by distraction or discomfort leads to bad runs and crashing, then when hitting the ground we are thankfull we had the armor. In most cases my armor caused the distraction and bunching that's why I aced everything except helmet, knee and gloves.
The few times I did hit hard (ripped out collar bone and tendoins from neck, 2 x compound back fractures and my latest concussion) the armor would not have saved me the helmet did save me but was shattered and missing chunks...
anyone riding without a helmet goofing off should consider wearing one, I'd be dead or massivley brain damaged from that one... (funny I remember being told this years ago on here
)
It was left at troy lee so they could inspect it, it was NOT a tld helmet. Now back with a d3 though more padding is a good thing.....
Point being that protection works and if the suits coming out are less obvious while riding and protect well then its a good thing.
The old madmax look was harsh and really uncomfortable, especially being pedal driven and needing movement.
The few times I did hit hard (ripped out collar bone and tendoins from neck, 2 x compound back fractures and my latest concussion) the armor would not have saved me the helmet did save me but was shattered and missing chunks...
anyone riding without a helmet goofing off should consider wearing one, I'd be dead or massivley brain damaged from that one... (funny I remember being told this years ago on here
)It was left at troy lee so they could inspect it, it was NOT a tld helmet. Now back with a d3 though more padding is a good thing.....
Point being that protection works and if the suits coming out are less obvious while riding and protect well then its a good thing.
The old madmax look was harsh and really uncomfortable, especially being pedal driven and needing movement.
I feel like post #11 trumped any other wiener joke
hey stik here is a design idea for tld why not build a protector with dedicated real spine protection which is compatible with a leatt, made of really breathable material, with d30 pads, ideal would be you can remove every pad if you feel the need for more freedom of movement.
so yeah basically i am dreaming of a lightweight poc vpd 2.0 jacket with a leatt compatible back protector and customizable protection...
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Stik, you only have to change this one slightly:hey stik here is a design idea for tld why not build a protector with dedicated real spine protection which is compatible with a leatt, made of really breathable material, with d30 pads, ideal would be you can remove every pad if you feel the need for more freedom of movement.
so yeah basically i am dreaming of a lightweight poc vpd 2.0 jacket with a leatt compatible back protector and customizable protection...
Longer back protector and a zip for taking it off easier and it would be the holy grail.
Yeah seriously. I'm in the minimal armor camp for reasons that have been stated a million times already (don't think it helps enough on the most serious injuries to justify the discomfort) but I don't get that either. I find most armor hot and uncomfortable, so I don't wear it. I'll deal with bruises and abrasions.
I am one of "those" riders who only wears helmet and knee pads. Elbow pads feel too restricting, and living in the humid southeast, any bit of protection adds alot of heat and discomfort. I am aware of my skill level and try to ride within it at all times, so i generally dont crash hard often. I did break my collarbone about 4 months ago, but I do not see any sort of body armor that would have been able to prevent that. I also have an alpinestars neck brace that I wear when I am riding "real" downhill. my reasons for minimal protection though is definitely the heat. 90+ degrees and crazy humidity makes it pretty intense down here to be wearing much more than a full face and knee pads.
More pics of the new Leatt 3DF body protector:
And the new catalogue where you can find a bit of describing. The pads look a bit bulky and the back protector is a bit shirt imo.
http://www.leatt-brace.com/manuals/BicycleCatalogue2013/index.html
And the new catalogue where you can find a bit of describing. The pads look a bit bulky and the back protector is a bit shirt imo.
http://www.leatt-brace.com/manuals/BicycleCatalogue2013/index.html
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IXS has also a new option for a Leatt compatible PS:
This one looks really good imo. You can wear it as a vest, jacket or back protector only. It seems to be light and breathable and not bulky.
But it will be pricey. Around 280€ according their website...
This one looks really good imo. You can wear it as a vest, jacket or back protector only. It seems to be light and breathable and not bulky.
But it will be pricey. Around 280€ according their website...
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That's pretty sweet. If I go that route next year, I'd probably go with that one.
Yeah I thought that too. According the pic with Leatt it seems low profile and the back protector is much longer than on other offerings.
Hopefully I'll see one soon in real life.
Luckily IXS is pretty known in our area.
Hopefully I'll see one soon in real life.
Luckily IXS is pretty known in our area.
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For me it kinda depends on where I ride.
Ill wear nothing but a helmet on some DH tracks (Like Winterberg Germany for the ones who have been there).
But when the track gets a little faster and gnar (Think Todtnau or BadWildbad) ill wear my Dianese suit and some knee/shin pads...
I couldnt care less about what other people do really...
Ill wear nothing but a helmet on some DH tracks (Like Winterberg Germany for the ones who have been there).
But when the track gets a little faster and gnar (Think Todtnau or BadWildbad) ill wear my Dianese suit and some knee/shin pads...
I couldnt care less about what other people do really...
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I love my Dainese bib underarmor with integrated hipupper leg and knee protector. The full shuttle/impact suit was overkill, but the bib armor rocks imo. I really like the fact that the knee protector can't move at all. It is a lot safer than any stand-alone knee protector I have tried. Too bad they don't make them anymore.
Possibly. A lot of the top guns ditched it over the last few years.
But I couldn't care less. They try to avoid anything that could make them slower. Leov ditched also knee pads in Pietermaritzburg just to have an advantage in the pedaling section.
Wearing armor is a lot like going to church, nobody can really prove it one way or the other, some people are very fanatic about it one way or the other and when it comes time to pay the piper... it's better to be safe than sorry, just in case.
Some people wear only a leatt and say "armor costs too much $$ and I want to protect my neck in a crash", well that's silly be cause a leatt costs a lot $$ and some people want to protect their knees / elbows / etc also.
It's all personal preference of what you are willing to risk and this is Ridemonkey, birthplace of freeride forum-biking so you'll get lots of bashing one way or the other
Some people wear only a leatt and say "armor costs too much $$ and I want to protect my neck in a crash", well that's silly be cause a leatt costs a lot $$ and some people want to protect their knees / elbows / etc also.
It's all personal preference of what you are willing to risk and this is Ridemonkey, birthplace of freeride forum-biking so you'll get lots of bashing one way or the other
somebody needs to come up with real wrist protection. 
Attachments
second that...
healing vibes for you!
healing vibes for you!
Here's a little at home test to check the effecacy of protective gear:
A) Take a belt sander w. 40 grit and apply it while running to one side of your body with protection
B) Repeat on the opposite side without protection
C) Compare abrasion of corresponding body parts
You may similarly take a brick and drop it from arms-length on yourself to test impact resistance (or have a buddy hit you with a golf club or ballpeen hammer)
The results may astound you.
A) Take a belt sander w. 40 grit and apply it while running to one side of your body with protection
B) Repeat on the opposite side without protection
C) Compare abrasion of corresponding body parts
You may similarly take a brick and drop it from arms-length on yourself to test impact resistance (or have a buddy hit you with a golf club or ballpeen hammer)
The results may astound you.
I think you're confusing DH with racing street bikes.
I'll start wearing more armor as soon as falling off a DH bike does anything like the kind of damage a be;t sander would.
I dunno. I got buked on Aline a few years back and slide for a long way. It was in my pressure suit wearing days. The shoulder pad got grinded down and my shirt lost its sleeve. Who knows what my shoulder would have looked like after that . It looked like the pad had been belt sanded.
However my avid brake lever ripped my side open on the way over the bars and now I've got an Aline scar.
However my avid brake lever ripped my side open on the way over the bars and now I've got an Aline scar.
B!tches love scars
A friend of mine overshot a jump in Leogang quite a bit (the jump where they put the first wooden ramp) and went OTB on his left forearm. Result: A 20cm long laceration. Vacation ender and 2 weeks in a cast. He was damn lucky, that he didn't trashed a nerve the doc said.
Bringing this back from the dead since this thread was a good read...
I asked the girl not too long ago (she's a nurse at Vancouver General Hospital) how many people she sees come in due to spine/neck injuries from the Whistler bike park during a season. She said "Oh god, I don't know... 10 or 12, maybe more??" When I told her I was going to get back into DH riding, she told me that anything less than a neck brace and spine protector is crazy.
Not too long ago I had to respond to a girl trying to kill herself because she was fed up with being in a wheel chair and suffering from a brain injury. It turns out a few years ago she hurt herself skiing or snowboarding in Whistler.
Ah well, to each their own....
I asked the girl not too long ago (she's a nurse at Vancouver General Hospital) how many people she sees come in due to spine/neck injuries from the Whistler bike park during a season. She said "Oh god, I don't know... 10 or 12, maybe more??" When I told her I was going to get back into DH riding, she told me that anything less than a neck brace and spine protector is crazy.
Not too long ago I had to respond to a girl trying to kill herself because she was fed up with being in a wheel chair and suffering from a brain injury. It turns out a few years ago she hurt herself skiing or snowboarding in Whistler.
Ah well, to each their own....
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