[zane]

Okay, I've seen a lot of peeps asking about these pads and I thought I'd throw in my experiences.....

I've had the '04 Raceface rally FR knee pads for almost a year, and I've had no bad evperiences with them at all. I like the feel of the bend at the knee, that's probably the thing that gets to me with most other pads. If I can notice them moving funny while I'm riding then I don't like them... not the case here. The open back design is nice and cool on hot days, but if you want closed-back protection go with the rally DH pads. The contour of the leg is a nice fit too- they cover at least the front 1/2 of my leg... very nice. They've also stayed pretty smell-free. I'm not a super-sweaty person but I'd consider myself "average" in the sweat category, and these pads don't get very smelly due to it. I've washed them a couple times and they held up fine, I was gentle with them but enough to get them clean (hand wash with dish soap).

I also bought the rally FR elbow pads about a month ago, and I've only had one ride with them. They excel in all the same categories as the knee pads, except for one more thing- the color for '05 is much better. As the '04's were light grey, the 05 elbows I have are dark grey. Much nicer looking IMO. Also, I don't know if they changed the elbows for 05 but mine have the closed back design... maybe they are DH pads mispackaged into a FR bag? I don't know, I like them anyway.

All in all, a great set of pads and they work very well for me. I'll post what sizes I have once I can get home and look at them...

 

[rockwool]

can you wear the knee pads inside a pair of oversized jeans (not criscross baggy) or do they use the same kneecap as the dh model wich is too big?

 

[zane]

Um, maybe... it'll be a tight fit if you can.

 

[DVNT]

can you wear the knee pads inside a pair of oversized jeans (not criscross baggy) or do they use the same kneecap as the dh model wich is too big?

yes.
As long as you normally don't wear your criscross baggy jeans halfway down you @ss they will fit fine underneath.

 

[rockwool]

cool, i started to fear that i had to find some knee pads that could be worn front to back, to go with my pants

 

[thaflyinfatman]

I have the Rally FR knee/shins as well, and have had them for right on a year. As far as I'm concerned:
Fit/comfort: 9/10, they wrap the front of the leg REALLY well
Non-slip: 10/10. I have literally NEVER had to pull them up except after a crash... and even then, quite rarely.
Temperature: 6/10, they're alright but they're no dainese.
Protection: 9/10, only because they don't protect the back of the leg (personally I don't like full wrap leggings anyway, they're just too hot). I've only managed to hurt my knee once with these on, and that was a scrape after I landed face-forward and the edge of a rock caught the shinnies, pulled them down and scraped my leg up
Mobility: 7/10, never an issue whilst dhing, but they make any *serious* pedaling a bit annoying
Quality of construction: 4/10. Quite poor. After 6 months some of the stitching on the shin plastics was coming out, the knee plastics are both cracked and have a fair amount of stitching gone. Not good enough IMO, after a year they're pretty much ready to be replaced. Compared to my mates with their 3 year old Dainese knee/shins, these are very poor in that department. I can't see how it could be due to "misuse/abuse" either, cos this stuff is specifically designed to be crashed on.
Value: 5/10. They're not real cheap (or real expensive), but they don't last very long.
Stink: 8/10, after a year and having been washed like once or twice, they smell but nothing like my old Azonics.

Overall: 7ish/10

Edit: There is also no way they'll fit under anything but the baggiest of long pants. They are very bulky, more than anything that I know of except those retarded 661 (4x4s?).

 

[Atomic Dog]

I've had a mixed experience with the Rally FR leg armor. They are comfortable, and I didn't think they slipped like my old Roach stuff did. That was until I was up at Whistler last October. Coming down a rock face my front wheel slid out on me. I wasn't moving very fast, and rather than tumbling down the rock, I decided to just drop to my knee and slide it out. (Must have been my old skateboarding instincts kicking in.) Well, when I dropped my knee the pad was no longer where it should have been and it was my bare kneecap that landed on the granite. That little gracefull move left me with a stitched up knee and a $500 bill from the medical clininc in the village. That is the only time I've had them slide down on me that bad, though. As I said, they are still far better at staying put than my old Roach pads.

My girlfriend also picked up a set of the Rally FR arm and leg armor for this trip. They fit her okay, but the arms were too long for her, the end of the pad hits her hand when her wrist is bent. I thought I read somewhere that others had some issues with the arm pads being too long as well.

 

[tartosuc]

I have a set of rally DH

after over a year of use and abuse, I didnot have any trouble with them at all!

 

[Mr Big]

pretty much the whole fr/dh riders down here in sa wear the roach fr. i personally have tried a number of knee/shin guards and found the raceface to be the best.

 

[MikeD]

Coming down a rock face my front wheel slid out on me. I wasn't moving very fast, and rather than tumbling down the rock, I decided to just drop to my knee and slide it out. (Must have been my old skateboarding instincts kicking in.) Well, when I dropped my knee the pad was no longer where it should have been and it was my bare kneecap that landed on the granite.

This just happened to me as well. Suprised me, b/c they've always been the best stay-up pads I ever had. But the granite ripped them down and took all the skin off my knee. It's pretty ugly.

I also had the stitching on the kneepads start to unravel. So they're great, but not exceptionally durable for the price. Then again, they're the best pads I've used to date, so I'll get another pair unless something seriously cool comes along.

I also had a pointy stick (jackass trailbuilders leaving sharp branches when they cut back the brush) slide up the pads and through one of the vents, impaling my shin quite impressively...but this wasn't really a pad problem so much. Woulda done that to any pad with a slit vent...

MD

 

[zedro]

This just happened to me as well. Suprised me, b/c they've always been the best stay-up pads I ever had. But the granite ripped them down and took all the skin off my knee. It's pretty ugly.

thats why pants are a safety item as well and help eliminate that effect. Any leg guard of such a design will act like a scoop when dragged across the ground, unless you want to glue them on.

 

[rockwool]

I've gotta write some about the quality on the dh version that i have. The stiches on the kneecap have sterted to come of.
Not a big problem since any shoemaker can probably fix it but still, they've only been used for 3 months and cost more than the dainese freestyle model.
They fit well though, and i wouldn't wanna crash in anything else.

 

[Bikael Molton]

Atomic - when you are saying "old roach pads", do you mean the cloth Indy Roaches?

thanks for clarifying!
-rob

As I said, they are still far better at staying put than my old Roach pads.
.

 

[Strakar]

Can anyone confirm if the Roach Rally FR is the same as the Raceface Rally FR?

 

[zedro]

Can anyone confirm if the Roach Rally FR is the same as the Raceface Rally FR?

yes, RaceFace owns Roach.

 

[thesacrifice]

Fit/comfort: 10/10, don't even notice I'm wearing them

Non-slip: 10/10. Have never had to adjust them after initial application

Temperature: 9/10. If your knee and shin being hot is really that big of a deal then there's an underlying problem

Protection: 10/10. I'm almost positive someone could swing a baseball bat at my shin and I wouldn't feel a thing, these things are solid.. and they don't slip!

Mobility: 10/10. I pedal a lot, like I said.. don't feel them

Quality of construction: Only had these 6 months, so far so good

Value: 8/10. Pretty costly

Stink: Haven't been washed yet, don't smell

Overall: 9/10

Wouldn't be afraid to buy another pair in a heartbeat

 

[Strakar]

yes, RaceFace owns Roach.

Thanks

 

[MikeD]

Protection: 10/10. I'm almost positive someone could swing a baseball bat at my shin and I wouldn't feel a thing, these things are solid.. and they don't slip!

Look, I really like my pads, too, but is such hyperbole neccessary? #1, someone's actually going to believe you, and then they'll crash and be all pissed off that it actually did hurt, and #2, it just sounds like pinkbike/mtbr.com style "I'm SOOOO in love with my product" type bullcrap. Doesn't make a 'review' sound either serious or unbiased.

Or, if you were serious, could *I* take a baseball bat to your shin??

MD

 

[zedro]

Or, if you were serious, could *I* take a baseball bat to your shin??

MD

an aluminum bat at least...

 

[thesacrifice]

Look, I really like my pads, too, but is such hyperbole neccessary? #1, someone's actually going to believe you, and then they'll crash and be all pissed off that it actually did hurt, and #2, it just sounds like pinkbike/mtbr.com style "I'm SOOOO in love with my product" type bullcrap. Doesn't make a 'review' sound either serious or unbiased.

Or, if you were serious, could *I* take a baseball bat to your shin??

MD

Say as you wish but please don't talk down to me like I'm some kind of child. I'll stand by my original statement...sure I'm gonna feel the impact but will it be crippling? negative. Every single post is meant to be taken with a glass of cynicism...but my "hypberole" wasn't that far of a stretch.

I gave it a 10/10 because I don't believe or I haven't encountered another pad that has surpassed the Roach FR in protection for knee/shin

someone =! barry bonds

 

[MikeD]

Um, OK then. You were serious. I guess your pads really will protect you. Best of luck.


MD

 

[Kntr]

I love my DH Roach Pads. They rub a few places but not bad. I just were knee warmers under them. I like the calf protection of the DH.

 

[Monkeybidnezz]

I love my DH Roach Pads. They rub a few places but not bad. I just were knee warmers under them. I like the calf protection of the DH.

Hmm, I'll have to rember the knee warmer trick. I love the pads, but they do rub when I do extensive pedaling.

 

[Kntr]

They use to rub so bad my legs would bleed after a day at a resort. I bought a pair of knee warmers from Jenson for $20 and now I can ride all day and even ride a lot of uphill and I never have problems. Knee warmers rock. Oh wait, did I say that on a DH forum? I thought you could only say that on a XC forum.

 

[zedro]

...Knee warmers rock....

...and it was about that moment that Kanter lost all credibiltity on Ridemonkey....

 

[Kntr]

Oh crap..... but I still run an AVY on my XC bike.