Armour - Spine and body?

[Winston001]

Any advice about armour to protect the whole spine as well as the body for general road riding?

I'm sitting here with a fractured C4 vertebrae and wondering what would have helped prevent it. I'm a very very lucky man.

[R1madness]

yep thats a nasty 1. unfortunately noone really uses good quality back protectors on the road even tho there ar lots to choose from. the best i have used was the dianese body armour mesh suit. went under your jacket and was a little like mx body armour but made for the road. i think i am goin to save up 4 a airbag vest sort of like they use in motogp only a bit bigger lol.

[aahsv]

Check out the Alpinestars Track Vest or the Sidi Defender - both have combined chest and spine armour - very comfortable under leathers.

[YellowDog]

Any advice about armour to protect the whole spine as well as the body for general road riding?

I'm sitting here with a fractured C4 vertebrae and wondering what would have helped prevent it. I'm a very very lucky man.

The C4 thingy sounds like a lot of disscomfort.

Hope you put that behind you asap.

I have looked at the back protector thing myself. I thing it has to be a question of just how far you are going to go. The big hump on your back thing is a bit OTT for general road riding however you never can be too safe.

If you feel that the type of riding you do makes coming off quite probable,
then you need to go as over the top with protection as possible.

You need to somehow find a balance between safety and practicality.

[Kickaha]

I have looked at the back protector thing myself. I thing it has to be a question of just how far you are going to go. The big hump on your back thing is a bit OTT for general road riding however you never can be too safe.

There is no "big hump" with a back protector I use my Spool back protector any time I ride on the road

[p.dath]

I got a back protector for use at AMCC track days. Since I have one I now use it anytime I know I am travelling on 100km/h roads. I don't bother on 50km/h roads.

I'm not sure that back protectors add so much protection at lower speeds.

I guess there are too things to consider.
It will provide abrasion resistance if you end up sliding on your back, and are wearing a two piece, and that two piece separates (common if they don't zip together).
If will provide some impact protection if while sliding you hit something, like a curb, or perhaps something it sticky out of the ground like a stick. Obviously it only protects against impacts to your back.

So I guess consider what kind of accident you want to protect against, and then get gear that will help stop it.

[Mom]

So I guess consider what kind of accident you want to protect against, and then get gear that will help stop it.

Gear wont stop an accident you silly man.

[Lurch]

So I guess consider what kind of accident you want to protect against, and then get gear that will help stop it.

Dear Dainese/Santa,

For Xmas this year I would like gear that protects me from the kind of accident that would kill me, or leave me with a permanent disability.


Thank you.

[vifferman]

I'm not sure that back protectors add so much protection at lower speeds.

What?
That is to say, WTF?!?!

I've never crashed on the open road. My last crash (car u-turned into me), I bounced off the car onto my back, and was VERY glad of the built-in back protector in my jacket (not one of those thin foam pads, but a reasonably substantial moulded item). My back hurt, but was not even bruised.
Oh wait - I was imagining that it protected me; I was not actually going fast enough for it to do any good. Perhaps the built-in speed sensor was faulty.

My current jacket doesn't have a decent back protector, but I do have a Teknic back protector in the cupboard. I don't wear it while commuting because I think it would be over the top, which is errant nonsense. I guarantee that most crashes happen around town, due to the sheer number of vehicles and the appalling standard of driving. If you crash on the open road, most times it will be due to pushing it too hard for the conditions or an incident such as crap on the road.

As for back protectors being bulky, mine is not one of the new slim-fit jobbies, but one of the jointed armadillo types, yet even though my jacket is pretty snug fitting, the back protector fits under it comfortably, and is barely noticeable. I'd like to get one of the newer ones, partly because they're a better more unobtrusive design, but also because they protect more of the spine. Mine stops before the top of my shoulders and doesn't extend down over the coccyx region, unlike most/many of the newer types.

[Sidewinder]

a hump isnt a back protecter lol. alpinestars do a mean back prtecter

[enzedone]

So are any of these o.k or a complete waste of money then?

Cheers

http://www.usprocurements.co.nz/MX%2...ive%20Gear.htm

http://www.sixsixone.com/Catalog_661...1-b59e84379ccd

[p.dath]

Dear Dainese/Santa,

For Xmas this year I would like gear that protects me from the kind of accident that would kill me, or leave me with a permanent disability.

Thank you.

That makes it much easier when selecting gear then. Because your not concerned with low speed slides, loosing chunks of flesh (abrasion protection), or minor breaks to bones.

LOL.

[p.dath]

Gear wont stop an accident you silly man.

Increasing your visibility may prevent (or stop) an accident. But granted, gear is normally used to reduce the seriousness of injuries.

[Quasievil]

One Word KNOX.........the best in the world as far as Im concerned anyway

Available here .......with video

[Winston001]

So is any this o.k or a complete waste of money then?

Cheers

http://www.usprocurements.co.nz/MX%2...ive%20Gear.htm

http://www.sixsixone.com/Catalog_661...1-b59e84379ccd

Looks good. My only reservation is I've read that mountain-bike and motocross armour aren't up to highway protection. Still, worth considering.

:
.....I'd like to get one of the newer ones, partly because they're a better more unobtrusive design, but also because they protect more of the spine. Mine stops before the top of my shoulders and doesn't extend down over the coccyx region, unlike most/many of the newer types.

Its hard to protect against every possible accident but it strikes me as a useful exercise to discuss optimum protection. I haven't described my own accident here yet because I'm concious members bin every day and I'm no-one special.

For the record, I have no memory of the event. My helmet and leathers indicate sliding on my face across bitumen and then gravel. This involved major impact to my head transmitted to the upper spine, and then translated across both shoulders. Spinal compression but thankfully insufficent shearing and swelling to hurt the spinal cord. Bit of nerve damage to my left side. Fractured C4 vertebral process which is healing. Concussion and head injury. Effectively lost a week of my life.

So. If I had armour which prevented compression of the top of the spine, and spread that force elsewhere, I'd be a much happier chap.

What do F1 racers wear? They walk away from horrendous accidents.