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Do you wear protective equipment ?
Prompted from Chris's post on boots, and the movement off-topic, just thought I'd kick off a thread about the use of protective equipment, why you pay $$$ for it, or why you don't.
Do you wear it? What do you wear? Is there a reason ? Had an 'off', just chicken in case you do? can't afford time off work? some other reason? Do you pay lots for it, would you pay more if you had the cash? It's a personal choice, but come on, share your thoughts, reasons or decisions so that others can make an informed choice. |
Yes..for both forms of rideing..:ytiller:.:shsgging:
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Me, I would never ride off on the bike without everything on (lid, gloves, boots, protective clothing). Why ??
Most accidents happen within 5 minutes of your home, so this is the highest risk, so therefore the best protection is needed. I've been doing it so long it's habit and riding the bike without full gear feels wrong, uncomfortable even. Boots. I have two pairs, a pair of TRG Mx boots that are very stiff, the bike has landed on these many times and never so much as a bruise to show for it. I wouldn't venture off the tarmac very far without these on. I also have a pair of TCX Infinity boots, these are the same as the HEIN GERICKE RALLYE III boots, I've had a pair of each, they are really comfortable and you can walk in them all day. They are not as protective or as stiff as the TRG's. Gloves. Essential, more important than a lid in my mind. Why? think about it, what is the first thing you do when you fall. For this reason palm protection is the first criteria, if it won't survive a slide down the road then they are no good. secondary is water protection, then warmth. I use HEIN GERICKE ECO II GORE-TEX� GLOVE, at �60 they are expensive, however the pair I have now (the second pair) are the only gloves that are truly waterproof, paired up with the labyrinth cuff on the HG Master jacket (for winter) there is no water ingress down the sleeve as I have experienced in every other glove/jacket combo. Lid. For years I was a walking advert for Aria, since moving to the Shoei I don't think I'll go back. The Shoei is lighter, quieter and more comfortable. These days most lids, whether you spend �100 or �1000 will do much the same job in a crash, so choice comes down to longevity and comfort. But there is another reason I like Shoei, it's because they make an effort to get out there to the emergency services and show them how the helmets can be taken apart while still on the head (removable cheek pads etc) making it safer to remove the lid from an accident victim. This I learned form the guys at the air ambulance, who commented on my lid when I last met them. Jacket/Pants Again, personal choice and down to what you do on your bike. I have always been an advocate of 'buy the best', a suit for all seasons so to speak. Now, I think it's better to dress for the warm days, these are the days that will sap your energy if you can't keep cool. If it's wet a �10 waterproof will be far more effective than most XXX-tex clothing and it doesn't need to hang over the bath for a day to dry after..... Armour always, and I like the Hi-Protect stuff from HG, soft as cotton but if you punch it it's as hard as steel, and it has saved me many times in a fall. If I'm venturing off-tarmac alone then a full body suit (Knox) is the order of the day. I've had many falls, always away from tarmac, but the most suffering I've had has been some stiffness for a day or so after. I put this down to the protective gear I wear. At 17 I had a slow speed spill on a MTX125, wearing jeans and to this day I have a patch on the side of my knee with no feeling - never again, skin is delicate and easily removed. |
Full armoured leathers, mx boots, good gloves and as stated earlier, shoei for the win. I also use a knox gilet style back protector. Good protection always is a no brainer, go and look for the squid spotting thread on supermotojunkie and u will see what I mean ;)
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Feel naked without the propper gear on. I made the mistake one day of jumping on the XT when I had it in bike jacket jeans and trainers only to find as I arrived at a rounderbout that my lace had hooked over and tangled on the gear shift and I could'nt put my foot down NEVER AGAIN
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minimum kit for even getting near to my X:
Lid (I now have a super light Marushin carbon lid - feels like its not there!) Gloves (Alpinestars wind stoppers for temps over 15 C) Kevlar jeans (dry over 15 C) Jacket CE armour to knees, hips, back, elbows, shoulders Army boots NOTHING LESS - SKIN IS TOO PRECIOUS!!!! |
Cotton paddock jacket, jeans, TT Leathers gloves, DMs and a Bell Super Star helmet :)
…in 1986. Young and invincible, or perhaps just stupid? We didn’t know any better. I took up smoking that year too! In 2012... I try and wear fully armoured two piece leathers (Richa) as much as I can when out on the road and use two-piece Alpinestars RP5 waterproofs to go over in the rain. When it’s hot or I’m doing trails of short journeys I’ll wear textiles, usually the HG desert TRG set up (but I do have an Akito Desert outfit too). I have a pair of Hood Kevlar lined combat trousers (with Knox knee and hip protection) to for times when a more casual look is required! ;) They are hand made in Norfolk and bloody good compared with other well-known brands of Kevlar jeans and trousers. Don’t wear any additional armour, but I always use gear with all available/optional armour fitted. I have a pair of Held Enduro boots, a pair of Hebo Hebo TR3 boots and a pair of period old school buckle-up Frank Thomas boots for riding the BSA (good boots when FT were made in Britain and done me 25 years!) On the XTZ I use the Held almost all the time. Never use footwear not specifically designed for motorcycle use. For gloves I use either heated Gerbing T5, or one of the two pairs of HG gloves I have, one summer one winter (can’t remember what model they are?) As for helmets; Arai Tour X (old and knackered), Airoh Rock trials helmet (for trials and trails), Davida Jet (for the 1960s look – mind you it’s a bloody comfortable and well-made lid for all round use) and a HJC HQ-1 full face (long distance/road). I use Oakley and Halcyon (for BSA) googles as required. I’ve just bitten the bullet and bought a lovely white and black Shoei Hornet to replace the Arai (now I’ve found someone who can adapt the liner to fit my head without causing pressure points). Lastly an often overlooked piece of safety equipment – good ear plugs. Wish I’d thought about using them 25 years ago! What was that, pardon, sorry I didn’t quite catch that, you’ll have to speak up… |
Depends where I am.
In the less tropical conditions of England I wear everything I have almost all the time: Jacket with elbow, shoulder and back protection, over trousers with knee protection, gloves&boots, and of course helmet. Although I've recently been wearing an open-faced style for comfort, wind in the face and (I think) more vision. In America I wore Jeans and a token gesture of a helmet. lol (I know, it's not an XT) http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...t/P1010039.jpg But sometimes, I am Bad. Not in the slang sense as in wicked, but as in good old-fashioned naughty. Like in turkey, it was just too hot for me. Although I always wear gloves and helmet, if that helps. I know the risks, I've spent time in hospital for bike and non-bike related things; It's just my choice at the time. (dare I post a pic, sure it's on the site here somewhere anyway...) http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...T/P1000631.jpg ....but most of the time I am good. http://www.xt660.com/[IMG]http://i10...t/P1010039.jpg |
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Taking the cue from Pleiades's post:
In the late 70s a pair of jeans, or a pair of jeans over another pair of jeans for added protection! A pair of DMs or Derry boots if raining hard, a second hand Cromwell helmet that seemed to fit at the time, a wax cotton Belstaff jacket with no armour and what ever gloves my brother had spare at the time. In the mid 80s a made to measure leather jacket, a decent helmet that fitted ( the make escapes me ) good gloves that fitted but it seems from the photo below I still stuck with the jeans and wore trainer type boots. http://i1192.photobucket.com/albums/...1/scan0001.jpg Now - I have the choice of three good helmets my usual being a flip front Caberg that is ok to ride in the up and down position, Buffalo water proof and armoured gloves and textile trousers with armour at the knees. I recently wore leather pants and jacket from HG but these gave way to the textile trousers and another Belstaff wax cotton jacket ( this time with armour in the elbows and shoulders ) as I've been doing a lot of off road stuff in the last few years. I'm sure the belstaff is not the best thing to wear from the protection side of things and I should be looking at perhaps a Knox type back protection as well. Forgot to mention - these days I have a lot more regard for my feet and shins and so wear Sidi enduro type boots. |
Fun to hear what others are using!
Myself; I've yet to have an off so maybe that's why I hardly ever bother putting on anything but the bare minimum - gloves, jacket and helmet. Putting on the pants and boots is just such a hassle. For rain/cold: Rukka Kalahari jacket & pants , Schuberth C3 (even though I'm not THAT old...), some generic bargain bin gloves and some generic bargain bin boots. Warm days: Lindstrands jacket, Alpinestars S1, Schuberth C3 and whatever jeans, etc for the day. Occationally I'll wear my Shoei Hornet but I'm using it less and less after getting the Schuberth which is just so good with built in bluetooth and stuff |
@Fiddich - you don't look too happy in that shot, sums up the 80s I suppose! ;)
How did the bike's sidestand not sink in the dune, we didn't have pucks in them days just crushed McEwans Export cans! You've reminded me that I must get round to scanning some of my old biking photos... |
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Was it just youth and a feeling that we were invincible that we paid little regard to what we wore in those days? |
For me I will never ever leave the house- even to pop to the shop 1min ride away without a bare minimum of.....
Gloves, Draggin Jeans, Magnum assault boots, leather jacket and helmet. For my day to day riding I.e to work etc I wear.... BOOTS.... Magnum classic assault boots. Ive used these for years including on military exercises and work. They are a fantastic boot. Very comfortable, breathable, if looked after they are waterproof and give great ankle support. When I had my Major off in 2009 I was wearing my Magnums at the time and I didnt injure my ankle at all, they took a great beating and supported me well. However as I now do more and more riding in all weather conditions I will be buying some tech 3s or similar boots. I'm not going for an all out stiff motorcross boot as I do allot of walking in my bike boots and need them to be a little more moveable. JACKET..... I currently wear an akito leather jacket. It is about 20 years old and was originally my old mans past on to me when I first started riding. It is thick padded leather and I have 'utilised' its functions back in 2009 and once again it protected me and did its job well. However it is a winter jacket and about kills me in summer. I will be buying a new material jacket in the coming months. I will be making sure that the new jacket has built in armour, shoulders, elbows and back protector. It will have a removabel liner so I can use it in winter and summer. TROUSERS.... I have a pair of RST material trouser with hip, knee, shin protectors and also removable liners. These are a fab pair of trousers, sturdy warm and fairly showerproof. I always wear waterproof trousers over the top of them though for added wind protection and water protection. Before this I allways used Draggin Jeans. Having seen a live show where they tested the draggin jeans by having a bloke wear them, sit on his arse and be dragged behind a harley D drag bike, I know they work! So they have fantastic protection when sliding accross the tarmac as the jean material melts and provides a sliparry serface to slide on and the woven kevlar protects from the tarmac coming through. But they have no real impact protection. This is what aided in the destruction of my knee back in 2009 and so I have now moved on to more protective/padded trousers. GLOVES.... In winter and on rainy days I wear my Frank Thomas waterproof gloves. Nice and thick and warm. In summer I wear My 661 armoured Downhill moutain bike gloves. However these will be changed this year to propper leather summer gloves as I dont forsee them holding up in an off. LID..... I currently use a Wulfsport Prima dual sport lid. This is a cracking lid, it is very light and fits well. I know it works well in an off as I have tested it before as stated above. It does have a good safety rating as well. Im due a new lid as this one has been crashed, Im looking into slightly more expensive lids with better safety ratings. However if the same style lids are cropping up with similar safety ratings I will simply buy another Prima. Thats my two pence worth anyhu. |
I ride quite hard, so the protective gear feels important to me.
When I ride my Tenere, i use my offroad set of riding gear. -Helmet HJC: bought it, because road helmet is not so breathable when on terrain http://www.bscenter.si/default.asp?p...C_AC-MX_Killer -Body Armor Thor: for better protection of my ribs and other body parts. Seems good, because from manny minor falls I am still with all bones ok http://www.bscenter.si/default.asp?p...ct_RIG_SE_2012 -Knee protectors Acerbis Impact Evo: just bought new ones. I already broke 2 of them (different brands)before, cant imagine what would happen with my knees without them. Seems a must for me. http://www.bscenter.si/default.asp?p...bis_Impact_Evo -Botts Sidi Crossfire TA: on our last trip in Tunisian desert I injured (twisted) my ankle badly. If I had these boots on that trip already, I would prevent the damage of my leg, that is now healing for 5 weeks and still not ok and in pain. Good protection is a must when that kind of riding style. http://www.bscenter.si/default.asp?p...SIDI_CROSSFIRE When on terrain offroading I use cross gloves, because they are softer and is better riding comfort and feel. On hot day I use cross pants and tshirt, for better airflow, so body does not overheat when hard riding is on schedule. In this case I always wear functional underwear to keep the sweat away from the skin. When on several day trip or cold/bad weather I use cordura pants and jacket, to keep my self warm and dry during the day. In cold conditions I use windstopper functional underwear from Bikers. And when on terrain Camelback is a must! When riding street bike, there is complete another set of equipment that is used. |
Think for me its the oft use acronym :ATGATT -All The Gear All The Time.
Like others, even if its down the shops etc I`m probably over paranoid but after years of seeing all those weird injury pictures you got in FHM mag, I decided I liked the way my body was put together and didn't want to mess with it :eusa_angel: Even the cheapest of the cheap textile jackets and trousers are better than jeans and a t-shirt. And even a cut cost pair of leather boots are better than your Nikes/flipflops. Always remember my instructor telling me that coming off on tarmac and sliding along in jeans was akin to taking a belt sander and holding it to bare skin. Scared the bejeezes out me :) Saying that I`m still to purchase a decent back protector - even toyed with a full body armour underneath my Akito enduro textile jacket but maybe this is a bit OTT for on road stuff? Ryben |
ATGATT for me as well.
On the road I use: - TCX Competizione GTX boots - Dainese Air G Back protector - Held Sting glove for cold/wet weather; Spyke G-Fresh Air for warm weather. Both with hard knuckle protection - either my Rev'it Sand combo or my IXS leathers - Shoei XR1100 helmet Off-road: - Alpinestars Tech 3 boots - Zandona Corax body armour - Held Sting glove for cold/wet weather; Spyke G-Fresh Air for warm weather. Both with hard knuckle protection - IXS Cordura combo - Airoh S4 helmet |
All the gear, I like my skin where it is
For road Alpinestars tech3, akito desert trousers and jacket, hjc road lid, arlen ness gloves When I ride mx 661 knee protection, tech 3 boots, full body armour, mx lid and goggles, alpinestars jersey and pants Imo it's just not worth going out without it Tried riding the quad on the road in normal clothes without a lid and just doesn't feel safe, I'd rather be sweating than have gravel rash should some idiot have me off |
Just looked at Plaides post re ear plugs:
My Marushin lid is ace, but its BLOODY NOISY in there!!! Mostly wind noise, but nonetheless, terrible for your ears. My commute to work is only 10 minutes, so I don't normally bother with hearing protection, but on a 2 hour weekend ride I use throw-away ear plugs. Very cheap in boxes of 200 from Screwfix or similar - designed for builders/machinists, & do a very good job. I had a pair of re-usable ear plugs, but every time I took my lid off, they almost became embedded in my ear drums!! So, foam throw away items are the way to go.... |
I do need to invest in some ear plugs!
Do people think that the ones you can get moulded to your ears are worth the cash...or would you simply suggest as mash says use the throw away foam ones? |
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The moulded ones can be worse than the foam ones. To be sure you'd have to do a leak test. Some brands offer them for free and redo them if they leak. The big benefit of the moulded ones are the filters you can have put in. These filter out wind and engine noise, but still allow you to hear human speech and other environment sounds. Moulded ones invariably start leaking after 2-3 years, because the shape of the human ear canal changes over the years. If you do go for moulded get soft ones. They are more comfortable, and the hard ones can transfer vibrations from the helmet right into your ear if they touch the helmet. I used the moulded ones for a couple of years, but went back to the foam ones. Alpine also make a nice compromise: http://alpineearplugs.com/prod_motosafe.htm Include filters, significantly cheaper than the moulded plugs, but still expensive compared to foam. |
Specsavers do moulded ones now. I personally dont use plugs, i find they alienate me from the surrounding environment too much. When i do wear my fox mx lid things get loud!
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Ta for the heads up mate. Do u chaps find the disposable foam ones cut out too much sound?
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A good set of ear plugs should reduce noise to about 85db, which will still allow you to hear what you need to hear. In fact the HSE (yes, I know we all hate them!) recommend that too much reduction in sound is a bad thing, like you say you still need to be in touch with the environment. If you want to bore yourself silly there's some good info here...
http://www.soundadvice.info/thewholestory/san5.htm Foam ones are fine, but I'd suggest you try a few types out to see what suits best, everyone will give you a different opinion, and everyones ears are a different shape. I'd always go for ones with a BS EN 352.2/2002 mark, because they'll have been tested and WILL do what they say/claim (many aren't though). |
Some...ahem...sound.....advice there!
I think that hearing protection is important. Im going to obtain a handfull tomorrow from work. Ill see how I get on with the foam ones and perhaps move onto the moulded ones. Ive been riding 6 years now and have never used hearing protection. Im going to start now before it gets too late! |
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I spent allot of money on custom earplugs with filters in them a few years ago. They are great, at first, then I found they become a little uncomfortable. I think the reason is they are quite solid, don't wick any moisture away and as duibhceK points out they are god awful if they touch your lid internals (such as a speaker pod). I tried a good quality pair of music earplugs and they worked pretty well, but too much alienation from the outside world. I've gone back to standard industrial SNR36's with the connecting string/tube so I can remove them while the lid is on by pulling the string - although it's a pretty uncomfortable manoeuvre. Something like these : http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-Pairs-B...#ht_2401wt_905 Although I'll confess, I've never bought a pair.... advantages of my old man working in heavy industry. |
Noise cancelling earphones
I've been using active noise cancelling headphones on long trips for a while now.
They sit snugly in the ear canal, but I like to tape them in place with micropore tape (can come loose when putting a helmet on). They are fantastic. In fact they are so good, you won't notice much in the way of wind noise or engine noise. Spooky! There seems to be an amplification of some mechanical noises (gear changes etc.) which can be disconcerting at first. Not sure about the legalities but works for me.... Boneman |
Good plugs - give them a try!!!!!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-Howard-...item3f164f2bed http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-Pairs-H...item4cec8dee30 |
So are the foam plugs a one hit wonder then or do folks use them for several days?
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They last a while, depends on the conditions, how many times you insert/remove them and more importantly, how you store them.
Keep them dry and clean (no water - ever!) and you'll get a weeks commuting out of them. A hot,. dusty, sweaty cross country ride will give you maybe 2 or three days... For weekend warriors, the'y might last a month or two. |
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Down to the engineering department I go and......Yoink! |
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Tip: keep some spares in your jacket pocket. |
Ppe
I use the howard leigh laser lites as I suffer from tinnitus which is grossly worse after a ride on the bike. Might be something to do with working in the metal industry and playing drums in a band for 3 years.
Always wear either full leathers or textiles what ever the weather. and a full dainese back and chest protector Reason............ When training scuba diving I took in a group of young disabled men into the pool for a go on the diving gear. One of them was 22 years old and was paralysed from the waist down.....he came off a bike at 30 mph and hit a curb breaking his back. I went out and bought one the next week. A friend used to take the mick out of my back protector but went out and bought one and then slid across a roundabout and up the curb. Totally unhurt and not a scratch. He doesnt take the mick out of any PPE now. |
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