Body armour?

Marz said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

"Marz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

do what feels right for you.

In Canada, everyone wears it, they think we yanks are nuts for not, so it's
all a matter of perspective.

Marz said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

Last I checked there was no law against wearing pretty much whatever
you want. 🙂

I'm seeing more and more good riders donning at least elbow/forearm and
shin/knee protection on more aggressive xc trails. I use some
shin/knee armor for my rare trips to the ski-lift assisted rides.

CDB

JD said:

Marz said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

Even the best riders make
mistakes. If the terrain is
severe, so are the consequences.

cc

sissy said:

JD said:

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

Even the best riders make
mistakes. If the terrain is
severe, so are the consequences.

cc

Written like the sissymary that you so obviously are, colon. Don't
ever ride on the Colorado Plateau because it'll probably be too
"severe" for the likes of you. For that matter, don't ride anywhere
that has rocks or exposure with a punk [censored] attitude like that. In
fact, why don't you just stick to greenways? It all comes back to the
lame liberal notion that one should not be responsible for their
actions. Dont ride the track if you're just a hack.

JD

small change said:

"Marz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

do what feels right for you.

In Canada, everyone wears it, they think we yanks are nuts for not, so it's
all a matter of perspective.

Roach makes some good light weight X country Armour it's fairly light
weight and durable

Marz said:

I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident

Sounds like a great excuse to buy some friggin' armor to me. Push your
limits, you're gonna crash now and again. Might as well not get hurt
while you're having fun.

Who cares what anyone else thinks?

-Beej

JD said:

sissy said:

JD said:

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

Even the best riders make
mistakes. If the terrain is
severe, so are the consequences.

cc

Written like the sissymary that you so obviously are, colon. Don't
ever ride on the Colorado Plateau because it'll probably be too
"severe" for the likes of you. For that matter, don't ride anywhere
that has rocks or exposure with a punk [censored] attitude like that. In
fact, why don't you just stick to greenways? It all comes back to the
lame liberal notion that one should not be responsible for their
actions. Dont ride the track if you're just a hack.

Taken personally, as usual.

I think that if you don't
crash every now and then,
you're not pushing your
limits. I realize that they
don't all come in the form of
going OTB, but it does happen
to good riders. I'm sure
you've seen good riders make
mistakes that resulted in crashes.

It sure doesn't have anything
to do with being liberal, or
with responsibility for my
actions. You think when I
crash I blame it on someone
else? You're telling me that
you ride difficult terrain
*knowing* you're never going
to crash? That's just
completely unbelievable, and
unbelievably arrogant.

cc

"JD" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Marz said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

And if you can handle a car, you won't need a seatbelt?

Cheers for some excellent advice ( I ignored JD the Simple) and I've
started doing some research, damn there's a whole bunch of choices.

I now need some recommendations, Troy Lee, Fox, 661, Roach,etc. Any of
them got anything for someone 6'5", medium build and who rides in
weather thats 80 plus all year (tropics). I like the look of some of
the pressure suits that use mesh material, but fit is going to be an
issue and so is their price, sheesh.

Laters,

Marz

Marz said:

Cheers for some excellent advice ( I ignored JD the Simple) and I've
started doing some research, damn there's a whole bunch of choices.

I now need some recommendations, Troy Lee, Fox, 661, Roach,etc. Any of
them got anything for someone 6'5", medium build and who rides in
weather thats 80 plus all year (tropics). I like the look of some of
the pressure suits that use mesh material, but fit is going to be an
issue and so is their price, sheesh.

Laters,

Marz

It's all going to be hot, sweaty, and uncomfortable. I tried it once
and never wore the [censored] again. I got a nasty heat rash from it in the
fold of my arm. I thought the itching was worse than any pain from a
fall. I'd send you my gear but it wouldn't fit you.

--
o-o-o-o Ride-A-Lot o-o-o-o
www.schnauzers.ws

"Mr. Excitement" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

JD

And if you can handle a car, you won't need a seatbelt?

apples and oranges

The terrain doesn't have a mental lapse (read freaking cell phone stuck to
ear) to come crashing into you like another driver.

Gary (crash a lot)

Marz said:

Ok so I fell 3 weeks ago. Broken hand (almost fine again) and badly
bruised and swollen elbow. The elbow injury led to an burst bursa (some
gland at the elbow) and possibly a touch of gout. A large amount of
swelling and pain which went down after two huge antibiotic injections
and a course of pills.
I've got about another 3 weeks before I can ride again and the wife
wants to know what I'm going to do about avoiding a similiar accident
again (this was my first big crash in 5 years and the one before that
was on the road). She'd be very happy if I took up golf or maybe
squash, but I like mtbing, a lot. I also like taking my 6 inch travel
all mountain baby up and down any trail I can find; picking my way
across a jumble of rocks and roots is half the fun.

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

Earlier this year at my first time to my now favorite trails, I got my
ass handed to me in an extremely graceful way. The guy who did it was
wearing shin pads and wrist armor. I fell once on the way up in a
minor loss of traction that left me laughing on my back, and then came
rather close to a hard crash on the way down. I ended up needing a new
rear der. & a little frame maintenance from the LBS, but I did stay up
(barely). I can say the guy I was following certainly did not appear
to be held back by his pads, though it wasn't a storm trooper style
getup.
I'm thinking about some pads for myself in the spring, so my take is
go for it, and let me know how you like it. Your wife is aboard, so
you're clear to spend the money. As Beej mentioned, you may as well
not get hurt while having fun & who cares what everyone else thinks?

Back when I raced BMX we all wore Lizard Skins shin pads, which were
not bad at all. They also fit under BMXer baggy jeans, though I
don't know about what I'm wearing these days. I don't worry
about my shins so much clipped in, but if I did that'd be my pick.
I've got no experience with any other armor. I've broken each
wrist a couple times and would really like to find a comfortable wrist
brace I can ride in, but I've not found anything yet.

Dan

Marz said:

damn there's a whole bunch of choices.

Feeding the fear of pussies everywhere.

JD

Mr. dumbass said:

And if you can handle a car, you won't need a seatbelt?

Why don't you wrap a seatbelt around your neck and drive the LA
freeways in the #1 lane at 30 mph. That would be some real excitement.

JD

small change said:

In Canada, everyone wears it, they think we yanks are nuts for not, so it's
all a matter of perspective.

So, Canadicans are more into instant gratification on a mountain bike
than we yanks are, eh? That's really what body armor in an XC setting
is all about, instant gratification. It's even written all over in the
pro-armor posts in this thread, with the notion that you are allowed to
push your limits without having to pay the price for failure. Learning
the hard way from one's mistakes is just not acceptable in this day and
age. The punkification of anything and everything that is considered
"extreem" by the marketing geniuses is just another way to feed the
fear. I actually saw some dumbass armor up at an XC trailhead and he
had a "no fear" sticker on his truck. It's obviously more acceptable
to the mainstream clones to just be another punk [censored] on a bike
instead of riding close to one's limits and learning at a rate that
doesn't damage yourself, or damage the trails, which in turn damages
access.

JD

JD said:

Marz said:

Anyway, my question is, is body armour only for mad down hill and free
riders or is it ok for all mountain rides or extreme xc'ers to wear it
too?

Laters,

Marz

If you can handle a bicycle, you don't need it.

So says the man with the low deductible on his health insurance...

I've thought about getting knee and elbow guards as my killer instincts
are not strong and I sometimes hesitate at the moment of truth. Then I
am in a world of [censored]. This often happens when there is some bad
"stuff" in the direction that I am soon to plummet.

Who cares if it's OK? Some need peer pressure, mental preparation,
physical protection or liquid courage (ummm, liquid courage...).
Whatever gets you on the trail.

Bruce

JD said:

age. The punkification of anything and everything that is considered
"extreem" by the marketing geniuses is just another way to feed the
fear. I actually saw some dumbass armor up at an XC trailhead and he
had a "no fear" sticker on his truck.

Not sure if this is funny or sad:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/12/13/sports/s173835S79.DTL

Ah, I laughed. I'd say he was afraid of life.

Per NotaKnob:

Quoted message said:

Not sure if this is funny or sad:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/12/13/sports/s173835S79.DTL

Couple years ago I was flipping channels and paused at some X-Games interviews
with motorcycle freeride contestants.

Sat through a half-dozen-or-so interviews before the realization hit me: "None
of these guys has even half their teeth."
--
PeteCresswell