offroad/onroad/snowsports crash proofing.

I know a bunch of people here snowboard.
I crushed a vertebra some years back, and want to make sure I don't do
any more.
I've just started snowboard freestyle, and the crashes hurt. I want a
back protector and knee protection, but it seems to make sense to
explore the technologies that might crossover into motorsports too.

I'm way keen on trying the offroad experience thing this year and I
should probably wear a back protector for the everyday riding I do
anyway if I want to carry on walking.

Anyone got any insights they could pass on?

 

I have on/off-road protectors, and they are very different. For off-road (I
am talking of Spanish climate) it is normal to have this back and front
protection

http://www.motofan.com/accesorios/peto-integral-de-protecciones-no-fear/582323/f

and then on top of it either a cordura jacket when cold, or a simple long
sleeved T-shirt.

Ski stuff, I don't do much now, but protectors seem to differ a little from
those of motorcycling, being lighter. Although you may find familiar brands,
like Dainese. Lighter, and more ventilated.

http://stores.ebay.es/Dainese-Shop-...tektoren-/_i.html?_nkw=dainese&_fsub=17040230

So, unfortunately for your pocket, similar, but not identical.

 

By freestyle, you mean halfpipe, that sort of thing?

In my *very* limited experience, bike back protectors will protect
against falling off obstacles or onto hard snow or ice on a snowboard,
but they might restrict sideways movement a bit. I severely bruised my
ribs falling off a ...dunno what it's called, box type thing for
novice snowpark snowboarders to ride on. The back protector probably
saved me some pain the second time I fell off though, as I fell
straight backwards: there was a very loud 'clunk' as my helmet hit the
metal, too. There wasn't a third time for various reasons.

MX armour traditionally consists of a hard back & chest plate with
some padding, plus separate elbow & knee guards, whch really doesn't
cross over, even to road riding, however, you can get mesh 'vests'
that incorporate elbow, shoulder and possibly back & chest protection,
for wearing under an MX jersey or leathers.

I do have a sort of narrow back & coccyx 'protector' (it's really just
foam padding) that incorporates a kidney belt: it permits fairly free
movement, but I've never seen another one like it. It's not that good,
really.

Depending on how you intend to crash, there are also neck braces that
in their simplest form comprise a sort of padded collar: might be
useful for practice if you're doing aerial stuff, then again, might be
a bit OTT (the ultimate is something like a Leatt neck brace, but
these do restrict head movement, at least, with an MX helmet on. Not
much use without a helmet and way OTT for your needs, I think).

Knee braces are available for skiing, snowboarding and MX; these are
getting more popular and might prevent twisting injuries, but I have
no idea of their effectiveness. I have seen hinged braces advertised
at less than 100 quid a knee; the high-end ones with CF are 400 quid
plus, I think. It's something I've looked into several times; the only
time I actually ordered a set, it turned out that they were on
extended back-order from the US with erratic UK supply, so I cancelled
the order.

Actually, Ace's other half uses a knee brace to good effect for
skiing, I believe.

One thing I have learned: scooting or hopping around a lift queue on a
bright still, sunny day wearing snowboarding kit, armour and helmet is
bloody hot work.

 

Is your vertebra weaker as a result? If so do you *really* want to do
freestyle that much?

I use Wolf downhill mountain biking kneepads for 'boarding, but they won't
protect against twisting motions - you'd need an articulated brace to do
that, and they cost a lot, and are quite cumbersome. Back-wise, get some
armoured shorts (e.g.
http://www.kiteitright.com/mountain...sh-protection-padded-shorts-p-3369.html?cid=2)
for hip and coccyx protection. I've never worn a back protector on the
slopes (though it sounds like a good idea), but the best advice I can give
is not to wear a rucksack with anything hard in - the worst back injury I've
had was tripping a heel edge with an aluminium water bottle in my rucksack.

 

Where and how? Is it just if you land directly on the spine, or does
any rib impact hurt the same? And what about overall body shock
without direct rib/spine impact? By and large, back protectors won't
make a jot of difference to pain suffered through falling, but will
simply protect against serious deformation to the spine leading to
damage.

Having broken ~9 vertebrae, ~10 ribs and the sternum, along with
masses of soft and connecting tissue damage, I find that hard impacts
to the upper body will cause _lots_ of pain, so of course I avoid this
as much as possible[1]. Body jolting will also cause pain, but less
so, and usually only temporary. Bit of course none of this could be
reduced y any sort of protective device.

Spine-wise, well I nearly always ski with a back-pack which includes a
metal shovel in its contents, so direct spinal impact is almost
impossible anyway, but even if I didn't I don't think I'd consider a
protector - it certainly would not affect any pain caused by crashing.

So you need to ask yourself what you're really trying to protect
against, and how.

Well, back protectors are becoming more and more common in snowsports,
and many of them are quite similar to many used on bikes. For example,
Dainese do a lot of kit for very specific requirements, but there
doesn't seem to be a huge amount of difference, e.g.
http://www.dainese.com/fr_fr/motorbike/bap-1.html?destinazione_uso=45&cat=41
http://www.dainese.com/fr_fr/multisport-winter/shield-7-8-air.html?destinazione_uso=41&cat=75

What differences there are seem to be related to how high and low on
the spine they go, whether they extend to cover the coccyx, whether
they include shoulder protection, etc. And within each type there's a
lot of variation in such things anyway.

As for knees and elbows - well, TBH I'd say that if you're bashing
them you should perhaps consider another sport. Doing big jumps before
you're able to land them properly is a bit like the old running before
you can walk, IMO. Spend a lot more time out of the park, refining
skills and gaining experience in a less risky environment, then go
back to the jumps and stuff when you're good enough to progress.

[1] Equipment failure notwithstanding.

 

L1 wedge compression. It doesn't shake a stick at your injuries.

I sort of enjoy walking around and stuff. I'm not scared of pain.
I don't really want to take time out of riding to wait for an easily won
injury to heal.

I was surprised in snow and rock that the back protectors were
apparently the same I'd seen bikers in the office wearing.

Piss off.
My knees are only sore because the ice was a bit unexpected
(inexperience, I know)

I think that's probably sensible. I'm only a month and a half into this
sport. The instructors said I should be going for this stuff, but
they're all mental teenagers. I only learned to ollie last Wednesday.

 

No, I meant where and how do the crashes hurt.

Yebbut, what do you think a back protector will do for you? Are you
simply trying to protect against another injury caused by direct back
impact on a rail or box? That's really the sort of thing they will
protect against, rather than reducing pain due to the existing injury,
which is what I thought you were aiming at.

Where are you doing this? Just out of interest, like.

 

I did wonder. Nowhere yet, but I saw some nice rib gratings on
corrugated tubes and one guy hobbled off the slope with someone else
carrying his board.

Exactly the fear of the unyielding edge of a box, it took a fraction of
a second of miscalculation to do the last break and a long time to get
my back to work again.

I'm furiously addicted to this :/

Hemel Hempstead. They do wimmins only sessions so you don't feel like
such a jessy next to the boys. The freestyle yesterday was open season
though. Great fun, but taking some care seems judicious. I learned my
lesson from the last blood sport.

 

I have a Knox Aegis back protector & it's great, it has individual dsecments
that mould to your back in any position.

Not cheap, but very good.

--


Nige,

'That's shot the fox'

Eunos Roadster (for summer)
Grand Cherokee (for winter)

 

That's why I wore a back protector & helmet when I tried it. I think
it helps, not only from a damage-limitation POV (I'm sure my back
protector saved me from some damage when I fell off that box), but it
also gave me the confidence to even give it a go at all. I've done a
lot of fun and exciting things in my time, but always very cautiously;
I'm a grade A-1 wuss.