who wears protection whilst riding,visited a trail center for 1st time yesterday,and on some of the red/black route obsticals,I hesitated and even took the easy route around on one steep rocky decent.i’m thinking of buying some elbow and knee protection,to make me instanly braver.
any thoughts?

Almost always. It’s a personal preference, but durex for me.

Helmet only and ride Llandegla red and black, in fairness I do bottle the new entrance to the boardwalk on the black but see here for my justification.

Rubber johnny innit?

I’ve often used arm & leg armour when riding trail centres but I just find that it gets in the way and ended up chafing so I usually don’t bother these days.

A skills course is probably a better way to go if bravery is an issue. If you run out of talent on a black run then arm and leg armour won’t save you from neck, shoulder or head injuries.

If they give you more confidence then go for it, I got some knee pads this year and was instantly happier doing a ‘dodgy’ trail I know.
Look at the more lightweight stuff thats now available rather then the full on storm trooper DH kit.
Like my g-form pads a lot, though much to GW’s disappointment I still haven’t fallen off (whilst wearing them).

Wrap it up before you you slap it up.

I think its worth wearing as much as you can if it doesn’t bother you. I wear quite a lot in the winter but less when its warmer. My full length shin guards have deep scratches in them from sliding over rocks. My met parachute face guard has protected me in a bad fall, didn’t stop me breaking my arm, but saved my teeth. You get used to riding with armour on if its not too hot, it shouldn’t make you feel invincible, but it definitely helps.

I wear my kyle strait kneepads almost every ride. They’re quite bulky, which is good as it adds to girth.

Kyle Straits and a full face for dh, no pads and xc helmet for trail centres and other such rides. And no gloves. Unless it’s either really cold or so hot that my hands lose grip from the sweat.

To borrow 2 partly contradictory phrases from climbing: ‘the best protection is not falling’ and ‘if you aint flyin’ you aint trying’. The best thing is probably a bit of a middle ground between these!

I don’t get on with pads. Too hot and restrictive. That said on days with big ups and downs I will take my knee pads and wear them on the descents.

I don’t think they alter the way I ride or make me more likely to ‘go for it’ but that’s a difficult thing to judge.

Whilst the right answer is ‘whatever works for you’ it does make me chuckle to see people trundling round easy trails with what looks like full DH padding on.

Wear what you want. Ive seen quite a few innocuous offs result in serious injuries due to lack of protection. Only takes a badly placed rock or a chainring interface.

I am quite happy wearing a full face lid and DH pads at a trail centre. Dont give a damn what people think.

Amusingly someone had a go at one of my buddies last week for wearing a Met parachute when he took the wrong turn down the blue at Llandegla. He said something like “you shouldnt be riding that girls trail with that on your head”

What was even more amusing was the fact that the prat taking the piss had stopped in the middle of the trail. Wish id run him over now. 😆

Look at the more lightweight stuff thats now available rather then the full on storm trooper DH kit.

*facepalm*

Like my g-form pads a lot, though much to GW’s disappointment I still haven’t fallen off (whilst wearing them).

So..what is it you like about them? seriously? my only disappointment is in you still recommending kit you have absolutely no experience of with regards to functionality.

I don’t actually care what protection anyone else wears to ride their bike.. folk who comment on others lack of/over protection should mind their own business.

I wear knee pads every ride, used to save for 4x, DH, etc but went otb on an xc ride and landed on my knees, lesson learnt. They’ve aided me to avoid numerous injuries of varying magnitude.

On the subject of “stormtrooper kit”- I wear my POC Bones on the elbows most of the time. They’re massive, plastic, and white, and they make me look like a stormtrooper- fact. But they’re also less hot, less sweaty, less restrictive, less likely to move about, and more protective than any of the less stormtroopery pads I’ve tried. So to hell with all that crap, stormtrooper me up.

Most minimal pads are crap in at least one way, some manage to be crap in pretty much every way (like 661 Chicken Wings). But hey, they don’t make you look silly, as long as you’re not crashing anyway 😉

You can always wear loose trousers/long sleeves over decent hardshell protection if you’re a self-conscious worrier.

wear as much or as little as makes YOU comfortable.

When guiding, we’d never say someone is wearing too much protection. that’s their decision.

As far as too little goes.. we’d often suggest wearing more.
For DH guiding, full face, knees and gloves are pretty much our minimum guidelines. But thats a sliding scale depending on the rider ability/experience.

On a side note: I disagree with GW about minding your own business on too little.. would you want to ride with ‘that guy’ in no helmet who leaves it up to you to deal with his head trauma incident while he lies there unconscious and oblivious to the first aid/extrication scenario and emotional turmoil he’s put you in?

No helmet… sorry… you ain’t coming!

Only takes a badly placed rock or a chainring interface.

Have you seen David Millar’s injuries? Perhaps he should have worn protection?

I have ridden with “that guy” he puts one on when he assesses the situation to warrant enough risk to require one. (as do I)
Absolutely fine for guiding/coaching company, event organisers etc. to make rules to cover themselves.

Cheers all the input, never been an issue on my usuall rides (which include some hairy drops and rapid singletrack)just enjoyed my first trail center trip , planning on a few more. I was expecting a few MTFU replies.
Oh and The reply from Bearback on a thread on protection……made me smile

Sparky, I’ve got some 661 EVO knee pads you can try out. It’ll be two weeks on Tuesday, when I’m next Pootling.
They’re in the van.
Chip

Cheers for the offer chip, don’t think i will be tuesday pootlin for a bit due to work unless its local.the wife is going to buy a pair for my birthday,she doesnt want her handsome hunk of a hubby coming home with broken bits.

Helmet

and footy shin pads for me purely to fight of the brambles on stingers on cheeky trails 🙂

Mountain Biker :: The Trail Ahead by SGMTB, on Flickr

interesting that this discussion starts to reflect numerous libertine arguments we’ve seen for the right to not wear a helmet, and some slightly narky language.

concerning what other people think and passing comment on complete strangers? Its a concern and can put you off wearing protection, thinking you look like a dick. I’m off to Whistler for first time and finally bit the bullet and bought a neck brace. I realise there will be tons of better riders there, hitting stuff bigger & faster wearing nothing more than a FF lid and a pair of ripped jeans and a t-shirt. Me? FF, pressure suit & full length knee/shin pads & Leatt. I may look like a dick riding with a toilet seat around my neck for a week, better than a wheelchair & catheter for the rest of my time.

Fully padded up for DH here (full face,knee/shin pads,661 pressure suit up top) , I have a pair of Kyle Straights that I always wear if going XC somewhere new and routes that are a bit rocky/sketchy on repeat visits.

Sparky, Kings Arms, Heath @ 8pm Friday 20th.
You can even bring your bike for a spin, too.