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Started wearing an Atlas last year & I love it. I don't even know its there.
I'll never ride without it.
Dont even sweat it Phil, it was made by a complete spineless pussy who created that account just to make that post. Zero credibility.
Kind of expected more from you SB...then again maybe i didnt.
I have no problem with that.
But to come on here and try to justify not wearing one by saying they don't help, and sometimes do more damage than good is asinine!
It's an insult to all of us who wear them when they insinuate we're all a bunch of suckers for buying a gimmick.
Like many on here, I'm convinced my brace saved my ass when I really needed it. Now are they 100% effective? No, but I feel they do reduce the risk.
And although my 2 boys are grown, if they were kids I would not let them get on a bike without one on.
Now most people I see wearing neck protection either look super uncomfortable, such as those of us with shorter necks, or say they can hardly tell it's on (longer neck people). In the case of longer necks, based on the A-stars testing, the brace wouldn't even help you, because you have a huge gap between your helmet and the brace.
For riders with shorter necks, such as myself, I felt ten times more likely to crash because the brace didn't allow me to raise my elbows and shoulders and keep the proper riding attack position, as well as limiting my ability to look up and further down the track. I tried both the Leatt and A-Stars brace. Obviously the Leatt sits higher and limited me more, but with the A-stars, I adjusted it and measured the gap between my helmet and the brace and at the spot I felt comfortable and had the proper neck range of motion to ride properly, the brace would have done nothing for me (according to their manual).
It's only common sense to acknowledge that a brace, sitting high enough to be constantly or nearly always in contact with your helmet will prevent a neck compression injury. But who can actually ride with their head in one spot?
Interestingly A-Stars also claimed that the reason for their lower wing and front piece is because the neck is designed to hyper extend to protect itself, and that rarely is paralysis caused by a hyper extension of the neck.
I'm not a doctor, or a neck brace hater, and these are just my observations from reading and attempting to use them. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong! I just don't see the point in wearing one based on what I've observed.
Edit: So, before you go spouting off, maybe think about some of the reasons why people don't want to wear them, even if they can be helpful.
On the other hand, the is real proof that neck braces reduce the forces on the neck during certain types of loading. It's that reduction in forces that may mean the difference between walking away from a crash, or steering a wheelchair with you tongue for the rest of your life.
I'll look for the official document from the racing organization clearing the brace in the death of that young racer in Europe. There is a copy of it floating around the interweb.
They count the number of broken necks from compression injuries
The number of injured necks from hyper flexion.
They count the number of broken collarbones.
They count the number of broken upper vertebrae.
And then they simply compare that to the % of riders wearing a neck brace versus those that are not. Pretty simple. If (for example) 30% of the pro riders were wearing a neck brace during a particular season, and 50% of the riders that broke a collarbone, were wearing a neck brace, you could see very quickly that neck braces are indeed a factor in broken collarbones. Not that this is the only consideration in whether you should use a neckbrace, it's just that collarbones would be an easy statistic to track with a higher sample size.
I also read the A-Star info and as was mentioned, based on the research info they provided, their brace would do absolutely nothing for a skinny guy like me w/ low shoulders and a long neck. They stated something like 1"-1.5" gap maximum to prevent compression injury, and even w/ all the spacers I added to lift the neck brace up more, it's still like 3.5" from my helmet. It sits on the shelf now.
Pit Row
I've come to the conclusion that certain people "want" the brace to not work as advertized, which boggles my mind.
He didn't even notice it (Carbon Pro w/ Shoei. Back tab adjusted correctly).
Boom!
Another guy wearing MORE safety equipment.
This thread is horrible: The Anti-neck brace crowd hurls negative insults and almost personal like attacks; where the defenders use logic, facts, and reasoning.
Blows my mind people could be so passionate against something designed to protect you.....
I haven't tried a neck brace, but I do wear asterisk knee braces, and LOVE them.
I'll be better qualified when I finally try a neck brace soon enough....
Not for a heartbeat.
Do you seriously think a third party can just hire a pathologist to conduct a post mortem on somebody of their choosing?
I've got my head in my hands.
The sport could really benefit from those stats. Obviously they would have to be recorded without bias and agenda and unfortunately the lawyers and insurance scum would use the data in a negative way. If done legit this info could lead to some ground breaking improvements in everything from injury prevention,track safety, and improved safety equipment. This would require some real hands on leadership from the top dogs and organizations in the mx world. Perhaps an appointed safety committee that could handle this task among others. I think the sport is too small and divided for this to work though.
The third party is the racing organization, who can investigate the circumstances of a death but causes of death are determined by a Pathologist or Coroner, contrary to what CamP believes.
Only the immediate relatives of the deceased or a legally authorised authority can appoint a pathologist or coroner to perform a post mortem, which clearly excludes the Federation of International Motorcycling.
Is that clear enough for you?
Post a reply to: Neck braces... Your opinion