Chest Pro Advice

THE BEST CHEST PROTECTOR IS THE THOR "SENTINEL"...ITS COMFORTABLE AND GREAT LOOKING!!!

This might not be the information you're looking for but I figured I would throw in my 2 cents anyways. It can't hurt, right? Anyways, for someone who has actively supported Leatt with ride/demo days at local tracks (in partnership with one of the first exclusive distributors in the Midwest when Leatt braces first became available) as well as having one of the first leatt braces among many of my peers, I must say that my opinion on Leatt's effectiveness has tapered as of late. I first became suspect of Leatt when I started to see some local racers break their collarbone as a result of, what seemed to be, relatively slow speed crashes.


My worries became even more suspect after talking to two highly respected (not associated with each other) and significant figures in the motocross industry (one runs a motocross school and has been around for decades, the other runs a popular training facility). I was very fortunate to sit down and talk with both people, who had both expressed concerns after seeing a uncharacteristically high frequency of collarbone breaks that seemed to have been caused by the leatt brace.


I was even more convinced that there was a correlation between collarbone injuries and the leatt brace after my younger brother recently broke his clavicle in 3 places, in what was regarded as the worst collarbone break his doctor had ever seen (requiring a plate and 7 pins/screws which will prevent him from riding for at least a year). By the way, I watched his crash in action when he hit a sloppy hole that sucked his front end in, stopped his momentum, as he front-flipped over the front of his bike (once again a slow speed crash which I expected him to bounce back up from).


That being said, I still wear my leatt brace. CRAZY you say? Not really, I just understand that the two small pads that rest directly over the collarbone take practically all the impact and transfer that shock to those two small pads (and then to your collarbone). That’s why I wear my leatt brace ON TOP of my chest protector’s (Thor Sentinel) shoulder pads, which dissipates that impact across my shoulders. As an active racer I have taken a few hard spills and have walked away without a scratch (something I attribute to my awesome Arai helmet as well as my leatt chest protector combination). Unfortunately, the only thing between my brother’s leatt brace and his collarbone was his jersey.


In conclusion (haha, I apologize for the lengthy post), I think that leatt’s idea is a step in the right direction, but not a perfect solution for what they have coined "the helmet for your neck." I will also say that I am happy to see other innovators (or copy cats, whichever you prefer) like EVS (who have integrated a shoulder pads into their brace) and Alpinstars step up to progress this rider safety agenda.

My son has an HRP LT. It is very nice, and easy to get on around his Leatt.

And at the risk of getting chastised, I have a Thor Sentinel, and it works great with mine!

Sorry.

Can't speak to the EVS.