# Old rider- protection needed?



## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

I am 66 and still ride and love intermediate level singletrack. I move fast enough to enjoy myself but always fear falling and getting hurt.

I've noticed some protective jerseys & knee pads from G-Form and wondering if it would be worthwhile to wear any of these items?

Meanwhile, I'm still in decent shape and want to continue Mtn biking as long as possible!


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## TheBaldBlur (Jan 13, 2014)

At 55 I wear a helmet, gloves and eyewear every ride for protective gear; then whatever shorts, shirt, jacket the weather dictates. I move at a pretty good clip over rocky terrain often with high pucker factor but feel that elbow/knee/shoulder pads are not warranted for me. I do wear a full suit of armor when I'm on my dirt bike though. I admit that I resent the idea of getting suited up on my dirt bike and one of the things I enjoy about the MTB is the ability to jump on and go.

There's a mantra for some that "if you're not crashing from time to time you're not pushing hard enough". I was in that camp when I was riding in my 20s and 30s, but no more. Some of that is age and the realization that I'm not immortal; some is that I don't bounce as well as I used to and injuries take a longer recovery period. I tell myself that part of that last bit is that it takes away from riding time, but there's more to it and I know that. I'd say if you're riding within your limits (and yes those limits are expanding as we get better), I wouildn't bother with body armor. You may, of course, have other considerations that are undisclosed like diabetes (for example) that could make minor injuries more serious.


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## bitflogger (Jan 12, 2004)

My age related changes that have cut down hurting myself.

1. Ditch the multi-focal glasses. I wear distance and astigmatism only sunglasses or contacts.
2. Flat pedals with sticky shoes. This was improved skills, body comfort and if I lost performance that was barely.
3. The G-Form knee pads are not always on but yes for places that are rocky, jumping, and practicing skills.
4. Practice skills. Starting 10 years ago I learned to pump, get a little air, go for riding a skinny, pay more attention to turning skills. Going to bigger wheels had the unintended consequence of thinking about leaning the bike and carving it like being on the edge of your skis.
5. Consider the bike. Some fellow old farts who had too much weight weenie and racer boy in them had improvements when they went from XC racer types, heirloom wheels and old school geometry to modern bikes. Modern bikes took my wife from standing firm that she was done with the sport to obsessed. One who even broke bones in his hand said he stopped falling as much going from his XC racer to a contemporary trail bike.

Don't let anyone laugh at you for switching to flats or wearing the knee pads. At times I protect arms, shins and knees. I see some moto friends are quick to wear body protection. Look up one of my IMBA chapter pals Grif the mountain bike geezer. He's got your age beat and wears protection along with Five Ten shoes.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

Yes, light armor for sure. If you like to ride fast then you will go down at some time or another and a little protection can mean the difference between riding on unscathed or an ER visit and downtime on the bike. Aside from the obvious (helmet, gloves) I think elbow and knee pads along with maybe hip protection is a good idea. I would go for something light and unobtrusive.

This is "do as I say, not as I do" advice because I haven't found anything quite unobtrusive enough yet, the elbow and knee pads I've tried so far didn't quite cut it for me but hopefully I'll find something I can live with before I damage myself again.


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## Legbacon (Jan 20, 2004)

Don't know what your trails are like, but I wear POC knee pads 99% of the time.


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## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

I ride within my limits, have a good FS 29er and I don't think ntend to do anything crazy but if I do fall, I would want to reasonably protect against any physical damage. 

What would be the most basic protection (other then helmet & gloves) given the choices of a padded jersey (G-Form) knee pads, elbow protect, what should the priority be?


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

66 year old, I ride a Farley EX8, Great bike. Very comfortable. I tend to ride how I used to ride, not necessarily what my body is capable of these days. I’ve armored up progressively based on injuries. I started with Leatte AirPro knee pads, added some POC armored shorts and on the basis of my last fall where I cracked a couple of ribs, I’m in the process or looking at hockey shirts. Other than that, I wear gloves and always a helmet. I haven’t taken a fall yet where I didn’t crack my noggin to some extent. I’ve been pleased and a little surprised that none of this armor has impaired my riding to any significant extent...a measure of how far the protective technology has progressed over the last 25 years.


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## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

What is the priority list for protection, knees, elbows, jersey, shorts?


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

rickcin said:


> What is the priority list for protection, knees, elbows, jersey, shorts?


IME knees, elbows, and hips, in that order. Landing on a shoulder and breaking a collarbone is a real possibility (done it) but I don't know if any sort of light protection would help, maybe though.


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

I'm not sure about upper body armor protecting shoulder/collarbone...I'm inclined to be skeptical that it would make much difference since both the AC joint and the collarbone tend to break in response to general torsional force rather than direct blow. My hope for hockey shirt/chest armor is to prevent rib fractures which _do_ tend to fracture from direct blow. Those hurt like a *****. I have no illusion that they'll keep my collarbone or shoulder from fracturing. I got the POC shorts because the hip is vulnerable in a fall on our trails, the knee pads because I noticed that I was coming home with a lot of scrapes on the knees. I have the best knees that money can buy. I feel obliged to take care of them. I haven't felt the need for elbow pads. Yet.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

Cuyuna said:


> I'm not sure about upper body armor protecting shoulder/collarbone...I'm inclined to be skeptical that it would make much difference since both the AC joint and the collarbone tend to break in response to general torsional force rather than direct blow.




I'm don't know about that, I'm no doctor but I'm pretty sure mine broke from my shoulder slamming into rock. I also broke several ribs in that same accident and I don't remember them contacting anything at all. I see pro road riders break collarbones all the time in races and it seems like a direct blow to the shoulder is often the cause.

I agree that it would probably take some fairly heavy duty protection to prevent it but I think the same about ribs. I do think light armor couldn't hurt though and the g-form padded jersey looks intriguing.

Based on my past experience if I were to protect one area besides head and hands it would probably be knees.


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## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

J.B. Weld said:


> IME knees, elbows, and hips, in that order. Landing on a shoulder and breaking a collarbone is a real possibility (done it) but I don't know if any sort of light protection would help, maybe though.


What is good hip protection?

I agree with Cutuna's response except for the elbow comment. I would think I could use some protection for the elbows since they come dangerously close to trees while navigating the singletrack trails and if I do hit the ground, the arms will be impacted as well.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

rickcin said:


> What is good hip protection?


I don't know, I'm kind of picky about my apparel and only wear decent bib shorts so I haven't found anything I could wear regularly yet. I did check out g-form's lycra cycling shorts with padded hips but found the quality sub-par. They have some new bibs out now that look nicer but I haven't seen them.

I only landed hard on my hip bone once but it was enough to make me think covering it with some padding might be a good idea.


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

J.B. Weld said:


> I'm don't know about that, I'm no doctor but I'm pretty sure mine broke from my shoulder slamming into rock. I also broke several ribs in that same accident and I don't remember them contacting anything at all. I see pro road riders break collarbones all the time in races and it seems like a direct blow to the shoulder is often the cause.
> 
> I agree that it would probably take some fairly heavy duty protection to prevent it but I think the same about ribs. I do think light armor couldn't hurt though and the g-form padded jersey looks intriguing.
> 
> Based on my past experience if I were to protect one area besides head and hands it would probably be knees.


The goal for ribs is to spread the force of the blow over as wide an area as possible. Light but stiff padding may be all it takes. Same for hips. Shoulder....it would take an elaborate upper body rig to do that job. I base that opinion on my own injuries over the years, and observation of many, many mountain biking-induced visits to the ED here. As a mountain biker, I am always interested in the mechanism of the many mountain biking injuries I see.



J.B. Weld said:


> I don't know, I'm kind of picky about my apparel and only wear decent bib shorts so I haven't found anything I could wear regularly yet. I did check out g-form's lycra cycling shorts with padded hips but found the quality sub-par. They have some new bibs out now that look nicer but I haven't seen them.
> 
> I only landed hard on my hip bone once but it was enough to make me think covering it with some padding might be a good idea.


I've been happy with the quality, protection, and non-obtrusive comfort of the POC shorts that I wear. They don't have much for chamois, so I wear them over some padded briefs, with a pair of MTB shorts over all that. Very comfortable.

As to elbows, I've never really hurt mine, nor to I see that much in the way of elbow-injury ED visits, so they're not that prominent on my radar yet. Yet.


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## rmac (Oct 26, 2004)

55 and three bloody crashes this year. First crash I had no additional protection and ended up needing stitches. Knee, elbow/forearm and hip protection since then. The two subsequent crashes were better, still bloody but less flesh-intrusive. It seems that you can get away without armor if you're not pushing it but wise to have it if you are.


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## Jim_bo (Jul 31, 2011)

J.B. Weld said:


> Yes, light armor for sure. If you like to ride fast then you will go down at some time or another and a little protection can mean the difference between riding on unscathed or an ER visit and downtime on the bike. Aside from the obvious (helmet, gloves) I think elbow and knee pads along with maybe hip protection is a good idea. I would go for something light and unobtrusive.
> 
> This is "do as I say, not as I do" advice because I haven't found anything quite unobtrusive enough yet, the elbow and knee pads I've tried so far didn't quite cut it for me but hopefully I'll find something I can live with before I damage myself again.


I can't recommend the Alpinestar Volcano kneepads highly enough. They have a very substantial pad, but if floats over the patella and doesn't rub. Also, they don't slide on like a sock, they wrap around. So there is zero material behind your knee. I literally forget that I am wearing them.

Unless you have huge legs, order the S/M. They run big. Also, if you are interested, get a pair soon as they are now out of production. They pads that replace them (I think it's the paragon) are not nearly as comfortable.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

Jim_bo said:


> I can't recommend the Alpinestar Volcano kneepads highly enough. They have a very substantial pad, but if floats over the patella and doesn't rub. Also, they don't slide on like a sock, they wrap around. So there is zero material behind your knee. I literally forget that I am wearing them.
> 
> Unless you have huge legs, order the S/M. They run big. Also, if you are interested, get a pair soon as they are now out of production. They pads that replace them (I think it's the paragon) are not nearly as comfortable.


Thanks Jim_bo, the Volcano's do seem like a better design to me, the slide on ones I've tried don't stay in place well and tend to bunch up behind the knee. Also have tried the paragons and wasn't too impressed.

I'm a die hard xc sort of guy and really am looking forward to more lightweight and unobtrusive options coming out, protection won't help if it's uncomfortable enough to prevent you from wearing it.


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## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

J.B. Weld said:


> Thanks Jim_bo, the Volcano's do seem like a better design to me, the slide on ones I've tried don't stay in place well and tend to bunch up behind the knee. Also have tried the paragons and wasn't too impressed.
> 
> I'm a die hard xc sort of guy and really am looking forward to more lightweight and unobtrusive options coming out, protection won't help if it's uncomfortable enough to prevent you from wearing it.


I agree with your thinking about a more comfortable/ lighter sort of protection and I thought the G- Form line might be exactly what I was looking for but after reading the reviews, it appears to be not that great!


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## toynbee (Apr 15, 2007)

I wear POC elbow hard shells every ride. I am not wearing knee pads all the time, but I have some G Forms that I don't hate. 

For hips, you may want to try the ASSOS Rally shorts (spendy, I know). They have hip pads, and they are excellent. I wear baggies over the top, although they would be fine alone for XC use. I use ASSOS stuff on the road too, and I like the chamois.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I don't always wear knee protection but I wore my G-forms on a recent vacation in Quebec. The trail terrain and features were new to me, plus it had rained overnight on our second day. I'm glad I wore that little extra protection. I had a fantastic time, I didn't hold back. No crashes or close calls, just sweet riding.

My hubby wore G-forms as well. He's way more experienced and technical rider than me.

Just a few pics from our vacation rides


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## rickcin (Jul 16, 2010)

cyclelicious said:


> I don't always wear knee protection but I wore my G-forms on a recent vacation in Quebec. The trail terrain and features were new to me, plus it had rained overnight on our second day. I'm glad I wore that little extra protection. I had a fantastic time, I didn't hold back. No crashes or close calls, just sweet riding.
> 
> My hubby wore G-forms as well. He's way more experienced and technical rider than me.
> 
> ...


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