if you don't read any other post this year, read this one.

[Gigantic]

Hey all, this was posted in another forum that I'm on- i thought it might be apropos here:
Originally posted by bradzdotcom
as some of you know, i make my living in the professional supercross/motocross industry.

i want to tell you about something that could possibly save your life...and keep you out of a wheelchair.

i have WAY too many friends that i used to race with, who are now in wheelchairs due to paralysis.

This is my effort to make sure YOU do not become one of them.

This post might be a long read. trust me...it's worth it.

in my industry, we've recently been making a big push on a product called the leatt brace. their website is: http://www.leatt-brace.com/ the brace you want to look at is the GPX version.

the leatt brace is designed to help minimize paralizing neck injuries...the kinds of injuries that put you in a wheelchair...or worse.

the feedback i've gotten from pro mx/sx/road racers is that: the brace is comfortable. it doesn't interfere with your helmet. it doesn't make additional noise. it doesn't weight much. you almost don't notice it's even there.

from what i've seen, the leatt brace is just as important as a helmet, boots or gloves. hopefully, by the time you're done reading this, it will become a mandatory piece of your riding gear.

my friend david bailey, a former motocross racer, recently marked his 20th year in a wheelchair.
although he's been bed-ridden for the past year, he mustered the effort to talk about the leatt brace. the video is called "Stand for Something".

david's video is sponsored by Nike. it's 12 minutes long. the video is mostly an "inside industry" thing, some of which is directed at particular riders. it's worth a watch. the link is: http://www.vitalmx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=0&Itemid=64&media_type=pro&media_id=196&media_owner=1180

since david's video came out, there's been a giant swell of support in our industry. many of our pro riders have been practicing with the brace during the week...some of them (like Kevin Windham), will be wearing the brace this weekend at our supercross event in San Diego.

many others are trying it. it was worn by 70 of the competitors in the recent Dakar race...bike, car and truck guys.

it's been worn and tried by not only US based road racers, but by many MotoGP guys. You'll be seeing it throughout this season worn by famous guys who are way faster than we are.

the leatt brace is a product that was developed by a South African doctor. Over the past year, he's received "funding" from a variety of companies, including BMW and KTM.

the leatt brace is available in three configurations (all fiberglass, half fiber/half carbon, all carbon), and costs between $400 and $1000 dollars.

yep it's expensive. but even the most inexpensive version is less than the cost of a good wheelchair, or a good helmet, boots, radar detector, ohlins shock, etc...


please follow the links above. think about getting one.
personally...from what i know, what i've seen and what i've learned....i ordered one last week...and i'm absolutely NOT going to ride again until i have mine. and i won't ever ride again without it.

if this post encourages just one of you to belly up and get one...then it will be worth it.

thanx for reading this.

...brad

[CBRBob]

This looks like the HANS Device used in auto racing.

[jcblitz]

sounds like a sales pitch. Not riding a motorcycle can save your life too, but we all draw the line on what we do and what we don't do. I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits. The title of this thread is a bit overboard and out of line in my opinion.

[IrocRob]

As good an idea as this is, I don't think it'll catch on with street riders;
and it'll take a rule making them required equiptment before we see
alot of them on the track. Pretty much the same way NASCAR did it.

:doh:

[ZeRo_C0oL]

Maybe for the track... but I'd never wear that on the street. :p


...and unfortunately, 95% of my riding is on the street.

[Smokes35]

great idea...


but they're like 1,500 bucks ive heard....

[John712]

dont seem like a bad idea, i to wont wear it on the street, although my riding is also 90% street riding. but then again, all my sport bikes will be gone by the summer and will be using just my Harley, thats not to say i will be safe on my Harley, because we all put ourselves at risk the second we get on the street on any kind of motorcycle.

excellent idea for track junkies i would think. their pricey,

Club
Materials – Glass Reinforced Nylon Upper and Lower
Weight: Medium – 850grams
Suggested Retail Price – US$395

Sport
Materials – Glass Reinforced Nylon Lower and Carbon Fiber Upper
Weight: Medium – 780grams
Suggested Retail Price – US$595

Pro
Materials – Carbon Fiber Upper and Lower
Suggested Retail Price – US$995


but then again, there is no price high enough that can save you from potential and permanent body damage. maybe in the future i'll get one.

[yetidave]

sounds like a sales pitch. Not riding a motorcycle can save your life too, but we all draw the line on what we do and what we don't do. I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits. The title of this thread is a bit overboard and out of line in my opinion.


"Not riding a motorcycle can save your life too, but we all draw the line on what we do and what we don't do."
That's the same arguement (if you want to call it an arguement) the anti-helmet knuckleheads use.

" I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits."
Really, I ordered one. Call me crazy but I feel anything I can do to minimize the risk of spinal cord injury is worthwhile.

"The title of this thread is a bit overboard and out of line in my opinion"
How is it out of line? Did it somehow hurt your feelings?

[Gigantic]

sounds like a sales pitch. Not riding a motorcycle can save your life too, but we all draw the line on what we do and what we don't do. I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits. The title of this thread is a bit overboard and out of line in my opinion.

It caught your attention, didn't it? Just how is it out of line? I've got nothing to do wth this company- I'm not selling anything. I think this is a worthwhile piece of safety gear. I've had injuries that could have been prevented by wearing this device, that ultimately cost me my health, my job, my house and my marriage. I'm not saying that wearing one of these would have saved all of that, but it could have at the very least, saved me a lot of pain, as well as a nasty scar and a titanium plate and six screws in my collarbone. My accident could have been much, much worse and given the type of riding that I do, there's a good chance of having another, although I hope to gawd to avoid that. I will eventually order one and I intend to wear it everytime I ride on the track. The thread provides information that could ultimately save a life or at least save a rider from a lifetime in a chair. I posted it because I care about all of you, my fellow riders, regardless of whether we've ever met. how is that out of line, I ask you once again?
It's good, solid information regarding your safety and totally germane for the Got Gear? section. Like wearing a helmet, ignore this at your own peril.
Lance

[RCM78]

It's certainly not out of line. Kevin Windham is wearing one of these and the announcers were talking about it during the race. Kevin says he doesnt even know it's there. It doesnt interfere with his riding one bit.

Looks like a great idea to me. I wonder if it would've saved my collar bone?

Prices start at $300 so It's affordable. I'm probably gonna get one...

Maybe Yeti will let me try his out???

[yetidave]

Maybe Yeti will let me try his out???


Of course.

[RCM78]

:D Of course.

[jcblitz]

" I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits."
Really, I ordered one. Call me crazy but I feel anything I can do to minimize the risk of spinal cord injury is worthwhile.


...and look at all the other people on this thread that didn't. I stated that not to many people are interested in wearing/buying it, not that it didn't save lives. You took my words out of context. But I am correct in what I stated and you did not refute that, you simply changed the context to fit your message.


"The title of this thread is a bit overboard and out of line in my opinion"
How is it out of line? Did it somehow hurt your feelings?

The person that posted this thread does not own or have any administrative / managerial privileges on this site. For them to say that if you only do one thing on this site, read this thread is overstepping their role. Not only that, the title does not indicate what the purpose of the thread is, it's misuse of a title. It's sensationalism regardless of it's intent. That's like posting a title, "I need help". Well no shit, please at least put a short description in the title of what you need help with so the appropriate people can help you.

[yetidave]

"...and look at all the other people on this thread that didn't. I stated that not to many people are interested in wearing/buying it, not that it didn't save lives. You took my words out of context. But I am correct in what I stated and you did not refute that, you simply changed the context to fit your message.
"

No one took your words out of context. You were quoted exactly as written.

"The person that posted this thread does not own or have any administrative / managerial privileges on this site. For them to say that if you only do one thing on this site, read this thread is overstepping their role. Not only that, the title does not indicate what the purpose of the thread is, it's misuse of a title. It's sensationalism regardless of it's intent. That's like posting a title, "I need help". Well no shit, please at least put a short description in the title of what you need help with so the appropriate people can help you."

Yeah ok dude. For whatever reason, you have your panties in a wad over the way a thread on the internet is titled. I have a question for you. Do you have any "any administrative / managerial privileges on this site"?

[jcblitz]

"...and look at all the other people on this thread that didn't. I stated that not to many people are interested in wearing/buying it, not that it didn't save lives. You took my words out of context. But I am correct in what I stated and you did not refute that, you simply changed the context to fit your message.
"

No one took your words out of context. You were quoted exactly as written.

"The person that posted this thread does not own or have any administrative / managerial privileges on this site. For them to say that if you only do one thing on this site, read this thread is overstepping their role. Not only that, the title does not indicate what the purpose of the thread is, it's misuse of a title. It's sensationalism regardless of it's intent. That's like posting a title, "I need help". Well no shit, please at least put a short description in the title of what you need help with so the appropriate people can help you."

Yeah ok dude. For whatever reason, you have your panties in a wad over the way a thread on the internet is titled. I have a question for you. Do you have any "any administrative / managerial privileges on this site"?

You do not understand context then. You may have quoted me exactly, but you missed the whole point. I mentioned nothing about the safety aspect of the brace, just that not to many people would be interested in wearing one, then you come in talking about safety and tried to negate "not to many people" with "Well I bought one". Statistically speaking, 1 is not many. Hell, I'll even give you 2 including the author.

And your second response is so typical. Complete with the whole "panties in a twist" insult followed by the "it's just the internet" angle. I'll answer your question with another question, have you ever gotten offended at someone cutting in front of you on line at a bar or something? You don't own the bar, but you know it's rude right? This thread is not the most important thread on this site, far from it. It being labeled as such disrespects other posts (and further more the people that posted them) that are actually worth something and are contributing to the community, not some cut/paste for a product that 1 out of 20 might even consider.

[JimRBlue]

Another one.

http://www.dainese.com/eng/articolo.asp?cat=1,2,3,7&nome=NECK-4&articolo=1875799

[EvilSteve]

I might get one of these. If it doesn't interfere with my movements, I might wear it on the street too.

[Gigantic]

The person that posted this thread does not own or have any administrative / managerial privileges on this site. For them to say that if you only do one thing on this site, read this thread is overstepping their role. Not only that, the title does not indicate what the purpose of the thread is, it's misuse of a title. It's sensationalism regardless of it's intent. That's like posting a title, "I need help". Well no shit, please at least put a short description in the title of what you need help with so the appropriate people can help you.

Jeezus Christ, you're an anal twat! No, I don't have admin priveleges here. What does that have to do with anything? Yes, I utilized hyperbole as poetic license to draw attention to my thread about a new and I think important, innovative piece of protective gear that can save your sorry, miserable life if you choose to wear one. There are plenty of people who have responded to this thread that have the basic intelligence to see that and a few whom even have the desire to actually buy one. Judging by your response and your avatar showing you doing stupid, human tricks on a "fiddy," sans helmet, you obviously lack any inteligence at all, whatsoever.
I sincerely hope you never have to learn the hard way,
Lance

[jcblitz]

Jeezus Christ, you're an anal twat! No I don't have admin priveleges here. What the fuck does that have to do with anything? Yes, I utilized hyperbole as poetic license to draw attention to my thread about a new and I think important, innovative piece of protective gear that can save your sorry, fucking life if you choose to wear one. There are plenty of people who have responded to this thread that have the basic intelligence to see that and a few whom even have the desire to actually buy one. Judging by your response and your avatar showing you doing stupid, human tricks on a "fiddy," sans helmet, you obviously lack any inteligence at all, whatsoever.
I sincerely hope you never have to learn the hard way,
Lance

What an intelligent, well thought out response. And I've never seen anyone over the age of 12 say twat, thank you for that.

[EvilSteve]

"if you don't read any other post this year, read this one."

I guess that means we should steer clear of the rest of the thread which seems to be just piling sand up in the corner.

Been doing some research, MCN had a quick bit on it saying that it was good for sport bikes.

As for only on the track, I'm of the opinion that you're more likely to hit stuff on the street than at the track (sport bike) so if you're going to wear it at the track you should wear it on the street. I might get one.

[soda7o]

what does this mean "hyperbole"....?

[Gigantic]

hyperbole |hīˈpərbəlē|
noun
exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

[Surfinglbi23]

Good read either way

[JimboJimmy]

" I don't think wearing a neck harness is on the todo list of many people, regardless of its benefits."

Really, I ordered one. Call me crazy but I feel anything I can do to minimize the risk of spinal cord injury is worthwhile.


Yeti, I would love to check it out when you get it. Hopefully we'll see each other on a ride someday this spring/summer.

I agree they are VERY pricey, but hell, if you got in an accident and were paralyzed as a result would you trade $1000 bucks for a chance at not being paralyzed? I think "yes". Would you trade never having rode a motorcycle for not being paralyzed? That's a question I assume we've all asked ourselves, and answered "no" which is why we choose to take the risk to ride. But I would like to minimize my risk and still have some fun.

That being said, if they aren't comfortable or impede head motion while riding, I don't know if it would be worth using. I definately want to see it and try it before I plunk down anywhere from $400 to $1000 - but I'm very interested. Thanks to the original poster for posting it up.

[Gigantic]

There's also been a lot of discussion recently about the importance of wearing a chest protector, too. apparently a novice track-day rider crashed a few weeks ago at roebling road, landed on his chest, broke several ribs, punturing his aorta in the process. he passed away later that day at the hospital... a chest protector MIGHT have prevented that injury...