Did a handling dynamics refresher at HART on Sunday and was telling the instructor that I know of a bloke who had one of those shockers that stuffs up everyone. A nice young couple had just bought a new car and admitted they were distracted looking at the new stuff on the dash so didn't see the rider. They didn't even get fully out of the dealer's drive way when he hit them up the side. He's 44, young wife and kids and now a quadriplegic. The couple who pulled out in front of him have been asking to see him but he can't face them.

Disaster all round. Anyway, the HART instructor commented on back protectors and said all you need is to land on a pebble to break your back. When I said yeah but no one uses them off the track he said HE did.  I'm already dressed up like a bee keeper so don't intend to add anything extra (plus my jacket has a foam back pad) but just curious if anyone else does this. I know you tee shirt blokes sure don't - wish I had your confidence.

 

I use a Dianese (armadillo type) back protector/ kidney brace. After a very bad accident in 88, I wouldn't be able to ride without it know. It saved my back in another accident when I had a high speed front tyre blowout on a Ducati, I went down and slid back first into a wooden road marker post and snapped the post in two without a mark on my back. I'd hate to slide over a kat-eye road lane marker without some sort of protection for my spine.

You insure your bike, you insure your head with a helmet, why not insure your back for around $200, bargain.

 

I have a Teknic jacket with some kind of foam padding in the back,elbows & shoulders got to be better than nothing ,just hope not to have to test it out

 I guess all the protection in the world isn't going to work if your luck's not holding but it's good to reduce the odds a bit. A mate of mine many years ago came off wearing casual clothes. You might call him lucky in a way...he wouldn't have gotten to represent Australia in the Olympics otherwise. Bad luck it was the Paralympics (archery). He's lived a very successful life, considering, but I bet he'd have liked to have had that spill with a jacket on, just in case it made a difference.

On the bright side, minor spills are fairly common, but with luck and care we won't get to feel a bad one. Safe riding guys.

A decent bike jacket should have all that built in and still look good, but there arent any decent jackets on the market. I guess theres an opening in the marketplace for someone with a bit of brains.

My "Bikersgear" textile jacket has removable CE armour hard foam padding in the back, shoulders, and elbows and I don't leave home without it. After 58 years I have discovered I'm not indestructible and working with a guy who was left a para after a bike accident years ago reminds me to leave the armour in place-- I don't care that it's not "cool" looking.

Am looking to buy one of the HD replica leathers from China (ala the post on this forum). Currently have a synthetic jacket with armour and want to reuse this stuff. Any of you have an HD jacket which accepts non-HD armour?

Whats peoples thoughts , on the textile jackets , i have a R jays with what apears to be hard plastic on the elbows and shoulders but thin rubber in the back I also have a cheaper textile jacket i bought from aldi this has thin rubber or plastic in the elbows and shoulders but thicker knobble rubber in the back .
Whats the thoughts on these has opposed to my rj's leather which i've had for 15 years with no padding just good quality leather ..

So basicly leather or textile with padding .

Got to admit though when its hot and just local i don't wear any of the above and wear a open face .

Longer journeys (which most are , its generally textile in the rain , and leather when dry , then i use a nolan with a flip up visor .

they are a good idea

Cheers, i'm in the market for a new leather and at least now i know what to look for Got to admit has i'm getting older , i'm dressing more for safety and don't give a fack if it does'nt look cool . Has i said to a mate who was taking the piss out of my flip down lid you won't look cool with half your face missing .

I just figure at the wrong side of 50 i aint gonna bounce has good any more

my jacket has pads in the back and I went on a ride last week with a guy wearing a back protector neck brace setup (he was on a KTM) I don't know maybe its me but I seem to be wearing more and more gear when riding these days one of two things I think either I am getting soft or I have realized I have more to loose these days

Oh dear......the only protection i have is my middle finger ( the last great act of defence ) but hey i know the risk's and ride accordingly ie: will go into stop mode at an intersection until i see the car driver looking at me and when i'm stopped at the intersection watch mirrors until 2 cars are stopped behind me etc etc.......not sayin i'm bullet proof, there is a billion ways to get cleaned up i just try to forsee the next few seconds and keep a constant eye on my surrounds, wildlife is my biggest concern, maybe if i get older and wiser i'll take protection a bit more serious.  Although i dont ride on busy freeways, hiways or streets, thats a whole different world and the thought of it scares me.
The only bike accident ive had was years ago in my old jap bike days, the story goes like this, was approaching an intersection with give way's on both sides, landcruiser was on the left heading straight through, on the right was another l/cruiser turning toward me, beside that l/c was a torana heading straight through, i knew the torana driver couldnt see me so i slowed ready to stop, sure enough he started to plough through the intersection so i threw the bike ova to the right to go behind him, it was then he spotted me and stopped dead, so then i threw the bike ova to the left and powered on to go in front of him, at the same time he must have seen me heading to the rear of him so he floored it again, so i thew the bike back to the right but it was too late, i hit him just behind his rear wheel, sailed ova his boot lid, landed on my back and the first thing i seen was a l/c tyre at point blank range, he was the one on the left and coincidently had killed a motorcyclist in another accident and boy he totally lost it with the torana driver...... the moral of the story is - i came away from that little incident with a bent bike, a scratched knee and SHIT LOADS of education