Talk to me about gear

[TriumPhil]

A great, comprehensive and cogent explanation, Steve.

No googling is necessary for me as my experiences were just as you explained. I guess that my main point and a sincere concern that I will always have for my fellow riders is that there's no predicting which part of your head is going to strike what or where in a bad fall and getting "religion" after learning that lesson the hard way is often to late to make a difference.

 

[Ogremeister]

WW, your Ortho buddy makes a good point when it comes to changes in injuries after new safety equipment is introduced. Back in 2005 while attending the annual SOMA (Special Ops Medical Assn) conference in Tampa, one of the statisticians was speaking on the increase number of severally wounded servicemen in their extremities. The safety nut was telling us all that they were investing millions of dollars to find out why the increase. Most of us looked around and realized it was because the body armor was far better than it had ever been thus saving more lives than ever. Those in the past had the same extremity injures but since they didn’t survive, no one took note. I think the same thing is at play here with the increase in neck injuries because more people are surviving the crash thus giving the ER more viable patients to work on. Thanks for the idea…

reminds me of a similar progression regarding skiing injuries...as equipment evolved, the most common injuries moved up the leg...

early days-ankle
then-lower legs
now-knees

As skiing became more extreme death rates increased & most of that is due to head injury (inbounds)....so now there is a trend for helmet use.

Out of bounds, avalanche danger is the #1 killer & there is a growing industry in safety gear for that...

 

[Boog]

I don't mean to drive this thread away from the first point, but safety in everything we do is pretty important. Avalanches have taken several people this year and will continue to do so over time. I almost never see anyone ski with more than cold gear and a helmet so I don't know what the industry will do to help keep them viable till rescue arrives. But in that case, rescue has come a very long way with both dogs and technology to find the victims.
And back to motorcycle gear, using a tracker is very important for both bike and driver as together will help rescuers find us if we are unable to call for help after a get off. The tracking software that can be added to your smart phone may be the easiest on the wallet but its limitations are it needs to be connected to the cellular network where some of us ride outside of. Spot trackers cost an extra monthly fee but work around the world. Just a thought...

 

[Ogremeister]

I don't mean to drive this thread away from the first point, but safety in everything we do is pretty important. Avalanches have taken several people this year and will continue to do so over time. I almost never see anyone ski with more than cold gear and a helmet so I don't know what the industry will do to help keep them viable till rescue arrives. But in that case, rescue has come a very long way with both dogs and technology to find the victims.
And back to motorcycle gear, using a tracker is very important for both bike and driver as together will help rescuers find us if we are unable to call for help after a get off. The tracking software that can be added to your smart phone may be the easiest on the wallet but its limitations are it needs to be connected to the cellular network where some of us ride outside of. Spot trackers cost an extra monthly fee but work around the world. Just a thought...

avalanche equipment has some neat new items

http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en/skiing/avalung

http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en/pieps-avalanche-beacons

http://www.backcountry.com/backcoun...W5jaGUgU3Vydml2YWw6MToxNTpiY3NDYXQ1MTEwMDA1MA

I saw an tv interview last year, with a young lady that survived a slide due to an airbag.

 

[ksquared]

As skiing became more extreme death rates increased & most of that is due to head injury (inbounds)....so now there is a trend for helmet use.

See: "Schumacher, Michael" (sad to say).

 

[wordwarrior]

Triumph dealer was telling me about one of the racing airbag leathers manufacturers launch where the model walked on stage, made a sudden movement and blew up like a Michelin man. Oops
Seems they are prohibitively expensive for the likes of us and have to be returned to factory to be recharged.

 

[CanberraR3]

That's a good point Boog. Not long ago a lady was found dead in a ditch in the Snowy Mountains several days after leaving the road while on an organised ride. No one saw it happen and there was apparently no visible evidence of where she left the road. She died well after the initial impact.

Chap I work with had a bad spill a few years ago - his leg looks like a hockey stick now with a big chunk missing from his ankle. He was telling me that he lay unconscious for some time in a field before making a phone call for help. Trouble was he had been travelling on a country road and didn't really know where he was, plus he kept passing out during the phone call. Took them hours to find him. He counts himself very lucky that the phone worked, given where he was plus what it had been through, and he was able to make that call.

Beacons start around $200. Worth considering if travelling alone in remote areas. Maybe one that self activates if the bike's on its side for a preset time.

 

[TriumPhil]

Easy solution (except that I think that it relys upon the same cellular network):

 

[Ogremeister]

Triumph dealer was telling me about one of the racing airbag leathers manufacturers launch where the model walked on stage, made a sudden movement and blew up like a Michelin man. Oops
Seems they are prohibitively expensive for the likes of us and have to be returned to factory to be recharged.

I was @ Americade, maybe 6 or 7 years ago...They had an expo. booth for an airbag jacket. It activated by a cord, when you separate from bike.

They actually found someone to do a test run, which they had on video there. The guy deliberately T-bones into a car-gets up & walks away.

Couldn't have paid me enough to do that...

At any rate, my friends & I had a GOOD laugh, considering motoring up to a hangout & gettin off yer bike...BUT FERGETTIN TO UNHOOK THE CORD 1ST!!!

 

[TriumPhil]

That's one reason I have never invested in heated riding gear, because, knowing myself as I do, it is a lead pipe cinch that sooner or later I would forget that I was tethered to my ride and, predictably, mayhem would ensue!