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Did a chest protector help much?


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I wear an AlpineStars A10 chest protector plus all other gear. Because I haven't fallen or even come close cruising around 25 mph on my KS-16X and to be about 3.5 pounds lighter, I'm thinking of not wearing it anymore on NYC streets.

Have you fallen with a chest protector?
How useful was it for your fall?

Of course there's so many ways to fall, bu just thinking of good reasons why I should still wear it. Thanks in advance!

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u havent fallen yet!Accept that u will fall and when u do ,you will bounce back up like nothing has happened whilst geared up.If guys like Chooch,Marty and Kuji fall with their experience ,im continuing with my ATGATT.I have fallen with a chest/back protector,both forwards and backwards with headstrikes and get up and laugh it off though sore for a couple of days.

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46 minutes ago, postbio said:

I wear an AlpineStars A10 chest protector plus all other gear. Because I haven't fallen or even come close cruising around 25 mph on my KS-16X and to be about 3.5 pounds lighter, I'm thinking of not wearing it anymore on NYC streets.

Have you fallen with a chest protector?
How useful was it for your fall?

Of course there's so many ways to fall, bu just thinking of good reasons why I should still wear it. Thanks in advance!

Chest armor use is agains direct hit car cyclist tree etc. Normaly overlean and flat surface crashes is no need eventualy. In city is big chance somebody something hit you better wear. 

I use  this with chest plate out. https://www.google.com/search?q=LEATT+BODY+TEE+3DF+AIRFIT+LITE&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjZgaW5hcnrAhXJuqQKHWtdBZkQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=LEATT+BODY+TEE+3DF+AIRFIT+LITE&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQDDIECAAQE1C27gJYtu4CYPb1AmgAcAB4AIABRYgBRZIBATGYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=HtBOX9n6Lcn1kgXrupXICQ&bih=920&biw=1920&safe=off 

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Thanks everyone. I have no problem wearing the gear at all as shown in the pic.

However, it comes out to 11 pounds, so I'm just afraid the extra weigh may be a liability itself. 

There are weak spots like my wrists that won't benefit from much more gear and could even get hurt my the heavier weight.

I usually ride at 20-25 mph, but will be getting a MSP or Veteran Sherman  and will be going faster.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I had a cutout recently at 30kmh and my Leatt 4.5 Hydra chest protector did take some damage in front - without it I think I would have had really bad road rash and/or a broken rib. As long as it is not too hot outside I am trying to wear it. I also have an Armored Hoodie that I try to pair with it weather permitting - which admittedly is a bit of overkill but I really feel safe with both on.

I think that when this all pays for itself is when you wipe at full speed and slide 20 feet - your wheel is going to zoom past you and possibly hit you in the back, or the back of the head. Also if you ride with traffic then anything can happen and you need to be prepared.

Lastly I think this has a lot to do with age. If you're getting up there like me you have to be a bit more cautious and plan for the worst.

 

 

 

Edited by Tryptych
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I fell at 38kmh for no apparent reason (pedal dip?) on my mten3. Fell sideways/backwards so chest not an issue, but might have hit a tree so would have been better to wear one. As mentioned the wheel might bounce into you at any stage of the fall and that would be a massive impact.

I don't see shoes mentioned too often here, however I broke my ankle in the fall while wearing good mc hitops with reinforced ankles. I will get d3o ankle protection when I am back on the wheel. 

 

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1 hour ago, Fntmsgotwaymten3 said:

I fell at 38kmh for no apparent reason (pedal dip?) on my mten3

That sounds like the top speed for the mten3. If you don't have a full battery, or weigh more than 70Kg, or there's a bump in the road etc then the top speed is less. The wheel then cut's out and you fall off. Wrist guards and helmet are probably more important than chest guard and hitops but the best safety improvement is to simply ride slower and within the capacity of the wheel.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My friend dropped from his wheel when a cat ran in front of him. He fell in front and the wheel rolled until it came to a stop... on his chest.

He had no chest protection and he had to go for x-rays. Luckily it was only a muscle trauma, but he had chest pain for 2 weeks (couldn't workout at a gym) and a red mark.

 

We have both ordered an upper body protection that includes the chest area, since. :)

Edited by Bill Kolk
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On 9/2/2020 at 9:57 AM, WebDev said:

I have the same chest protector.  Even though I ride a "slow" V8F, I like to always wear it.  Initially, I had planned to only use it on more daring rides (off-road) or when I upgrade to something faster, but after seeing several more videos of crashes with injuries due to no fault of the rider, I've decided that it's best to wear it all the time.  The only time I won't wear it is if it's just too hot out to bear, but I plan to buy an active cooling shirt to remedy that so I can be comfortably protected at all times.

Continue to wear it if you value your safety.  You already invested in it, so don't regret not wearing it.  You never know when you're going to crash, but it's almost inevitable that you will.

What videos were they? I think its pretty rare (equipment caused crashes), esp on V8F never heard of it. I heard it a bit on some of the brand new ones, V11,  S18 etc, but they are version 1.0 kind of thing

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On 9/12/2020 at 8:10 AM, Tryptych said:

I had a cutout recently at 30kmh and my Leatt 4.5 Hydra chest protector did take some damage in front - without it I think I would have had really bad road rash and/or a broken rib. As long as it is not too hot outside I am trying to wear it. I also have an Armored Hoodie that I try to pair with it weather permitting - which admittedly is a bit of overkill but I really feel safe with both on.

I think that when this all pays for itself is when you wipe at full speed and slide 20 feet - your wheel is going to zoom past you and possibly hit you in the back, or the back of the head. Also if you ride with traffic then anything can happen and you need to be prepared.

Lastly I think this has a lot to do with age. If you're getting up there like me you have to be a bit more cautious and plan for the worst.

 

 

 

Did you cut out on the V8 at 30kmh? Thats pretty much the top speed right?

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On 9/17/2020 at 10:50 AM, mike_bike_kite said:

That sounds like the top speed for the mten3. If you don't have a full battery, or weigh more than 70Kg, or there's a bump in the road etc then the top speed is less. The wheel then cut's out and you fall off. Wrist guards and helmet are probably more important than chest guard and hitops but the best safety improvement is to simply ride slower and within the capacity of the wheel.

Very true. 👍.

Still I will improve my gear and also ride slower.

I think I deactivated the speed alarm by mistake, which I had gotten used to...

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24 minutes ago, FinRider said:

My riding buddy had a cut-out at about 20-25 km/h and fell flat on his face. His helmet and chest protector saved him from serious injury. I always ride with mine on and will continue to do so.

Any reason why it might have happened? Ver low battery or over acceleration? This kind of statements really worry me...

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1 hour ago, Felix said:

Any reason why it might have happened? Ver low battery or over acceleration? This kind of statements really worry me...

Well, we didn't have any data logging on the wheel at the moment, it is a KS16C. Battery was at about 50%. It was probably due to a slight overlean, but we do not know for sure. He clocks in at about 112 kg geared up, which might be a bit too much for the little wheel... but the moral of the story is to always gear up bc there are only two types of riders, the ones who have had a (bad) spill and the ones who will have one...

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7 hours ago, FinRider said:

Well, we didn't have any data logging on the wheel at the moment, it is a KS16C. Battery was at about 50%. It was probably due to a slight overlean, but we do not know for sure. He clocks in at about 112 kg geared up, which might be a bit too much for the little wheel... but the moral of the story is to always gear up bc there are only two types of riders, the ones who have had a (bad) spill and the ones who will have one...

I havn't had a bad spill ,and don't really wanna have one  :).  Thats why I always search for cases which are not explainable, they are actually not that easy to find.   112 kg on a 800W wheel is a problematic configuration :) 

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2 hours ago, Felix said:

I havn't had a bad spill ,and don't really wanna have one  :).  Thats why I always search for cases which are not explainable, they are actually not that easy to find.   112 kg on a 800W wheel is a problematic configuration :) 

 

2 hours ago, Felix said:

I havn't had a bad spill ,and don't really wanna have one  :).  Thats why I always search for cases which are not explainable, they are actually not that easy to find.   112 kg on a 800W wheel is a problematic configuration :) 

Hey, the wheel is officially rated for 150kg, so dont flame my boy! Although i think you do have a valid point. I rode the wheel for 2k km and had no issues...

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Motor power, battery level, speed, and weight seems to be the simplest components to account for the cutoff. 

Since you can't really change your weight too much, might as well try to maximize motor power, always strive to keep battery close to 100% (at the cost of slightly decreased battery life from keeping the charge and charging more often), and ride a bit below rated top speed of the EUC. 

Fully geared up like the pic above and with a leather jacket covering it for winter months, I'm about 178 pounds /  80kg and I think I'm fine with my King Song 16X hitting around 25-27 mph. I don't want to get much closer to the rated top speed of 31 mph, since those marketed specs may make some generous assumptions that I don't want to find out how generous, lo. 

I'm thinking of getting a Gotway RS High Torque simply for greater margin of safety, and not for traveling too much faster into mid-to-high 30s 

My goal is to continue riding EUCs for decades injury free. Chest protector is part of the puzzle. High torque performance is another part of the puzzle. Probably the most important parts are developing riding skill and awareness. Here are some further thoughts you might find interesting...

My Safety Plan for Riding Electric Unicycles Exceeding 30 MPH

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