A bit of a XC nerd, who spends the majority of my time on the trainer, riding road or gravel. However, still race XC and find some of the courses are featuring increasingly more black diamond features, finding in some cases there aren't even B-lines anymore. Thus I've started to spend some more time on the mtb in the skills park and on black diamond trails. While I haven't suffered any dramatic crashes pushing the limits of my comfort zone, I will occasionally pogo stick off my front wheel or barely save a high-side, making it tough to really 'send it'. I'm planning to grab a full face as alternative to my Prevail and was wondering about neck braces/doughnuts. I used to wear one when I was a kid and raced motocross, but with the slower speeds and lighter helmets used outside of downhill are they actually a benefit? My understanding was that with heavier helmets and higher speeds there is increased risk of over flexion/extension of the neck in a crash. Does anyone bother with these if so what models, what I used to wear as a kid was like the EVS R2 rather than a rigid brace https://www.evs-sports.com/collections/mtb-neck-protection/products/r2-race-collar?variant=42492131541190
by dexvd
2 Comments
Not so much. But a few people do for sure. Most people wearing a neck brace do so on big down hill and bike parks that have bigger jumps and drops. However, you should wear one if it makes you more confident and calmer. Same with a full face helmet, if it feels right, then do it. I wear a full face on blues and greens. Rocks are hard and I like my natural teeth, lol. There is nothing wrong or restrictive with wearing a neck brace. I have heard that collar bone injuries are statistically higher for people wearing neck braces but I don’t know if thats true or not. Either way, a spinal cord injury is potentially way worse than a collar bone injury. As far as brands go, I have seen Leatt and Atlas Air brace but I have no personal experience with either. Happy trails!
I enjoy proper enduro riding, and days at the park. I’m always in a Fox Proframe RS full face helmet, and Leatt 5.5 neck brace.
I was lucky to get the full face before needing it. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same about the neck brace. Now having them on is second nature, and they don’t interfere with my riding.