Leatt Brace - How Necessary?

[Johnny Minehan]

Im going to start racing mx this summer. Ive been riding and practicing on tracks for a few years now, and im wondering how necessary is a neck brace? is it worth spending 400 bucks on?

[TRX450RACER174]

I will never ride without one it's 400 bucks well spent.

[mcwilly]

I've read/heard nothing but good things about them. I'm getting one for my son in the next couple of weeks. If you got the cash, I say go for it. From what I hear, once you adjust it to fit you, you hardly notice it's there.

[JRP]

I will never ride without one again! I love mine and im so glad i got one. i got the 600dollar one because thats all they had, but the 400 one is just as good. They are comfortable as anything, and they dont restrict you at all!

[quad2xtreme]

same here...I would opt for the $400 next time.

[ZSK]

What is the function of a Leatt brace? How does it work?

[Iliketogofast]

I'd probably wear one. I had a friend who broke his neck, and now he has to wear one all of the time.

All of the time. ;)

[trx400EXtreme]

Originally posted by ZSK
What is the function of a Leatt brace? How does it work? it's basicly the Hans device of motocross. it keeps your neck from doing what it's not supposed to do, like breaking, in the event of a bad crash.

i love mine. i love riding with it. i trust it 100%. trick racing will sell them to you for 350$. so get yours there! cheapest place your going to find one.


I do hear they break collarbones easierrr

[BlaineKaiser450]

ive got a leatt and now that ive ridden with it, i wouldnt have it any other way! i love mine!

[400ex28]

I'd like to get one, hear great things about them. just the price is a little harsh for me right now.

[hondaracer31]

EVS is coming out with one $170. I'll be looking into one of theirs.

[Johnny Minehan]

well it looks like im definitally going to need one..how is the EVS? if i could save a few hundred bucks on it and get the same thing that would be nice..

[kawabunga]

There is the one from EVS that is quite a bit cheaper. I've seen it for $135.
However, Leatt is coming out with a new neck brace that is going to be around $200.
With that EVS one, they're going to have to have a cheaper one to stay competitive in the market.
Alpinestar is also releasing one soon and I believe it's supposed to be around $600. What makes it that expensive, I do not know yet. Pretty sure they had Chad Reed testing for them not too long ago.
So pretty soon there will be a few more options, price being the biggest difference in my mind. They're all very similar, but the more expensive ones are made of higher quality, lighter materials.
With a few more out now I would try them on with your helmet and chest protector to see which one feels the best. Then go from there.
They are expensive, but you can't really put a price on being able to walk, or your life...

There are a lot of paralyzed racers out there that wish they were around in their day I am sure.

[WatersRacing]

Had a bad crash while wearing mine. Doctors told me it saved me from being paralyzed or dead. Instead I just got 4 broken vertebrae and was way lucky.

[Velocity Girl]

Took me a bit to get used to wearing mine, but glad I stuck it out and did. Would much rather walk from a crash with a broken collarbone or vertabrae than my neck.

The new cheaper Leatt I don't belive will have the same adjustments that the others do so you might want to make sure you can ride with it in that configuration before deciding which to purchase. I have to adjust mine all the way down in the back to make sure I can get my head up enough while going downhill.

[coryatver]

Has anyone actually done some test on these things to see if they actually help?

[KXRida]

Originally posted by walshyfz86
i love mine. i love riding with it. i trust it 100%. trick racing will sell them to you for 350$. so get yours there! cheapest place your going to find one.


I do hear they break collarbones easierrr


they do, because most of the impact is going straight on your collar bone. I'd rather break that than my neck.

I've only had one kinda bad wreck with mine where I could actually feel it stop my helmet. I was shocked to feel my helmet not go any further on the impact. I blew a burm on the ktm and went head first right into the ground. I'm pretty much 100% sure I would've been fine without it, but I didn't realize how much force it keeps off your neck. I too wasn't really digging the $400 price tag, but now that I bought one, I'm glad to know that I have it rather than not having it.

Thank you Dr. Chris Leatt!

[esr250r86]

I have one. I think it saved me once!?lol.But it sort restricts me sometimes,but its not that big of a deal.I deal with it

[TRX450RACER174]

Originally posted by coryatver
Has anyone actually done some test on these things to see if they actually help?

Are you doubting that they dont work? Go to the Leatt website and you can see a first hand video of how it works.

[KXRida]

umm I know first hand that they work. The evs will probably spread the impact out better on your shoulders, but the leatt protects better for axial forces (downward compressions on the spine). It also stops your helmet better from hyperextension. The evs lets you head go back a little farther, but it still stops your helmet.

I'd much rather have a leatt than any other brace on the market. I hated spending the $400 but have my one wreck where I felt the brace stop my helmet, I'm glad I got it. Wish I would've gotten it sooner just to be safe. If you have a leatt and have wrecked in a way that your head would hyperextend or go head first into the ground and it stops you, you know what I'm talking about. IMO worth all $400.

The adventure brace is a good alternative, but make sure that you try it on before you buy it. I had to adjust my leatt to make it comfortable for me. I had the lower the back a good bit, and put the larger spacer pins in. If you find a deal that has them marked down at all, go for it, because right now there is little to zero mark down on them.

[Exrider434]

Originally posted by walshyfz86
I do hear they break collarbones easierrr Sure beats a broken neck:ermm:

[bwamos]

LOL.

They break collarbones because they redistribute the impact from the helmet directly to your shoulders so your neck doesn't absorb the impact. If it was enough force to break the colar bone, then it was enough force to have broken your neck, or at least have extreme spinal compression, otherwise.

The $400 leatt is adjustable to fit the rider.
The $200 versions are a 1 size fits all (or 4 sizes fit all). It's never going to fit as well as the fully adjustable version. And if it doesn't fit as well it may not work quite as well.

However, the $200 version is certianly better than nothing.

I hope someday to see them as commonplace as helmets.. and helmets as common place as goggles.

[Exrider434]

Originally posted by bwamos
LOL.



I hope someday to see them as commonplace as helmets.. and helmets as common place as goggles.

I dont get the second part of that? Your saying youd like to see helmets not as common, but a leatt brace more than a helmet? I don't know if im just stupid or what but i didnt get that lol

[Mxjunkie]

When you guy's are wearing yours can you turn your head freely? I race/ride xc so I like knowing whats going on all around me so looking back is kind of important :blah:

[TRX450RACER174]

Originally posted by Mxjunkie
When you guy's are wearing yours can you turn your head freely? I race/ride xc so I like knowing whats going on all around me so looking back is kind of important :blah:

Yes you can i have no restricted movement from turning my head just side to side and front to back.

[TRX450RACER174]

Originally posted by bwamos
LOL.

They break collarbones because they redistribute the impact from the helmet directly to your shoulders so your neck doesn't absorb the impact. If it was enough force to break the colar bone, then it was enough force to have broken your neck, or at least have extreme spinal compression, otherwise.


Yes this is a true statement and i can vouche for it as i had a bad crash that knocked me out and the quad rolled on top of me, although i did not break my collar bone i did seperate my ligament from my shoulder and collar bone and i fell if i was not wearing it i would of had a broken neck or be paralyzed.

[Velocity Girl]

Originally posted by Mxjunkie
When you guy's are wearing yours can you turn your head freely? I race/ride xc so I like knowing whats going on all around me so looking back is kind of important :blah:

I race/ride XC also. You can still turn your head....but for me I can tell it's there, but just something you get used to/adjust for.