Broken...but not too broken thanks to my Kan!

Tiny Fluffy Coblet said:
Wow, having looked at the Kan and read your story I may rethink body protectors. As a fairly large busted and very short backed individual I find most body protectors unbelievably uncomfortable, even the race-safe ones feel horribly restricting and considering I have to fight not to hold my breath when I am nervous anyway (once leading to me passing out half way round a longer than usual jumping course) anything that restricts my breathing really doesn't help. The Kan is the first BP I have looked at that looks like it would be comfortable and the sizing options are excellent. Before I have always pointed out that though a BP might protect me when I fall off it also increases significantly the likelihood of me falling off because I am ridgid and fighting it all the time.
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Like Kerilli says, I am big chested and I adore my Kan, although having to get over the embarassment of having a huge pointy chest - I ride amid howls of laughter :o More than worth it IMO!
I am also claustrophobic and get set off by silly things, like the duvet cover being to tight on me :o After the first few times of wearing it, you completely forget it's there. I tack up in it, muck out in it, I actually enjoy having fully supported boobs! :D In a normal BP I would really have to concentrate on keeping my breathing regular, in my Kan I breath normally without thinking about it :D
All the raving about them isn't people going overboard, honestly they are amazing!
 
If you have an ample chest and have restricted in a BP before I would say the Kan would be more comfy for you:) Ive heard the airowear outline has room for lady-curves as well.


millitiger said:
you could say that about seatbelts and airbags in cars as well though... they don't protect in all instances and in some cases cause injuries themselves.

I was very against the P2 when it first came out and then the more I looked and read and researched the more I realised I was actually following the scaremongering that goes on (mainly on internet boards).
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i agree 100% with this.


countrychick said:
Treehouse do not sell Kans as far as I know.
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they definitely did....
 
Booboos said:
Do you mind if I ask if the fence broke under the impact? And were the rails nailed to the inside or the outside of the fence?

Your post has really prompted me to think about exactly how we fence in our arena and I am trying to figure out what would be the safest option.
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B - The fence didn't break under the impact, the fence in question is pretty sturdy, I'm about 5ft 8ish and they are easily my shoulder height if not a little taller, the posts are pretty thick as well. I'm pretty much 100% certain the rails are nailed to the outside of the fence.
With regards to fencing arenas I was thinking about this the other day and although the 'fenceless' arena does appeal to me (with railways sleepers to keep surface in) I have a friend who has an arena like this, and the problem came when she landed on her back on the sleepers! Ouch!
 
kirstyhen said:
I am also claustrophobic and get set off by silly things, like the duvet cover being to tight on me :o After the first few times of wearing it, you completely forget it's there. I tack up in it, muck out in it, I actually enjoy having fully supported boobs! :D In a normal BP I would really have to concentrate on keeping my breathing regular, in my Kan I breath normally without thinking about it :D
All the raving about them isn't people going overboard, honestly they are amazing!
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Although sadly not blessed with a wonderful chest (!) I find mine very comfy, I am also quite claustrophobic, like kirstyhen having the duvet too tight on me and having too sleep in the 'mummy' style sleeping bags causes panic! I have found the Kan absolutely fine though, as others have said I think this is because its so easy to move in and doesn't restrict how I breathe at all.
 
millitiger said:
you could say that about seatbelts and airbags in cars as well though... they don't protect in all instances and in some cases cause injuries themselves.

I was very against the P2 when it first came out and then the more I looked and read and researched the more I realised I was actually following the scaremongering that goes on (mainly on internet boards).

to the OP, very glad you are ok and seems your body protector did it's job very well.
Brings home how risky horse riding is when even a walk around an arena can end in a trip to A&E!
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Hmm, it's a little-known fact that early airbags actually killed a lot of drivers, because the scientists hadn't got the deflation speed right (the deflation of the bag saves you, not the inflation), so in accidents drivers were hitting a hard bag of air. now we hit a soft, already-deflating bag of air, which decelerates our bodies. amazing stuff... now.

It's not scaremongering if it's based on science and physics... I welcome ANYTHING that makes riders safer. I'm not involved in the industry in any way, it makes no difference to me which product succeeds. I can explain the concerns I have been made aware of (by people far better qualified than me) in detail privately, but not on here unfortunately.
 
CaleruxShearer said:
Ginn - You make a good point here and one that had occurred to me, however I wasn't keen to post anything about it until I had spoken to someone who had seen the fall and got the facts straight considering I don't remember the fall happening! Apparently I was quite close to the fence and hit the top of the fence as I came off as opposed to the bottom, if that makes sense. I also kept hold off the reins as I fell, only letting go (I assume) when I was knocked unconscious. Therefore if I had hold of the reins as I was falling and hit the top of the fence I would have thought that I would have been 'pulling' the horse toward me as it were through my contact on the reins and so he would have remained quite close to me. I hope this makes sense and you can understand what I'm waffling about!
It is in this circumstance that I wonder whether an air jacket would have inflated?
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Thanks for replying, very interesting and as I expected. I know people will argue with the seatbelt/airbag analogy but the two systems are imo not compareable and for the moment I shall remain satisfied that I have made the right choice, for me, not to use a product which I don't have sufficient trust in not to do potentially more harm than good.

I do believe that over the next few years we will however see significant advances in BP design and for me the ideal would be a combination of the EXO and the Kan. However, neither are a substitute for training, more training, experience and a super instructor!
 
Booboos said:
Do you mind if I ask if the fence broke under the impact? And were the rails nailed to the inside or the outside of the fence?

Your post has really prompted me to think about exactly how we fence in our arena and I am trying to figure out what would be the safest option.
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Another 2 considerations for you...

In our field (no surface sadly) we have our schooling paddock fenced with plastic fence posts and onto these the "boundary" is created by 3in wide electric tape (disconnected when schooling!) - if we hit it hard the clips ping off the fence posts and if you hit the posts themselves invariably they bend over as they are *only* staked into the ground and the mud isn't concrete.

In neighbours school she has the wooden stop-boards and then a 1m gap before the P&R fencing (horizontal rails to outside) BUT I wouldn't want to land on the stop-board! She originally had it banked so if you came off on the stop-board it wouldn't have been so bad but with the ground settling there is now a small ditch inbetween....

Personally would go for the electric fence approach as it does provide a boundary but one which the horses respect so don't sit on either!
 
kerilli said:
Hmm, it's a little-known fact that early airbags actually killed a lot of drivers, because the scientists hadn't got the deflation speed right (the deflation of the bag saves you, not the inflation), so in accidents drivers were hitting a hard bag of air. now we hit a soft, already-deflating bag of air, which decelerates our bodies. amazing stuff... now.

It's not scaremongering if it's based on science and physics... I welcome ANYTHING that makes riders safer. I'm not involved in the industry in any way, it makes no difference to me which product succeeds. I can explain the concerns I have been made aware of (by people far better qualified than me) in detail privately, but not on here unfortunately.
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Actually people are STILL injured by air bags going off in cars- my sister had nasty facial injuries when she crashed her car last year and it isn't that uncommon, even in new cars.

And imo it is scaremongering with the made up scenarios, what could happen in this situation or that one when actually the negatives aren't backed up with fact either.
People now presuming the P2 would have been useless in the OPs accident as she hit the top of the fence when actually NO-ONE can say one way or the other, whether they saw the accident or not.

Its the same when people warm others that the Racesafe is not as safe as other BPs due to the gaps in the foam- imo verging on libel when the product has the same safety ratings as other BPs and is worn by 1000's of riders. Again not backed by any facts or statistics, just 'a friend of a friend had a bad fall and serious injuries when wearing one' which actually doesn't mean anything as for all we know the BP saved her from even worse injuries.
 
Don't want to get into the debate of which BP is best etc as I don't know enough about them all - however, just wanted to say to the OP - what a horrible fall and so glad you're ok (albeit a little sore no doubt!). Having fractured my neck at the end of November, I feel for anyone who has to experience the dreaded head/neck/back stabiliser, brace thinging - absolutely horrific. Hope you feel better soon!! xx
 
Hi Everyone, I’m new! Of course I do follow the forums but have never felt that it was my place to post, however as this is really quite an overwhelming thread of support for the KAN, I really wanted to say thank you to everyone for posting about their valuable experiences with our body protector.

Firstly I am so glad that CaleruxShearer is relatively unscathed from such an extreme fall and naturally I am delighted beyond words that her KAN did its job. Best wishes “L” for a speedy recovery and I hope you will be back in your saddle very soon.

Others have commented so well on the smart foam technology from Knox and I am certainly not going to create a product essay for you now – so please don’t worry about that! I just want to say that I am totally committed to this project of mine - promoting a safety product is a very serious thing and I am cheered by the increasing number of KAN wearers who benefit from its protection.

I understand why so many people at the beginning just wouldn’t entertain trying one; I too was pretty devastated when the final samples of foam panels were sent to me back in 2006, but I had to proceed as I had invested so much in the R&D of the garment which would house the foams. Yet once I had my first “test drive” on my horse, all faith was restored! The single toughest challenge for this product is what people perceive – in reality it is just the opposite and I now would NOT TRADE THE WEIGHT OF THE KAN FOR ANYTHING. That is the factor that delivers the absorption of energy when falling from a horse, onto all sorts of different surfaces and with huge varieties of blow, specific and broad - stones, tree roots, flaying hooves, studs, fences, road surface, jumps etc.

I am a really squeamish person and the irony is that I am now exposed to hundreds of gruesome stories everywhere I go! I have never known a paramedic before – now I have about 37 on my FB page! Ha only kidding, don’t know the number but you get my point I hope. :)

Anyway enough from me, I’m sure this is too long….

Thanks for reading

W
 
Well done you for dedicating so much of your life 'on your own' to an amazing product, you had the faith and persevered where so many would have chucked the towel in, keep the focus you have a great following and an a even greater product, the rest of the equestrian world will see the light soon enough. You should be very proud of what you have achieved.
 
Ginn said:
I do believe that over the next few years we will however see significant advances in BP design and for me the ideal would be a combination of the EXO and the Kan. However, neither are a substitute for training, more training, experience and a super instructor!
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I quite agree Ginn, we must also prepare ourselves for those days when spring is in the air and it feels wonderful to be alive and free, very similar to the feelings I suspect Belgian beast was feeling on friday night ;)
 
WendyKan said:
Hi Everyone, I’m new! Of course I do follow the forums but have never felt that it was my place to post, however as this is really quite an overwhelming thread of support for the KAN, I really wanted to say thank you to everyone for posting about their valuable experiences with our body protector.

Firstly I am so glad that CaleruxShearer is relatively unscathed from such an extreme fall and naturally I am delighted beyond words that her KAN did its job. Best wishes “L” for a speedy recovery and I hope you will be back in your saddle very soon.

Others have commented so well on the smart foam technology from Knox and I am certainly not going to create a product essay for you now – so please don’t worry about that! I just want to say that I am totally committed to this project of mine - promoting a safety product is a very serious thing and I am cheered by the increasing number of KAN wearers who benefit from its protection.

I understand why so many people at the beginning just wouldn’t entertain trying one; I too was pretty devastated when the final samples of foam panels were sent to me back in 2006, but I had to proceed as I had invested so much in the R&D of the garment which would house the foams. Yet once I had my first “test drive” on my horse, all faith was restored! The single toughest challenge for this product is what people perceive – in reality it is just the opposite and I now would NOT TRADE THE WEIGHT OF THE KAN FOR ANYTHING. That is the factor that delivers the absorption of energy when falling from a horse, onto all sorts of different surfaces and with huge varieties of blow, specific and broad - stones, tree roots, flaying hooves, studs, fences, road surface, jumps etc.

I am a really squeamish person and the irony is that I am now exposed to hundreds of gruesome stories everywhere I go! I have never known a paramedic before – now I have about 37 on my FB page! Ha only kidding, don’t know the number but you get my point I hope. :)

Anyway enough from me, I’m sure this is too long….

Thanks for reading

W
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Glad to hear from you Wendy :)
 
WendyKan said:
I understand why so many people at the beginning just wouldn’t entertain trying one; I too was pretty devastated when the final samples of foam panels were sent to me back in 2006, but I had to proceed as I had invested so much in the R&D of the garment which would house the foams. Yet once I had my first “test drive” on my horse, all faith was restored! The single toughest challenge for this product is what people perceive – in reality it is just the opposite and I now would NOT TRADE THE WEIGHT OF THE KAN FOR ANYTHING. That is the factor that delivers the absorption of energy when falling from a horse, onto all sorts of different surfaces and with huge varieties of blow, specific and broad - stones, tree roots, flaying hooves, studs, fences, road surface, jumps etc.
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After reading various things about the Kan, I expected it to be far heavier than it was! My OH's stab vest weighs much more and he has to wear that for 10 hours at a time, it's not even designed to protect his spine, so I think I'll forgive the Kan for being a little weightier than normal BPs!
Once it's on you hardly notice it, I find it more like wearing a Gilet than a BP. I've only had it a week and already worn it more than my old BP!

Thank you for desinging such an amazing product, I really makes my feel safe and secure without being restricted in anyway. :D
 
CaleruxShearer said:
B - The fence didn't break under the impact, the fence in question is pretty sturdy, I'm about 5ft 8ish and they are easily my shoulder height if not a little taller, the posts are pretty thick as well. I'm pretty much 100% certain the rails are nailed to the outside of the fence.
With regards to fencing arenas I was thinking about this the other day and although the 'fenceless' arena does appeal to me (with railways sleepers to keep surface in) I have a friend who has an arena like this, and the problem came when she landed on her back on the sleepers! Ouch!
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Many thanks for getting back to me!

I used to have a fenceless arena before and there is still a worry over landing on the retaining boards, although I don't know how that would compare with landing on the fence. The main reason for wanting the fence is to have a bit more security with young horses and also the possibility of a child riding in the arena which I imagine is safer with a fence.

Thanks to the people who suggested the electric tape. Unfortunately my lot are quite weary of electric and I think I would have a tough time convinving them to ride round the track with the tape next to them (they are fenced in with electric tape so probably not best to desensitise them to it!).

We are going with rather thin posts and thin rails so hopefully that might help and I see the point about banging knees on posts so it will have to be rails on the inside!
 
millitiger said:
And imo it is scaremongering with the made up scenarios, what could happen in this situation or that one when actually the negatives aren't backed up with fact either.
People now presuming the P2 would have been useless in the OPs accident as she hit the top of the fence when actually NO-ONE can say one way or the other, whether they saw the accident or not.

Its the same when people warm others that the Racesafe is not as safe as other BPs due to the gaps in the foam- imo verging on libel when the product has the same safety ratings as other BPs and is worn by 1000's of riders. Again not backed by any facts or statistics, just 'a friend of a friend had a bad fall and serious injuries when wearing one' which actually doesn't mean anything as for all we know the BP saved her from even worse injuries.
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It's not scaremongering, it's Worst-Case-Scenario thinking, simply Risk Assessment, based on physiology and physics... ;) ;)

Hi Wendy, welcome to the forum, good to see you on here. Thankyou for making such a great product, I'm one of those who has had a couple of unscheduled dismounts in my Kan and been very grateful for the really impressive protection it gives.
I still think one of your advertising slogans should be "Worth the Weight"... :) :) :)
 
Booboos said:
Out of interest how much does a Kanteq weigh? (OK clearly some will be larger than others, but as a ball park figure).
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Have just put mine on the bathroom scales (don't laugh!) it wouldn't fit on the digital kitchen scales! And it came in at between 3 and 4 kgs, sorry I can't be more accurate the scales are old fashioned ones with stone at the top and kgs at the bottom and a line on the piece of plastic. My Kan is dress size 8, B cup, 5ft 7ins. Not sure what size that makes it sorry, just going by the measurements I gave when I ordered it.
 
oh my god.... so glad to hear that you are relatively unbroken. thank god for your BP. i need a new one, think you might have now persuaded me which type to get....
 
It weighs around 2.3 kg at the post office with packaging. Really this is not a big jump from any other brand but it depends...

My rule of thumb is that if the wearer of the KAN is at all aware of the body protector, they have been fitted with the wrong size. We prefer to take an individuals measurements and build one up each time, incorporating any customisation required. incidentally we do not charge for this - it is just built into the ordering process. At least when we do it ourselves, or through our team of trained fitters (now very carefully selected) we can really control the products that are dispatched.
 
I'll be looking in the next year or so to get a new body protector and I will definitely want to try a Kan after hearing so many great reviews. I think its fantastic how much you have put into this product Wendy, shows how dedicated you are :)
I just have a question about what sort of shoulder protection it may offer? I found it difficult to tell from pictures. Having fractured the very top of my arm when on the rare occassion I wasn't wearing my shoulder pads when they most likely would have prevented it, i'm now paranoid about it happening again (especially as it still hurts occasionally) and never not worn the shoulder pads when i've worn my bp since.
I know protecting my torso is obviously more important than my arms but I do feel more secure if there is some sort of protection there.
 
I keep hearing great things about the Kan body protector but unfortunately being male I am part of the 50% of the population unable to benefitfrom them :(
 
kirstyhen said:
After reading various things about the Kan, I expected it to be far heavier than it was! My OH's stab vest weighs much more and he has to wear that for 10 hours at a time, it's not even designed to protect his spine, so I think I'll forgive the Kan for being a little weightier than normal BPs!
Once it's on you hardly notice it, I find it more like wearing a Gilet than a BP. I've only had it a week and already worn it more than my old BP!

Thank you for desinging such an amazing product, I really makes my feel safe and secure without being restricted in anyway. :D
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Like :-) And totally agree
 
Thank you Shrimp for asking about the shoulders, it is one of the FAQ’s. These are straight out of the world of motorcycle protective gear (thank you Knox) and are actually brilliantly designed to offer maximum protection to the point of shoulder and collarbone.There are two things to point out: -

1. the shoulder like the rest of the KAN is moulded and so has extra thick areas running to tapered edges. The thickest part of the whole bp is in the shoulder pad, just where it would cover the point of the shoulder. Due to the fact that it is a moulded piece, it does not require the riders arm to become part of its fastening, so is not restrictive – I can lift my arms fully to put a bridle over my horses ears and he is 16.2, one might find that the sleeves of a jacket could limit movement more

2. if you examine the shoulder pads you will see that there is a Left and Right with a neck edge, an outer edge and a sort of hinge or joint which provides some articulation within the pad, about 2/3 of the way along. It is supposed to sit slightly forward and the convex shape allows the shoulder pad to rest on the fragile collarbone area (have a look at the photo galleries on our site you can see how it completely caps the upper body). So in a fall scenario, if the rider is ploughing forward head and shoulders first, the pad will hit the ground and because the upper arm is following on, the pad opens up cupping more of the upper arm, point of shoulder and collarbone. You can see this clearly when you press down on the shoulder pad (obviously you will have to be wearing the KAN first and looking into a mirror!!!). I must add (and most of us already know) that if you put your arm out to break your fall, it will not matter what you wear – you will pop your bow shaped collar bone anyway.

Obviously people fall in all sorts of ways and no safety product could possibly guarantee that the rider will not sustain injury in an accident; however we strive to minimise the risk through better design and consideration. I have several testimonials on the subject of “shoulder escapes”, but I don’t think it is appropriate for me to introduce those here – it is for others to say.
 
Many thanks everyone for weighing your BPs for me! Just weighed by Aerowear (which is also very comfy for what it's worth) and it comes up at 1.3 kilos on the home scales (not very accurate). I shall have to try a Kan as soon as I get back to pre-pregnancy weight!
 
CarlM said:
I keep hearing great things about the Kan body protector but unfortunately being male I am part of the 50% of the population unable to benefitfrom them :(
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I believe that once sales of the female version get high enough, there's are plans to put a male version into production. New moulded panels etc would be needed, obv, it couldn't be the same shape as the female version!
 
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