point 2 vs hit air

asommerville

asommerville

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who has what and which do you prefer?

my friend has recently come off, breaking her back and the doctors told her had she an air jacket on rather than a standard BP, she wouldnt have been so badly injured.

Now ive been looking at these jackets for a while, have only been wearing my BP for jumping but id rather have aomething light that I could wear every time i ride.

My OH was in the shop with me yesterday and has offered to fund one for me (seeing as he likes me)and i would like to know which everyone prefers and if one is 'better' than the other?

thank you!!











My OH
 
I have a Hit Air - originally chosen because they were slightly cheaper at the time (haven't compared prices recently) and, if I'm honest because of the rather negative publicity which Point 2 had back then (PR/advertising not performance). However I'm now glad of my choice as the Hit Air is shorter in the back in normal use and I hate anything catching on the back of the saddle, even if only slightly and I'm quite short.
 
I bought a Hit Air at Badminton. I wanted one to wear all the time as my horse can sometimes spook and ditched me for the first time in ages and it hurt! I didn't like the fact the Point Two hangs low at the back and would annoy me. The Hit Air pops open at the back when it inflates so doesn't hang down and get in the way. I personally think the Hit Air is much neater design. It was also cheaper than the Point Two. I wear it all the time now and honestly don't notice it :)
 
I've got a Point Two, simply because I bought it in the sale and because I could get it in a colour to match my cross country colours! ;) Don't like the advertising approach P2 have adopted but at the end of the day there isn't much in it and had the P2 not been on sale I would have bought the Hit Air... price was always the deciding factor for me! I'm relatively short (5'2") and it doesn't catch on the back of my saddle, I forget I have it on after a little bit. I will admit that I love being able to wear it out hacking without a BP but did initially find it a little bulky over my Rodney Powell BP. :)
 
I would not buy a Point 2 because the canister is attached by a bayonet fitting, plastic at that, and not screwed in. Personally, I think that is much more likely to break or pop out in use than the Helite, who originally made P2 jackets. If I was buying now I would go for the shorter tail on the Hit Air and if not that, the Helite.
 
cptrayes said:
I would not buy a Point 2 because the canister is attached by a bayonet fitting, plastic at that, and not screwed in. Personally, I think that is much more likely to break or pop out in use than the Helite, who originally made P2 jackets. If I was buying now I would go for the shorter tail on the Hit Air and if not that, the Helite.
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Is that the new P2 CPT? I have a P2 (which I love) but canister is screwed in and defo not plastic.

I don't find the P2 long in the body and I'm not tall (maybe because when worn over a BP it shortens it?)
 
I have a point 2 as got it at a bargain price. I wasn't really bothered which I went for tbh, there are good and bad points of all. Never had a problem with it catching on anything, not sure how or why that would happen

My point 2 has a screw in canister, must be the new ones that have bayonets???
 
Nicnac said:
Is that the new P2 CPT? I have a P2 (which I love) but canister is screwed in and defo not plastic.

I don't find the P2 long in the body and I'm not tall (maybe because when worn over a BP it shortens it?)
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Nov 2012 onwards, I think. Mine is also the Helite screw fitting. They broke with Helite by adding an additional collar to the canister in October. In my view what they have done is introduced an unnecessary additional point of potential failure.


I'm borderline on sizing and have the larger of the two potential sizes I can wear and mine does catch on my very flat cantle from time to time.
 
I chose the Hit Air over the P2, and do agree that they seem better thought out. I think they look much tidier, and also like that they expand outwards rather than inwards x
 
asommerville said:
who has what and which do you prefer?

my friend has recently come off, breaking her back and the doctors told her had she an air jacket on rather than a standard BP, she wouldnt have been so badly injured.
Click to expand...


I thought that for an air jacket to afford the best possible protection, it must be used with a standard body protector?

Also, how on earth can a doctor make such a sweeping statement? Sadly there are cases where a fall has proved fatal, when the rider has been wearing both :( I don't think you should ever view an inflatable jacket as an 'instead of', rather a definite 'addition to'.

I hope your friend makes a full recovery.
 
I went for hit air over P2. Having had both inflated on me, the P2 hurt me despite being a medium on its baggiest (I'm a size 10 top!) and winded me to the point of needing to sit down. The noise also made me jump as it's very loud. Neither did I like the lack of rib protection and the fact my head and neck did not feel as supported post inflation on the P2 in comparison.

The P2 inflates inwards towards the body, as opposed to the hit air, designed to inflate outwards so it's worn much closer to the body therefore is much neater. The sheer size of it is smaller than the P2 as its folded up and secured by poppers (which pop open in the event of inflation). The hit air provides better rib and neck protection, and the hit air has a decent coccyx protection, unlike the P2.

Hit airs were around long before P2 but in the motorbike world, they've been adapted to attach to the saddle rather than the bike and generally improved. The colour selection isnt as great as the P2, hit airs you can get black, royal blue, navy blue, hi viz, red and purple. Obviously P2 is available in more or less any colour you like.
 
I have to agree with dunkley. Even as a strong believer of air jackets, I would be loathe to make such a bold statement as your friend's doctor because for every fall unless they can be totally recreated (which is impossible to do) you can't define how much an air jacket helped or would've helped......or for that matter even made any injuries worse!
There are people who have fallen in air jackets who have still sustained spinal fractures because of the type of fall.

Let's be quite straight. The research done by air jacket manufacturers shows that wearing an Airjacket increases a rider's protection in certain types of fall.
For maximum protection they should be worn with a level 3 body protector.
Personally I think that an inflated air jacket appears to provide a splinting effect to the spinal column preventing hyperextension & hyperfexion which are the most common mechanisms of fractures within the vertebral column. An air jacket won't protect against an axial loading injury....but then nothing can at this point.

Anecdotally there seems to be some evidence now that Airjackets provide protection in rotational 'type' falls but only where the rider has separated from the horse far enough to deploy the jacket before the horse hits them.
In a true rotational where the rider stays in the saddle & falls with the horse the air jacket is not deployed & cannot protect. I believe there has been one fatality (team chasing) where this has been the case. At this moment the only piece of protective equipment proven to protect the rider in this type of fall is the Exo.

Yes, air jackets are a step forward in safety but sweeping bold statements & blind belief that they will always save your life is foolhardy (not that I'm saying for a minute that anyone on this thread has claimed anything like that!)

I wear a Hit Air. I like the streamlined, neat design. I found the company incredibly helpful to deal with & were very supportive of me using it with a Kan (something P2 suggested I couldn't do....but that might be because of their links with RS)
I also wasn't happy with some of the untruthful adverts P2 were using.
I found the Hit Air less shocking when it inflated.
I also found the Hit Air less shocking to pay for because when I got mine it was over £100 cheaper than a P2 :D
 
I have the Hit air and would really recommend it!! i wear it every tiem i ride and dont even notice it now. and comfortable to fall in! Better to be safe than sorry!
 
The hit air vs p2 debate can go on forever - its a bit like the riding with no hat debate. (I'm with the always-wear-a-hat crowd)

Some like hit air, some like P2, some don't like either.

So in my own personal opinion I have the P2 hybrid. I have like the air jacket since it was brought to the equine market.

There is so much info that people band around - some true, some very false but said in such a believing way its believed.

So my reasons for the P2 Hybrid:

I used a racesafe and P2 airjacket - found I have a short neck so when wearing the BP, Air jacket and with hat on i wasn't looking up and forward well over a fence - it was too bulky.

Sold the airjacket and needed to replace BP due to a fall (and I have my own opinions about the airjacket protecting me - in my opinion it helped, but without detailed analysis of my fall who knows!)

Bought the hybrid as I really like racesafe BP's and the airjacket is attached. its very comfy, and works for me. I have the adult small.

P2's marketing has been dodgy, but they were very helpful when I send a multitude of questions in about the hybrid (eg what happens if I puncture the air bag, do I have to replace the whole thing, what happens when the BP needs replaced etc etc) and they were extremely efficient and helpful so can't fault them. I have no experience in dealing with Hit Air so can't comment.

not sure if that helps!
 
I was put off the P2 by their marketing style as well and this made me look closer at the Hit Air. The more I looked, the more convinced I was that the Hit Air was better - it was also cheaper.

I came off on Tarmac last year, whilst wearing my Hit Air on it's own. I am convinced that it saved me from very serious injuries. As it was, I got away with bruising to my hip. I never noticed when the air vest went off, but there was a lot happening at the time!

Hope this helps.
 
MCTM said:
I have a Hit Air - originally chosen because they were slightly cheaper at the time (haven't compared prices recently) and, if I'm honest because of the rather negative publicity which Point 2 had back then (PR/advertising not performance). However I'm now glad of my choice as the Hit Air is shorter in the back in normal use and I hate anything catching on the back of the saddle, even if only slightly and I'm quite short.
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I had Hit air for the same reasons and I am very pleased with mine.
 
I use the Hit air as I'm also a motorcyclist and the hit air is approved for riding and motor biking I just use a different lanyard depending if I'm in the horse or my bike.

Hit air is a neater closure fitting vest than 2 point

Explodes outwards which in my view is better.

I'd personally always pick the hit air over the 2 point.
 
Should if added I've had 6 falls in hit air and it really does to its job well, I normally always end up with a sore neck after a fall, from whiplash but I've not had that at all since wearing my hit air. The neck support is amazing

I did though take a fall which ended up with a hospital trip with suspected broken pelvis (which if course jacket would not help) turns out I'd slipped a disc. Could it of been worse had I not had air jacket.?? Who knows.. But I never ride without mine now or my race safe but then I've had my share if nasty accidents do it makes me far more aware of the danger I put myself in riding horses.
 
I have the P2, bought it about 6mths after it had been out. Never needed to use it until approx two weeks ago when I had a fall at Catton Park, it did its job well although I had a limp for a day or two - nothing the P2 can do to protect a horse standing on your leg though :-)

I'm really happy with it, have no complaints, although I'm going to have to learn how to put a new canister in now!
 
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