Cassy
Well-Known Member
Looking for recommendations please. I am quite tall and a previous body protector did not protect my lower back and hence very bad bruising. A friend has a racesafe which looks quite comfy. I only school and hack. Thanks
Which body protector which protects lower back
- Thread starter Cassy
- Start date
Cassy
Well-Known Member
Any suggestions please
PorkChop
Well-Known Member
I am tall - 5'11" - and use a racesafe.
Tbh all the decent body protectors come in longer lengths for the taller rider. If you can, go to a shop and get a proper fitting. Any well fitted body protector should protect the lower back, but you will still get bruising if you have a really nasty fall.
Tbh all the decent body protectors come in longer lengths for the taller rider. If you can, go to a shop and get a proper fitting. Any well fitted body protector should protect the lower back, but you will still get bruising if you have a really nasty fall.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Best protection for the lower back is the air vests but they aren't legal to compete in without a standard BP underneath. Mine covers to past the bottom of my coccyx.
Bosworth
Well-Known Member
you do need to get your body protector fitted by a professional as the length is crucial. If its too long it will interfere with your saddle and tip you forward, or force the body protector to ride up.
Cassy
Well-Known Member
I have been looking at air vests but are they sufficient without a body protector underneath to protect you in a fall. I dont do any jumping (unless my horse decides otherwise) so just need protection for schooling and hacking.
Queenbee
Well-Known Member
no, they are not - personally I feel if you are not allowed to compete in an air vest without a bp underneath - that says it all
catwithclaws
Well-Known Member
The reason the air vests are not allowed on their own is because they offer no protection UNTIL they are activated and inflate, whereas of course a standard body protector is 'ready made' if you like. Certainly nothing to do with safety - if I had to choose between the two it'd be an air vest every time 
Nugget La Poneh
Well-Known Member
I thought the competing with airvests and BP was because they did 2 different jobs - the air vest protects against the actual landing and potential rotational fall, the body protector is basically a stab vest and protects from stones, fences and hooves etc.
Shay
Well-Known Member
Not really - generally if you fall the vest inflates and protects against pretty much everything until it deflates. Ordinarily in the few minutes it takes the vest to deflate hooves, fences etc have stopped flying at you. In competition the BP is there in case of failure of the airvest. If you didn't have the BP, fall and for some reason the airvest failed to deploy then you would be unprotected.
You can get airvests which can be used without a BP - prolite do a gilet for example. Its better than nothing but not as good as a BP and airvest together.
It does worry me when people say - of its OK I only hack.... IMO hacking is potentially more dangerous than pretty much anything else. (OK I live in the SE). On the whole cars do not come at you on XC courses. You don't have mad pony eating bags. You do get loose dogs on XC courses - but on the whole they don't bite the horses. And if you fall you are not miles from anywhere where no-one knows where you are and an ambulance can't reach you.....
You can get airvests which can be used without a BP - prolite do a gilet for example. Its better than nothing but not as good as a BP and airvest together.
It does worry me when people say - of its OK I only hack.... IMO hacking is potentially more dangerous than pretty much anything else. (OK I live in the SE). On the whole cars do not come at you on XC courses. You don't have mad pony eating bags. You do get loose dogs on XC courses - but on the whole they don't bite the horses. And if you fall you are not miles from anywhere where no-one knows where you are and an ambulance can't reach you.....
ycbm
Overwhelmed
The reason the air vests are not allowed on their own is because they offer no protection UNTIL they are activated and inflate, whereas of course a standard body protector is 'ready made' if you like. Certainly nothing to do with safety - if I had to choose between the two it'd be an air vest every time
Me to, and especially for coccyx protection which is what the OP is asking for. You simply couldn't ride in a standard body protector the length that an airbag is.
FfionWinnie
Well-Known Member
I ride in my hit air all the time for reasons of lower back, rib and neck protection. Those are the areas I have damaged in the past, despite not often falling off.
Going XC I would of course ride in my BP with my air jacket on top.
I know I would not wear my BP every time I ride. I do however always wear my air jacket.
My daughter wears a racesafe and an air jacket all the time. She has always worn a BP so to her it's like wearing a hat is to me.
Going XC I would of course ride in my BP with my air jacket on top.
I know I would not wear my BP every time I ride. I do however always wear my air jacket.
My daughter wears a racesafe and an air jacket all the time. She has always worn a BP so to her it's like wearing a hat is to me.
Cassy
Well-Known Member
I know what you are saying about hacking being dangerous. My fall last autumn was out trotting down a stubble field, no cars, no birds flying out, no dogs running at us, in fact nothing, I still dont know why my horse shied so badly that I hit the floor. And sadly no body protector, hence a long holiday for us both!
Cassy
Well-Known Member
Yes I am going to invest in a hit air vest when I have saved up. I have only had a few falls and never broken anything but this last fall did something nasty to my back, still not completely mended and I have only ever worn a back protector years ago when I used to do a bit of xc.