The Big Taboo: Saftey Gear (esp. ATTN to the older crowd)

[Sedition]

Over the last month or so, there seems to have been an uptick in reported head injuries on various Facebook skate groups. One 26-year-old even died from a head hit. There was that Jamie Foy slam awhile ago. That 10-year-old, who just did El Toro, was rocking knee pads and a helmet when he first tried (good idea, in my book). All this got me curious, especially for the 30+ crowd.

What gear do people wear (if any), and under what conditions (e.g. skating a curb v. 3' mini ramp v. 6' mini ramp v. full sized bowl v. boardsliding El Toro)?

To answer my own question, I am 44-years-old. Street skating I always wear an elbow pad on my leading elbow. I've hit it so many times over the years that I have a permanent swelbow, and I'm just sick of hitting it. At my age, once mini ramps hit 4' high, the knee/elbow pads come out. I never used to wear a helmet unless on full-sized transition. That changed last summer. I was skating a 5' mini, and did a set-up trick I've done a million times (b/s pivot). As I was reentering the tranny, my back truck slipped out. I went straight to the flat. Knee/elbow pad took the brunt of it, but the velocity of the fall caused me to bounce my head off the flat. I got a huge golf-ball on my forehead. Lesson learned. I know rock a helmet once tranny goes over 5' high. 

[199002]

There's enough pad reviews and recommendations on youtube alone

187 and protec.. Earn the pads on big shit or sit in the corner fully padded for flatground. Just make sure to talk about it like a damn J witness to everyone that hasn't asked

[Sedition]

There's enough pad reviews and recommendations...

Reviews and recommendations were never queried. That said, I’d take PDs over Pro-Tec/187 any day. And agreed, proselytising sucks, no matter what the topic. I certainly hope no one would do it in this thread. People can make their own choices, which is why the question was about what choices people had made.

[Dad you're embarrassing me]

I’m 34, skate mostly tranny. If I’m injured, I’ll wear a pad on the knee / elbow in question. I wear a snow boarding tail pad if I’m skating pool coping, broken my tailbone 3 times slipping out on grinds, and it never really healed right the last time it happened. Full pads and helmet over 10 ft.

[woodinbrine]

I’ve sprained and fractured my left wrist several times in the past and now wear a wrist guard on it most of the time skating. I’ll often put on the other one too if I’m skating transition. I have been thinking about trying knee pads to get a bit more courage to up my tranny game, because I’ve only been doing the same few basic tricks forever. I’m 33 and a scaredy-cat who’s bad at skating.

[johnes]

For a while I was really wanting to get hip pads but ended up not doing it.
I fall on my
Hip sooo freakin much.
I was looking at the ones from Footprint.

[Lee Ralphs Dear Old Mum]

44 in May. I wear a helmet in bigger bowls but super inconsistent about this. I now keep it in my  vehicle. Front elbow pad when I blow up my elbow. Knee pads when I'm trying anything beyond grinds on tranny that goes to proper vert and is smooth enough not to rip them off.

Messing around on curbs and small bowls just aftermarket insoles. Remind Medics.

Been using a TSG full cut helmet. And I use 187 knee pads. Not sure what my elbow pad is.

[backinaction]

I'm 46. 

Knee pads generally if it's over 7 feet, or if I'm trying go go big on stuff around 6. 

Elbow - I bought some elbow pads two years ago when I had a chance to skate a 12" vert ramp.  Haven't worn them otherwise.

Right wrist if it's bothering me or I'm in 7 feet or more.  I work on computers and if I can't use my right hand it makes it super hard to have income.

Helmet whenever I'm at the park - keep it in my car.  No helmet if I'm screwing around on curb or doing flat - which I rarely do.

For much of the last 5 years I was using a Triple 8 helmet that wasn't certified - I didn't even know the difference.  Last summer I was shopping for a helmet for my kid and noticed that some were certified and some not. I asked the difference and the guy said that the non-certified did dick for protecting your brain. 

I came home and watched this video that showed in a lab that the helmet I was wearing reduced G forces on the brain from 1000 G to 995 G.  The S1 reduced from 1000 G to 253 G.  That's a huge difference.

 It still took me a  few weeks to buy a new helmet because I hadn't hit my head hard since I started skating again. I bought the S1 and about 3-4 weeks later I took a massive slam going head first at speed onto concrete.  I believe if I had my old helmet I would have had a pretty bad concussion - and I have already had 3 in my life.  As it was I got a mild headache for a day.  No helmet and I would have surely fractured my skull.   

The S1 helmet is a use once and throw away, so I bought another one. 

[Madam, I'm Adam]

Well, I'm 33. I've never worn safety gear aside from a helmet and knee pads on vert a few times. Never broken any bones in my life either, somehow. If I get hurt these days, I just let it hang out.

I did recently just buy an ankle sleeve for my left ankle. Reason being that it feels weaker than usual, and I'm tired of slashing my ankle open on tricks. My left foot has gotten lazier when I do tricks, when I kickflip my foot's never totally on the board and my toes are hitting the ground, so I'm trying the sleeve to see if it helps. Anyone have any experiences with a sleeve?

Thing is though, I'm reading some reports about brain trauma and apparently it can occur even if you take a big hit without hitting your head. Like if your wheel hits a rock and you fall to the ground, your brain might still bounce around in your skull to an extent.

It's a bit frightening because thankfully I've only hit my head once and it was mellow, but I've taken innumerable slams otherwise. In this case, I doubt there's any safety gear that can prevent potential brain trauma; if I slam, I slam.

[Sedition]

I have been thinking about trying knee pads to get a bit more courage to up my tranny game, because I’ve only been doing the same few basic tricks forever.

Go for it. I started wearing knee/elbow on mini last year and it CHANGED EVERYTHING. Was way less scared of bailing, and started trying/learning shit I had never done before. After 30 years of street skating, I had finally been bitten by the tranny bug (and bitten real hard) all because I started wear pads. Wish I had “discovered” transition years ago, but I guess better late than never.

[Sedition]

For much of the last 5 years I was using a Triple 8 helmet that wasn't certified - I didn't even know the difference.

I also just recently learned the difference. Which begs the question: why do they even MAKE non-certified helmets??

Also, scary story about your wreck. Glad you’re OK. I’m actually a little skeptical of “multi-impact” helmets, but be that might left over from my motorcycle days.

[iwishilivedinfinla]

when we were kids my friend would wear high socks and put a CCS catalog inside as a shin guard

[Sedition]

when we were kids my friend would wear high socks and put a CCS catalog inside as a shin guard

Brilliant.

[nooky]

flyaway helmets are where it's at. a little hard to find if you're not local in socal.

187 pads for sure. also knee gaskets and elbow sleeves.

edit - i wear all this crap if i'm skating a vert ramp. otherwise just knee pads in a bowl and an elbow pad if i've already fallen on it (have permanent swellbow too).

don't wear any safety gear skating street (except maybe a wrist guard if i've fallen on my wrist recently) which is probably stupid but w/e.

[Sedition]

...elbow sleeves.

What do you use for elbow sleeves? I often have problems with elbow pads sliding off (when I wear them), and was considering looking into some kind of sleeve.

[nopes]

im 41. i stopped wearing pads about a decade ago because i found i was hurting my knees too much with them on. especially if i skated any smaller transition. i used to wear custom pain cheater knee pads. never really wore elbow pads.

i have a set of 187 knee pads ill wear if im skating something with like a foot of vert on it. i really wish i could get myself to wear a helmet full time in parks.

[Sedition]

...pain cheater...

Kevin is a rad dude.

[mattdlx]

Almost 45; ever since son was born (11 years ago) helmet always. It took a little bit to make it regular without feeling self-conscious (esp. since I work in skateboarding with all the Cool Kids), but it’s easy after a while. Who gives a shit what anyone else thinks, right?

All helmets (legally) sold in CA are certified. Not as comfy generally, but far more protective. I alternate between Protec Classic and S-One Lifer. Have eyes on a Triple 8 that looks good, and have always wanted a Flyaway but they cost as much as3 othet helmets.

Knee pads and usually wrist at parks with overhead transition. Protec again, though thinking of upgrading. Can’t decide between Pain Cheaters and Pro Design : many merits for both, but again, both far more expensive. Will probably be the last set of pads I’d need ever though.

[Skateforever]

These days I always wear wrist guards, Ennui City Brace that are brilliant, but it took a 5 broken wrists to get there. The final straw was my last one. Left wrist fractured in 3 places. 4 hours of surgery titanium plate and 11 months rehab was what convinced me.

At 42 I find that almost every big slam means weeks off the board which is a real pain and seems to slow me down more than I like.

Don't really skate vert so don't wear knee pads but I get my helmet out for anything bigger than mini ramps.

[tom]

About five years ago I thought I could pull off an Auby Taylor and become a vert skater, so I went out and bought kneepads and a helmet. I got the 187 pro kneepads and the full-tec Pro-Tec helmet. Realistically the soft foam helmets don't really do anything for you besides slightly softening the blow. You need a rated liner(the hard foam style) to actually help if you bash your head. If it's your first time buying pads I can't stress enough how important it is to go try them on first. If they're too small they're going to be too tight and uncomfortable; if they're too big they can push down when you're sliding on them, or you could have them covering the wrong spot of your knees/elbows. Having them too big is definitely the bigger problem

Learning how to kneeslide is a weird one in itself. It goes against every instinct you learned skating street. It might look kooky, but definitely take the time to properly  learn how to do it. I ended a few sessions too early tripping while trying to run full speed out of a bail at the top of the vert ramp. They take time to break in, too. At first they seem really bulky and awkward to skate in. If you wear them enough you'll get used to it and you'll be able to avoid other possible injuries just from sliding one out. One last tip is to stretch beforehand

[planman]

I should get my helmet/kneepads honestly. I only wear them when I'm back home and skating the bowl at 3rd Lair where I can borrow some for the free, and it's usually only when I wanna skate the deep end/try shit a little more out of my comfort zone. Kneesliding makes a world of difference honestly, don't have to risk wrecking your shit running out on tranny and it's just a lot easier.

[Sedition]

Kneesliding makes a world of difference honestly, don't have to risk wrecking your shit running out on tranny and it's just a lot easier.

Absolute truth. That was a real epiphany to me when I started wearing pads on mini ramps; pads/knee slides were not mainly about preventing impact injury on knees, but so that you could knee slide out of stuff, rather than run out and/or fall onto other parts of your body. That's huge, esp. for the older crowed (e.g. me), who are more susceptible to soft tissue damage (twist, tears, sprains, etc.) which is often cause by a bad run out.   

[Xen]

Street (back then and now) no pads

Park/Street no pads unless required (then I wear the soft slip on Triple 8 pads)

Concrete bowls of any real size = knee pads and helmet, and the soft elbows like above)

I'm afraid of heights when it comes to edges (roofs, railings, and the lip of ramps and pools) it can be 6' and it will wig me out; has never affected me going off sets or gaps however. Fucking sucks so I pad up.

[Lee Ralphs Dear Old Mum]

I don't know how you guys knee bail on mini-ramps. I'd rather slide on my arse or run out... than go straight to flat, even with good pads... Vert on the other hands, knee pads are a game changer.... unless its rough concrete and then its more dangerous to wear them. The worse though is sessioning in pads and then forgetting you've taken them off... padless knee bails... not fun...

[B0udoir]

Got back on a board at 33 and thought that protections were useless because I was saying "I will just roll around, no crazy tricks". I fell on my elbow some weeks after. Not a big fall, but I got pins and needles for 1 week, which is a sign of bone fracture... I realized that I was lucky, it was just a warning sign, so I bought 187 elbow pad. Some week after I was flying forward after hitting a small rock on my way to the parking. I did a perfect ninja roll at reception, but realized 10 seconds after that my wrist had hit the ground and that small pebbles got inside the skin. Some bleeding, but it also went blue for 2 weeks. So I bought the Triple Eight gloves. Some months after, a scooter kid face crashed in front of me. He lost 2 front teeth. The helmet was useless in this case, but I realized how fast your head can be thrown to the ground. So I bought a S1 helmet.

From my experience:
-the S1 helmet is great but the light foam tears apart quickly due to sweating. But as this foam is just for confort, I guess it's ok.
-the Triple Eight gloves are great because you still have a lot of freedom with your fingers to pick up your board or roll on the ground when falling. It's not like classical wrist guards that look like a plaster cast and will impede any movement.
-Not so happy with the 187 elbow pads. They are bulky and it's uncomfortable to wear anything inside or outside. Also the real problem I had is that they were hurting when sweating, I got many bleeding burns due to the foam scrapping my skin.
-So I moved to G-Form elbow pad.  They are very confortable, low profile, you can wear them under a sweatshirt, no problems. However I'm not sure they will provide enough protection in the case of a hard fall from the top of a bowl.
-no knee pads, but as I'm more and more doing transition stuff and going higher in the bowl, I might start wearing them only for that purpose.

In anyway, I consider that protections are your last line of defense to save what can be saved. It cannot replace you to learn how to fall properly and roll on the ground.

[stokedtrout]

34 years old and body pretty busted. I pad up at 10ft+ vert. That would count for vert ramps, and bowls that are mostly 10ft+. If it’s a smaller bowl with a random 10ft wall I ain’t padding up. I use 187 pads. Started padding up because I wanted to learn to skate vert properly so I find myself at vert ramp a bit more regularly.

[Elderly Gentleman]

43 years old.  I have a Triple-8 helmet that I wear at my YMCA park that requires them (and they enforce it).  With my other helmets, sweat eventually runs down my face and into my eyes.  Not with the T-8.  I have 187 pro knee pads for big stuff (8' +) and I have some Triple - 8 knee pads for smaller tranny and mellow concrete bowls.  I prefer butterfly strapped pads so I can wear them over jeans or dickies in colder weather without having to take off a shoe and slide them up.  I don't wear pads for street.  (I suck so it's not like I'm doing anything too tech anyway).  I will usually wear a wrist guard on my right wrist.  I've hurt it before.  I play darts in a league and national tournaments so I don't want to screw up that wrist.  I have some Rector elbow pads but just pull them out for big pools and ramps.  I used to be a little more self conscious about the helmet and knee pads when I was younger, but after I hit 40 I knew I no longer had anyone to impress and nothing to prove, so screw it!  I have great insurance, but at this age I don't heal like I used to.  Wearing pads today means I can skate tomorrow!

[burn_to_live]

When I skate pools I wear a helmet. Actually, I should probably wear knee pads too.

[Sedition]

...after I hit 40 I knew I no longer had anyone to impress and nothing to prove, so screw it!
...at this age I don't heal like I used to...
...Wearing pads today means I can skate tomorrow!

This. Everything this.

[sharkin]

I was teetering on buying knee pads for the longest time. Mostly shame held me back. What if someone said something to me about them?

But then I realized, “these knee pads are for when your mom is sucking my dick”, and I’m fully padded all the time now.