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Crash Review: Hit-Air Race Airbag Vest

5.7K views 17 replies 12 participants last post by  Glocken  
#1 ·
So a while ago I got one of those fancy airbag vests.

Here's a little video demoing it since I was curious how it'd feel when i got it.


Anyhow, I had a pretty legit highside (by my standards) at Autobahn Country Club and managed to test it out:


And then a super slow mo, you can see the airbag deploying in my shadow, and it definitely was inflated before I hit the ground:


I slammed against the ground and hit my helmet against it a bit, but mostly just slid (then was hit by my sliding bike) and came to a stop. I was in good enough shape that I was able to pick up my bike and move it off of the track. All that resulted was some stiffness in all of my joints and neck for the next few days.

Looking at the video, and how my helmet hit the ground, I don't think it's a stretch to say that the vest saved me from a really solid hit against the concrete, and thus possibly a concussion.

Due to sliding directly on the vest, some seams came apart and unfortunately the bag itself ripped at one of the corners, but I'll definitely be getting another one to replace it after seeing how quickly it went into action, and I'd rather not know how I fared without one.

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As you can see from my helmet, it did make contact with the ground, snapping off the aero vent and scuffing a bit, but for getting kicked off of my bike and landing on my back I think it's as minimal damage as you could hope for:
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This is the exact model I was wearing, and while pricey, it seems like fairly cheap insurance. Especially if you don't puncture the bag, since it's reusable with a $20 cartridge. I probably will never ride the track again without it.
 
#3 ·
Not sure, I retire a helmet after a crash so this one is done. I had a backup so I could ride a bit more on a friend's bike that day but my confidence was gone.
 
#5 ·
That was pretty nasty. No doubt about it the air vest saved you from a harder hit.

I'm kind of surprised the vest got tore up like it did. I thought they were supposed to be fairly durable. Did any of the air bags themselves bust?
 
#8 ·
Yeah, the rear right bag busted. I was sliding directly on it during the crash so while it would have been nice for it to held up I wasn't exactly surprised that it broke like it did. If they offered an option of a vest built with heavier duty textiles similar to a motorcycle suit I think that'd be pretty awesome. As it stands, I think the vest would hold up in a good tumble or slide in the grass, but sliding in only one spot directly on the asphalt is pretty likely to take it out.

Nice usage report, thanks. Is that designed to protect the neck only, or do the sides inflate too, protecting the ribs?
It inflates the front and rear panels as well, although not nearly as dramatically as the neck. It was the rear airbag that actually got ripped during my slide since the material of the vest got worn through there.
 
#6 ·
Very cool. Thanks for posting. After my last few track crashes resulting in injury I think I'm old and brittle now so I've been looking into options like that.
 
#11 ·
For what it's worth, since I wasn't able to get a new vest in time for my last track day (my own fault, should've ordered a lot sooner) I decided to see if it would still work with the hole in it. I figured since I mostly cared about the neck protection and the rip was on the back, it was worth a shot.

I threw some duct tape on the rip and set off the airbag and it still works perfectly. Boom! So it's not a total loss quite yet, although I wouldn't blame them if it was.
 
#12 ·
For what it's worth, since I wasn't able to get a new vest in time for my last track day (my own fault, should've ordered a lot sooner) I decided to see if it would still work with the hole in it. I figured since I mostly cared about the neck protection and the rip was on the back, it was worth a shot.

I threw some duct tape on the rip and set off the airbag and it still works perfectly. Boom! So it's not a total loss quite yet, although I wouldn't blame them if it was.
Spoken like a true engineer :smilielol5:
 
#14 ·
Haven't you've learned duct tape fixes everything?
 
#16 ·
That was a hard hit, glad that thing worked. A buddy of mine low sided and the system really didn't do anything but it was because he didn't have the separation needed to pull on the line. After seeing your video I'm thinking about getting a vest again.
 
#17 ·
Here's the opposite of the OP's crash, low speed and non-violent--I have the neck only vest. As I was going down I actually tried to hold on because I knew what was going to happen. No harm done and repacked it later that day. Glad it was caught on Go-Pro because it was funny.

 
#18 ·
Do they make a version where most of it would be tucked inside rather than full outside? Seems more logically as an exterior design would almost guarantee a lost of the vest.