This is my first year doing lift-served downhill mountain biking, so I spent a fair amount of time researching and trying on different armor to keep me all in one piece. Here’s what I ended up with.
Upper body armor
Here was my criteria for upper body armor:
- Integrated back pad
- Shoulder pads
- Elbow pads
- Chest protection
- Not too hot
- Not too bulky
- Not too expensive
This isn’t the only way to go, though. Some alternatives:
- Short sleeve top with separate elbow pads
- Top without back protector, paired with a pack with back pad, such as the CamelBak KUDU 12 Hydration Pack.
In the end, the best combo of protection, wearability, and affordability, was:
Leatt 3DF AirFit Lite Body Protector
It’s
a compression shirt sort of top, made out of a lightweight spandex-y material that breathes well. Padding includes chest, back, some side protection, shoulders, elbows, and biceps(!). The padding is 3DF, also commonly known as 3DO – a soft foam that hardens up on impact. While it doesn’t offer the same puncture protection that a hard shell offers, it’s much more comfortable to wear due to the flexibility.
Under a jersey, the Leatt top is minorly bulky without being outrageous. It’s right at home in the bike park, where armor is commonly worn, but it’s too bulky and too hot for anything other than lift-served riding. I did find it comfortable for a full day of descending in high-70s weather – I was sweaty, and it felt amazing to take that top off at the end of the day, but I never overheated.
It has integrated elastics for a Leatt neck brace, and the brace works well without having to remove any of the chest or back armor – a big advantage if you rock a brace.
Bonus: this is a great top for women. There’s a terrible shortage of women-specific DH gear, especially for tops. From scouring the internet it seems that some women go for the hard-shell motocross armor / roost guards, some forego chest protection, and some have found soft pad tops that work for them. My wife finds the Leatt top to be comfortable, without being overly bulky, and the chest pad bends well to her curves.
full-face helmet. Super comfortable, very nice looking, and supposedly good for protection (I won’t know for sure until I try it, though!). There’s a newer D3 model out, which looks quite different – wider and more squared off at the bottom. The D3 is designed to work with a neck brace, which is my complaint about the D2 – it’s too low-profile to work well with a brace. My head is able to flex a long way before the rim of the helmet comes in contact with the brace. For maximum protection, the helmet rim and the brace should be quite close to each other. If you’re not riding with a brace, or if you have bulkier shoulders / a shorter neck than me (I’m a skinny long-necked geek) then the D2 could be a good choice. Fits large – I’m a 60cm head, so usually an XL, but with the Troy Lee D2 I’m a M/L.
. I think this may be the perfect helmet. It has a good rim shape to work with the neck brace, isn’t too bulky but is very comfortable, doesn’t cost an outrageous amount, and has cool colors!
, which was on sale for $99, but the helmet was just too huge and bulky. This is of course partly due to my giant noggin, but the helmet seems to have a lot of bulk for its size. Otherwise, it gets good reviews and is reasonably priced. The 
is the higher-end version of this helmet, and comes in an optional carbon shell.
. It’s nice and lightweight, reasonably well ventilated, and costs less than $100. I don’t feel that it has enough protection for DH riding, but it’s perfect for the local trails and jumps.
