When people are asked what sports are at high risk for concussions, the first answers are typically American football, boxing, or even slap fighting. Rarely is mountain biking mentioned, but it is about time the sport takes concussions seriously. In gravity mountain biking disciplines like downhill, athletes are speeding down uneven terrain at over 70 kmh. There’s a reason we wear a helmet.
When it comes to contact sport, body armor is a hot topic. This makes sense: armor protects you. But there is a problem as well: in the world of physical preparation armor is shorthand for size. In the real world that is hardly the case. The best combat armor is not the biggest. There is a reason modern soldiers don’t go onto the battlefield dressed as a medieval knight. To be effective armor has to be strong. It needs to allow movement. It needs to protect the most vulnerable parts. It needs to connect to the body. Size is the least concern in most cases.
