KNOX Ce Back Protector

The law of averages states that the more miles you ride, the more likely it is that you will at some point become parted from the bike. With this happy thought in mind i started to consider what happens when you fall off your bike.

So far in my motorcycling career i have been lucky. I have binned it four times (if you include the time I stacked a mini bike wearing full leathers, made me dad laugh, still smashed my lid so i couldn't use it though) and i am pleased to say, all have been my fault. The reason i am glad to say that they were my fault is simply that accidents involving other vehicles tend to hurt more and be more complicated from a finance point of view. In each of these accidents my injuries were fairly minor. A jarred shoulder in the first, a sprained ankle in the second and a sore head and hands in the third (the mini bike incident). When i think about these close encounters of the tarmac kind i think myself lucky that i managed to sail along on my arse, head or side without coming into anything more threatening than a traffic cone, if i had i may well be writing this piece from an entirely different perspective/plane of reality. It is with this in mind that i decided to get myself a back protector. 

I managed to buy a KNOX back protector from Moonies Motorcycles at the WSB round at Donington. They were knocking them out for £90 rather than the list price of £100 stated by MCN. We bought 2 for £170.

So what's it like? Well as you can see from the photo, they are chrome (effect) and black. They have a substantial feel and are quite rigid. The protected area extends from the spine to cover both the kidneys and the shoulder blades. The protector is held in place by three straps, one for each shoulder with a joining clip in between so it doesn't cut off the blood supply to your arms and a wide kidney belt type thing that goes round your waist and takes inches of your waistline. When using it on the bike at first it can be quite restricting due to its rigidity but eventually it bends to the shape of your back and your hardly know its there.

It does have a very tough feel to it so it makes you feel like you're indestructible, whether that's a good thing or not i don't know but it does take the worry out of riding, allowing you to concentrate on the job at hand rather than the consequences of falling off. As an added bonus KNOX provide limited life cover for 2 years from the purchase date. If you fall off your bike resulting in waist down paralysis while wearing their protector they'll give you £25,000 or neck down they'll give you £50,000. I know £50,000 isn't alot of money for losing the ability to control your faculties but it's better than a poke in the eye with a worn slider init?

Since i wrote this i have had the chance to test out the protective qualities and am pleased to say that after a 50 yard slide on my back i got up and felt fine, which is more than you can say for the bike :(