If your of the mind that this is a racing oriented safety device, keep in mind thats where helmets came from. Would States in the U.S. ever make this a required piece of "safety" equipment? Anything is possible with Insurance Lobbyists working overtime in our State Capitals. I know here in Michigan, there is more Insurance associated legislation conducted in a years time than any other single issue.


Safety first - KTM launch neck brace into Australian dealerships

European motorcycling manufacturer KTM will launch its all new revolutionary neck brace at KTM dealerships Australia-wide from the end of March 2007.

KTM developed the neck protection system in cooperation with BMW, which was designed by South African Dr. Chris Leatt as a new type of protection to reduce the danger of injury to the cervical vertebrae.

The KTM Neck Brace is made from glass fibre reinforced plastic and carbon to ensure that the weight is kept to an absolute minimum.

The cervical vertebrae are one of the most complicated movement apparatus of the human body. When it comes to riding motorcycles, up to this point in time it has hardly been possible to effectively protect the neck area and still have sufficient freedom of movement. The KTM Neck Brace therefore represents a major step forward in the development of safety equipment.

The basic principle of the KTM Neck Brace is to stop the uncontrolled movement of the head and helmet in the case of an accident. This is achieved by the following characteristics of the neck brace:

Energy-absorbing material on the surface and on the areas where the brace touches the body

Flexibility through the construction of each individual part

In extreme cases, controlled breaking of the neck brace in order to absorb the energy generated.

According to the latest scientific and technical information this system offers protection against the following injuries in the event of an accident and was tested in the toughest of terrain at the 2007 Dakar Rally:

Hyperflexion (extreme forward movement of the head e.g. forward distension of the head)

Hyperextension (extreme backwards movement of the head e.g. backwards distension of the head)

Lateral Hyperflexion (extreme sideways movement of the head)

Axial stress (compression of the spinal column through the corresponding stress against the helmet)

Posteral Hypertranslation (when the head is vigorously forced backwards on the neck)

The extremely low weight of the brace also contributes to its wearing comfort. The material used - glass fibre reinforced plastic and carbon - which in part are covered with a soft layer of shock absorbent material, reduce the weight to just 790g. With a simple series of adjustments the KTM Neck Brace can also be modified to suit the body size of the rider.

The system is also compatible with most motorcycle helmets and can be used for on or off road riding.

The desire for safety and protection through helmets and protective clothing now goes far beyond professional motor sports and has become a matter of course for active motorcyclists and leisure motor sports enthusiasts.

They now demand maximum protection and comfort with a minimum of weight. Despite the availability of a complex range of products, until now those designed to protect the sensitive neck area have been a missing part of safety equipment.

Just like all KTM products the KTM Neck Brace has also been subject to the most rigorous tests in a racing situation. All KTM Rally factory riders have worn the neck brace for the recent 2007 Dakar Rally where this year's winner Cyril Depres will now not ride without it.

Commenting on the KTM Neck Brace Cyril Depres said, "I had a high speed crash in training and the helmet was rather badly damaged. Normally you would have extreme neck pain after such a crash but with the KTM Neck Brace I didn't feel anything."

The neck brace has also been successfully tested in the area of motocross, where freedom of movement of the head is extremely important.

The recommended retail price of the KTM Neck Brace is $1039 AUD. More information on the KTM Neck Brace is available at www.ktm.com.au

Wouldn't be surprised if they caught on quick with the sport bike crowd. So expect to see them soon wearing full-face helmets, neck braces, tank tops and gym shorts on an interstate near you!

I'll bet that would help keep the neck from getting sore on long rides. At $1000 Australian I will have to wait for the poormans version.

In a sick type of way, it makes sense to have such a thing, but it's a slippery slope.

For safety next year we'll surround the motorcyclist with a plastic and metal shell around their entire body, add two wheels to the vehicle...wait, that's a car!!

Logan101 wrote:

In a sick type of way, it makes sense to have such a thing, but it's a slippery slope. For safety next year we'll surround the motorcyclist with a plastic and metal shell around their entire body, add two wheels to the vehicle...wait, that's a car!!

The salt flat speed record bikes are just two-wheeled rocket cars. Don't even count in my book.

In defense of Sportbike riders... The vast majority of them are very safety conscious riders. The tank top/ flip flops crowd is pretty much shunned by people that actually take riding seriously. While they're at Starbucks we're out dragging knees in the canyons.

It looks like a good product and I'll probably end up getting one at some point. On the rocket I wear full armored leathers, full faced helmet, armored gloves, boots, the whole shebang. Cause- let's be honest- I have a much higher risk of crashing on that bike. I know that picking your gear based on what style of riding you'll be doing isn't the most effective method, but hey, it's better than a tank top and flip flops!

Quote::

TheBigTater wrote: In defense of Sportbike riders... The vast majority of them are very safety conscious riders.

I'd have to disagree with that. The vast majority are like the one we clocked doing 135 on the expressway. Later 85 through a school crossing, during school hours. Also, the vast majority have no regard for motorcycle rights organizations, and hold us cruiser riders in disdain for being opposed to helmets. Don't get me wrong, there are responsible sportbike riders, and I would be pleased to associate and engage in activities with them. I just don't see them being the majority. With rice rockets being available for a fraction of the cost of cruisers, especially Harleys, its predominantly a choice of the younger crowd. The guy mentioned above, who was ultimately caught, had no cycle endorsement. As far as I am concerned the sport bike crowd is becoming bikers biggest nightmare. Illegal speeding, wheelies, and all the other stuff is fun, and adventurous, and not a problem with me until the ramifications start coming down on my rights to ride free. I have attempted to garner interest and involvement from the sport biker crowd in the motorcycle political agenda. I just get blown off. Well, they can either get on board, or we and our political relevance created through years of lobbying and political activity will use it to isolate and contain that crowd. This is not just my opinion. Many in the Biker Rights arena are having these thoughts. Please don't take this as a personal attack, I am not at odds with your activity as described.

I totally understand where you're coming from man. Both groups have their annoying riders that give everyone a bad name and cause the government to infringe on our rights. The sportbike crowd has the Squids and the Cruiser crowd has the throttle blipping RUB's. I think the reason that you don't feel that the responsible sportbike riders are the majority is that no one notices us. We're way out in the country tearing it up or dragging knees through the canyons or at track days, not doing wheelies down main street or speeding through school zones. I think a lot of the younger riders are getting more involved politically. One of the local sportbike MC's here has made a pretty big effort to get involved and surprisingly a lot of them are riding Harley's now too. It's slow turning a ship this big around, but I thinks it's starting.

You make valid points BigTater concerning the annoying riders in both groups, and the resultant infringement of our rights. I would be interested in knowing more about how the sport bike club was attracted to the political agenda, and how the attention of the younger crowd is being gained. Your big ship analogy is good, but if it don't turn in a forthright manner it might get sunk. I know we, (read old harley riding abate mf'rs) will go the distance for the sportbike crowd if they back our play. But those that ain't for us is agin us. And safety concious means alot more than what kind of gear you wear, as I am sure you know. Like you pretty much said theres a time and a place for everything. If we are all responsible and enjoy our sport/lifestyle without endangering others, or attracting negative attention directed at ALL bikers, I got no problem with what anyone rides, how they ride, or what they wear.

Its gettin closer, and closer,...........,.......... Really, why not just ban motorcycles and be done with it?




Equestrians, motorcyclists could benefit from new helmets
By Eric Hand
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Thursday, Apr. 05 2007

Like a battering ram, the helmeted dummy crashes headfirst into the steel plate at 13 mph — barely the speed of a bicycle.

But the crunch of impact makes St. Louis University biomechanist Jack Engsberg wince and whistle.

Sensors embedded in the dummy’s head and neck show that the helmet would have saved a person from head trauma. But the spinal cord? Even at these speeds, Engsberg says, it would have snapped.

Engsberg and researchers in the university’s physical therapy department are designing a shield that would protect both the head and neck. With motorcycle deaths on the rise, the shield could be a boon for the safety conscious — even as some motorcyclists fight to repeal mandatory helmet laws.

However, it’s unclear how many self-respecting Harley riders would don the unwieldy device, a rigid exoskeleton that runs from head to waist. The shield is a molded fiberglass sheath, reinforced with steel rods that shepherd impact forces from a skullcap to the shoulders, bypassing the neck.

“Clearly, this prototype is not something that someone would wear,” Engsberg said.

There are some benefits to the design. Most helmets tightly wrap the head and, moreover, require the head to hold up the helmet. With the shield, on the other hand, there’s about an inch of space separating the head and the skullcap, offering greater freedom of movement. Engsberg said a refined version could be made more breathable with an apple-pie lattice of fiberglass strips.

He noted that motorcyclists could buy helmets and armored jackets — but that no one had protected the neck by uniting the two concepts.

Motor vehicle accidents cause nearly half of the estimated 11,000 annual spinal cord injuries in the United States, according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Database. Those who die from spinal cord injuries at the scene of an accident are not counted.

Over the last decade, motorcycle deaths per vehicle-mile traveled have almost doubled, even as automobile death rates have declined, according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.

The researchers say the shield also could help horse riders. In a 1995 equestrian event, actor Christopher Reeve was thrown from his horse and landed on his head. He broke his neck and suffered a severe spinal cord injury even though he was wearing a helmet and protective vest.

It was also a horse-riding accident that motivated Washington University neurologist William Landau to design the shield, after his granddaughter was paralyzed in a fall.

“He said, ‘I’ve got to do something about this,’” Engsberg said. Landau was awarded a 1998 patent for a “brain and spinal cord protector.”

Landau later approached Engsberg, who runs a motion analysis laboratory at St. Louis University. On Wednesday, the researchers smashed up eight Bell Zephyr motorcycle helmets, collecting data that would be compared with earlier tests on their prototype shield.

The researchers rely on two systems to gather data from the dummy. One uses six high-speed cameras, taking 250 frames per second, to build a 3-D model of the dummy as it drops. The other uses accelerometers, little titanium cubes that sense the sudden stopping of the head at decelerations 100 times gravity.

Before one test, occupational therapist Tim Shurtleff ratcheted the dummy up 5 feet high, using a pulley he borrowed from his own catamaran. John Standeven, an electrical engineer, gave the command. “Three, two, one, go,” he said.

The dummy swooped low in its sling and slammed into the steel plate. For an instant, the neck visibly crimped. A plastic visor snapped off.

Engsberg clucked and shook his head. “Doesn’t that hurt?”

ehand @ post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8250

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