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Thanks, I’ll stick to the dual-sport/adventure oriented clothing then. I assumed that MX clothing had no road protection but somehow a benefit on dirt.
Yep definitely all in the knees!
Still early days with all this. Frustrating to by twice or more on some things, but keen to get the best protection/comfort ratio per situation.
pdlouche
@Jung
MX pants offer no protection at all - it's all about the hard armor underneath. For green laning and most casual off roading, I'd go with basic shin / knee pads, not the fancy knee braces as they're uncomfortable and unnecessary. For boots, I still prefer full MX boots, but they're bastard uncomfortable until they break in and difficult to walk in. Trials boots are a compromise but don't offer anything like the ankle protection. Ankles are extremely vulnerable off road. For upper body, I wear a fairly basic vest, with back, chest, shoulder and elbow hard armour.
I'd go with some trials gear over hard armor that you can layer. As you've noticed, off road is more physical so it's good to be able to strip down a bit! Also, can't recommend highly enough getting trousers with a grippy material on the inside of the knees and thighs. Gripping the tank / frame is how you stay in contact with the bike through the rough stuff / jumps. Loose shoulders and arms, grip with the knees.
The problem I found with Kevlar is it seems to grip tarmac rather than slide, so you end up with friction burns and more tumbling. Unless you're going really fast, most discomforts are impact related rather than abrasion - hard armour is great for minimising those.
@Jambon - damn that bike looks fab. Aging magnificently.