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Burphel · July 27th, 2018, 09:34 AM

I have the Hit-air race vest, and had their street version for a while. I've crashed twice in the race version.

The street version offers considerably more airbag coverage (in particular, it goes all the way down to the tailbone in the back) at the cost of having the CO2 cartridge and tether in the front. For track purposes, I felt like the cartridge was banging my tank a lot, and the tether felt weird, along with being asymmetrical in how far you could go without it firing.

Their race version is a bit smaller - I think of it as being primarily neck protection with a bit of chest/back/ribs. It also puts the cartridge and tether on your back. This gets it out of the way in terms of bike mobility, but it's also a bit of a hassle because I can't clip into it with gloves on. So unless I have a helper, I have to leave a glove on the tank until after I've mounted up. Not a big deal for track days, but for racing it's one more thing to do between last call and making it to the hot pit.

My first crash, the bag didn't go off. To be fair, it was a low speed crash and I never really separated from the bike. We came to a rest with my leg still pinned under it. I've since tightened up the tether a bit, but this is a weak spot that is inherent in any tethered system. One of the Diane$e or A-$tars ones probably would have fired. This crash did burn 2 small holes in the nylon, so I did a test-inflation and it still worked, so I patched up the holes and repacked it. The second crash was actually last Saturday. ~75mph turn 1 lowside trying to pass somebody. Fired and probably saved me a fair amount of discomfort. I'm fairly certain it saved my helmet and maybe a mild concussion. A lot more abrasion damage to the nylon this time, but again the air bladder is still fine (it stayed inflated for like 5min after the crash). I've already sewn it back up. In spite of being one of the faster crashes I would expect on a Ninja, I walked away with nothing more than a bruise on my foot.

Somebody needs to make airbag boots. Actually, it's not that bad an idea if you think about it. You need flexibility there for normal riding, but a lot more bracing and cushioning during a crash. Maybe tied into the sensor on one of the GPS/accelerometer suits?

July 27th, 2018, 09:34 AM	#6
Burphel ninjette.org member Name: Brian Location: NW USA Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): Triumph Bonneville, Ninja 300 Posts: 204	I have the Hit-air race vest, and had their street version for a while. I've crashed twice in the race version. The street version offers considerably more airbag coverage (in particular, it goes all the way down to the tailbone in the back) at the cost of having the CO2 cartridge and tether in the front. For track purposes, I felt like the cartridge was banging my tank a lot, and the tether felt weird, along with being asymmetrical in how far you could go without it firing. Their race version is a bit smaller - I think of it as being primarily neck protection with a bit of chest/back/ribs. It also puts the cartridge and tether on your back. This gets it out of the way in terms of bike mobility, but it's also a bit of a hassle because I can't clip into it with gloves on. So unless I have a helper, I have to leave a glove on the tank until after I've mounted up. Not a big deal for track days, but for racing it's one more thing to do between last call and making it to the hot pit. My first crash, the bag didn't go off. To be fair, it was a low speed crash and I never really separated from the bike. We came to a rest with my leg still pinned under it. I've since tightened up the tether a bit, but this is a weak spot that is inherent in any tethered system. One of the Diane$e or A-$tars ones probably would have fired. This crash did burn 2 small holes in the nylon, so I did a test-inflation and it still worked, so I patched up the holes and repacked it. The second crash was actually last Saturday. ~75mph turn 1 lowside trying to pass somebody. Fired and probably saved me a fair amount of discomfort. I'm fairly certain it saved my helmet and maybe a mild concussion. A lot more abrasion damage to the nylon this time, but again the air bladder is still fine (it stayed inflated for like 5min after the crash). I've already sewn it back up. In spite of being one of the faster crashes I would expect on a Ninja, I walked away with nothing more than a bruise on my foot. Somebody needs to make airbag boots. Actually, it's not that bad an idea if you think about it. You need flexibility there for normal riding, but a lot more bracing and cushioning during a crash. Maybe tied into the sensor on one of the GPS/accelerometer suits? __________________________________________________ Let he who has never re-used a crush washer cast the first stone...