Knee pads 2021

thegock said:
KNEE PADS

As a first year member of the Knights of Nee (the first club Ultimate team in NJ,) I am qualified to give Nee Pad advice. I also ride MTB over 400 hours a year on some rocky trails and am clumsy and fall a lot, including off of a log pile at Chimney Rock on Monday. I was mildly shocked to see @pooriggy with his G Form Elite knee pads at Stephens. I had always thought of him as Yoda, who would just float his way out of trouble.

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I rode the G Form Elites today as an experiment, doe I have used them maybe a dozen times. My go to set are the Seven IDP Sam Hill Lites. Both stay up quite nicely, thanks to the tops being tucked under the legs of my chamois, which are armored, btw, and my massive calves---twice the circumference of @rick81721 ‘s little girly meat. The G Form Elites are a bit beefier, but I have worn armor on most rides that are not races since 2013 and mostly every ride since my front wheel washed out at "too easy for armor" Six Mile, so I don’t notice armor anyway and didn’t today.

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I was going through the armor milk crate today and noted that I also have the POC VPD’s, which are DH weight, but I never minded wearing them. Also have the POC VPD 2.0 (and have never worn them, apparently) at about half the size, which are the new edition of the POC VPD AIR. Neither of these latter two work with today’s ride---my 2019 Stumpy ST has a shock air valve that sticks out to the side and clips the side of the knee under these pads, when the seat is dropped in manic rock gardens. All of the POC products are high quality that hold up over time and don’t slide down ever.

The guy I rode with today, who won $2,000 at Mountain Creek one race, wore the Slyteck knee/shin combo.
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Do you wear them concurrently or consecutively? Inquiring minds want to know...
 
thegock said:
I was going through the armor milk crate today and noted that I also have the POC VPD’s, which are DH weight, but I never minded wearing them. Also have the POC VPD 2.0 (and have never worn them, apparently) at about half the size, which are the new edition of the POC VPD AIR.
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Guessing you don't have the long version of the 2.0's?

I got a handful of scars from last year's pedal strikes. Haven't gotten one yet this season but the longer knee/shin combos intrigue me big time.
 
cassinonorth said:
Guessing you don't have the long version of the 2.0's?

I got a handful of scars from last year's pedal strikes. Haven't gotten one yet this season but the longer knee/shin combos intrigue me big time.
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Short version of the 2.0's APA and I run clips, except on the fat bike, but have soccer socks on for the shins/ticks.
 
thegock said:
Short version of the 2.0's APA and I run clips, except on the fat bike, but have soccer socks on for the shins/ticks.
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thegock said:
My go to set are the Seven IDP Sam Hill Lites
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These have caught my notice, but I'm wondering if you can comment on the sizing. One review of 7 Protection said that they run on the small side.

Since I bought my Pivot and have been reprogrammed as a rider, I've picked up a pair of Fox Enduro Knee Sleeves as my first try with "pedal friendly" knee protection. Having followed Fox's instructions for measuring leg circumferences, I ordered a Medium, and I'm not thrilled with their ability (or lack thereof) to stay put on my legs. That being said, I imagine a Small will be too tight. Fit issues aside, these fill the bill for something that will provide decent protection while not being a burden to pedal with.

So, I'm looking to try another brand, and the 7 Protection look like a good bet, given the extended upper sleeve and its ability to sit well under a pair of bibs.

Unfortunately, my calves are no match for those of @thegock , but hopefully the upper sleeve will suffice.
 
I've been wearing the same pair of Race Face Ambush knee pads for a few years. The are probably classified as DH pads, and overkill for 75% of the riding I do, but they are super convenient, and comfortable despite their bulky size and appearance, so I almost always wear them.

The thing I like most about them is they are so easy to put on and take off. They don't slide on, but instead have an open back and three velcro straps, 2 of which are double velcro. So no need to take off shoes to get them on. They go on in 20 seconds, off in about 5. And unlike my elbow pads, they stay put...for hours, sweaty or not.

They have worn like Iron. The material is very tough and abrasion resistant. Seams have all held up great. Velcro still sticks perfect. Guessing they are like 3 years old and I wear them on 90%+ of my rides.

When I initially bought these I intended on buying two sets, this burly one for when I was doing well, burly stuff, and then a lighter pair that I would use for more pedally stuff. But I got so used to these that I still haven't gotten around to getting a lighter pair.
 
pkovo said:
I've been wearing the same pair of Race Face Ambush knee pads for a few years. The are probably classified as DH pads, and overkill for 75% of the riding I do, but they are super convenient, and comfortable despite their bulky size and appearance, so I almost always wear them.

The thing I like most about them is they are so easy to put on and take off. They don't slide on, but instead have an open back and three velcro straps, 2 of which are double velcro. So no need to take off shoes to get them on. They go on in 20 seconds, off in about 5. And unlike my elbow pads, they stay put...for hours, sweaty or not.

They have worn like Iron. The material is very tough and abrasion resistant. Seams have all held up great. Velcro still sticks perfect. Guessing they are like 3 years old and I wear them on 90%+ of my rides.

When I initially bought these I intended on buying two sets, this burly one for when I was doing well, burly stuff, and then a lighter pair that I would use for more pedally stuff. But I got so used to these that I still haven't gotten around to getting a lighter pair.
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Same here, but I eventually got the lighter race face pads (charge) that I’ve been using since. Both knees and elbows. The only problem I’ve had with the charge was using them directly on skin caused a little bit of a sweat rash.
 
ChrisG said:
So, I'm looking to try another brand, and the 7 Protection look like a good bet, given the extended upper sleeve and its ability to sit well under a pair of bibs.

Unfortunately, my calves are no match for those of @thegock , but hopefully the upper sleeve will suffice.
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I have the XL---the Large are tiny.

Ur calves are bigger than @slikrick,
Rick and $hillary IMG_20161014_120915.jpg


so u s/b fine
 
I have the gform ones but I tend not to wear them that often I will say they work great for painting trim and home repairs that you need to kneel for 😂 but they are nice for riding too I just usually forget them
 
@mattybfat Two years ago I searched the perfect set and went through about a dozen before I found what worked. Knee pads are probably the hardest equipment to find the right fit if you're picky like me and can't stand slippage and discomfort. The pull up sock versions like gForms never worked well and I prefer one with a cross pattern with Velcro which doesn't bunch up at the back the knee. My two favorites were the version 1.0 of this Dainese https://www.dainese.com/us/en/bike/...3|CT5|CT9|CTB|DOT|SHA|ED1|ED2|EDC|002&start=1 and these from Leatt https://leatt.com/us/shop/moto/prot...3df-5-0--sku-5019400530-W?selected-color=5440
 
I agree knee pads are definitely a "good luck..." item when trying to find a set that will work for you. I have two pairs of 7iDP knee pads I bought - a lighter set I had planned to wear most of the time and a heavier-duty set with a hard shell for more burly/enduro rides. After a few rides on them I found I more or less hated wearing them and my antique Dainese pads that are more comfortable for me.

Honestly, reviews and others' opinions are basically worthless when it comes to knee pads unless you know for sure they have the same leg shape as you do. And since armor in general is an item that kinda sucks for a bike shop to carry, you'll be lucky if your LBS has more than one or two brands out of the dozens actually in stock. Granted, it's better than full-face helmets...
 
This thread has inspired me to do some modifications on my knee pads. Sewed the lower elastic part that goes over the calves so it's a little tighter. Also experimenting with sewing behind the knee. Still not perfect, but better.
 
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