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unityjon · **Posts:** 2082 **Location:** Southend

Grabbed this off the Danbury group on Facebook as it helps highlight a few issues worth considering, although i may not agree 100% its worth reading.....

Quote:

So I'm getting pretty fed up with XC riders going to Danbury wearing no protective kit apart from a good for fuck all piss pot helmet then going into the ground head first. We then have to call an ambulance, every time we do this it's logged against the area, if it happens too much as it is recently the council will encourage if not demand that the national trust close the trails. Now yes it's fair to say we all start somewhere etc but for the love of Christ don't fucking ride a trail that is well out of your ability and way way beyond the piece of crap £89 halfords special. We all ride in pads full face lids etc, we don't do this cos its cool to dress like a fooking storm trooper!!!! I for one will not be stopping to help if it happens again as I'm fed up to the back teeth of calming down girl friends cos their man has blood coming from his ear then holding you still while you flail about fighting to regain consciousness just because you are clearly so dumb that you won't even walk a trail of feature before you atempt it......rant over thanks for listening.

the message is a good one i think but... most helmets conform to ISO guidelines so whether you pay £40 or £240 it makes no odds YOU decide whether you want /can afford a full face or not, i dont have a full face, i find them restrictive but i also understand i risk smashing my jaw off ! i'm looking at getting a full face when i can afford it but until then i'll make do and i'll be aware i'm not wearing one at my choice !.

for people that dont ride Danbury, be aware, its pretty intense and challenging although you can roll most of it dont get over confident, take your time, its easy to bite off more than you can chew !!

nwmlarge · **Posts:** 3548 **Location:** essex

Danbury is all rollable

the sentiment is accurate though.

ninja · **Posts:** 601

Spot on

shouldgetoutmore · **Posts:** 500 **Location:** Stanford-le-hope

Next they'll be telling me i can't ride clipped in !!!! Danbury..... not exactly fort william is it?

chris321 · **Posts:** 385

shouldgetoutmore wrote:

Next they'll be telling me i can't ride clipped in !!!! Danbury..... not exactly fort william is it?

Someone told me that last time I was there

He wasn't wearing a helmet at all though, so I reckon his safety priorities were a little skewed. One thing I've never got is why the dirt jumpers don't wear full-face helmets? They seem just as likely to lose some teeth as downhillers, look at Sam pilgrim's lovely smile

8600keith · **Posts:** 483 **Location:** Basildon, Essex

Totally agree...although could have been worded a bit better.
if your going to ride downhill then you should have the appropriate gear.......xc helmets are not made for downhill/jumps.
he's spot on aswell about the place being closed if people keep on getting injured over there.

Laser · **Posts:** 2166 **Location:** The land were time forgot

When you ride your bike back up top off run then you tell me what I can wear!

WhyteBoy · **Posts:** 267 **Location:** Brentwood

Laser wrote:

When you ride your bike back up top off run then you tell me what I can wear!

I rode my enduro top to bottom then bottom to top at aston hill and that makes danbury look very small..all this was in full face helmet and body armour!!

Karl89 · **Posts:** 198 **Location:** Basildon

I think its less about telling people what to do and more about everyone losing out when someone gets brain damage

chris321 · **Posts:** 385

To be honest I think it all comes down to common sense and knowledge of your own ability. Some people are comfortable riding Danbury in XC helmets, I've got a friend who's spent years in Whistler who rides at Aston Hill in an XC lid quite happily, because he's so far into his comfort zone (whereas I go for a full face for anything past gentle XC!)

You could crash and smash your face up absolutely anywhere when wearing an XC or DJ helmet, whether it's in a field, on a road, or a downhill track. I think it comes down to the individual rider to weigh up their ability with the technical nature of what they're riding, and come to a decision that they're accountable for!

If they smash themselves up due to wearing the wrong equipment, it shouldn't be the trail's fault, or the bike's, or the government's, it's THEIR fault!

Megahurtz400 · **Posts:** 200 **Location:** Colchester

chris321 wrote:

To be honest I think it all comes down to common sense and knowledge of your own ability. Some people are comfortable riding Danbury in XC helmets, I've got a friend who's spent years in Whistler who rides at Aston Hill in an XC lid quite happily, because he's so far into his comfort zone (whereas I go for a full face for anything past gentle XC!)

You could crash and smash your face up absolutely anywhere when wearing an XC or DJ helmet, whether it's in a field, on a road, or a downhill track. I think it comes down to the individual rider to weigh up their ability with the technical nature of what they're riding, and come to a decision that they're accountable for!

If they smash themselves up due to wearing the wrong equipment, it shouldn't be the trail's fault, or the bike's, or the government's, it's THEIR fault!

This is exactly what it comes down to, riders knowing their own limit.

But unfortunately forestry commission/local council's don't see it this way, an accident is an accident and accidents have to be avoided

unityjon · **Posts:** 2082 **Location:** Southend

Exactly, i look at some stuff and think sod that ! but in the back of my head there's something saying "one day....and if you don't try you wont know" so i'm my own worst enemy, i like to push my limits when i feel comfortable doing so (less and less as i get older) and i like the feeling of achievment afterwards

trax · **Posts:** 537

unityjon wrote:

i dont have a full face, i find them restrictive but i also understand i risk smashing my jaw off ! i'm looking at getting a full face when i can afford it but until then i'll make do and i'll be aware i'm not wearing one at my choice !

It stops becoming your choice if you get knocked unconcious - the other riders and ambulance staff would rather you wear one

As you know from Saturday, accidents can happen no matter how well you know the place.

unityjon · **Posts:** 2082 **Location:** Southend

Indeed ! and because i dont have one i dont get all gung ho! and wreckless...... yet accidents still happen :crazy:

I consider my riding over there to be very tame and i hold back a lot, sometimes because of confidence, sometimes because it just doesnt feel right but mostly because i know better and you know what... it sucks !

I guess i'm like a lot of newbies to mtb, (maybe worse because of my bmx background?) first i've spent out on my bike, now i've started to look at protection etc and this may be the wrong order to do things, a bit like fitting a turbo to a car without upgrading the brakes first ! but thats life....

:thumbup:

Lawbags · **Posts:** 351

This further backs up my theory that publicity kills trails....

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Danbury issue - worth sharing......

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