Any mountain riders with previous neck injuries?

bayman

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Broke my neck on my first sled trip last year(Nov 30). It's feeling pretty good but, no where near 100%. I want to get out this year in some capacity. Obviously the lightest helmet possible will be on my list, but is there any type of neck support/protection out there that would help with the abuse mountain sledding puts us through?
 

cnelson6

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Get the leatt gpx carbon fibre neck brace. It will limit the movement of your head and neck especially in a crash situation! I Dirtbike with one and am gonna start riding with one in the mountains this year.
 

JP.

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Yup.. Leatt makes really good one.. About $600 I believe mine cost
 

oler1234

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I had a major whiplash injure one year, I was basically down to half day rides in the mountains. I would suggest good trail rides off the start of the season to build strength back. I know my doc/theropist advised against a brace as your muscles can become depends on a neck brace. Tis is turn wouldnt not buold strength as quick and potentially bad habbits (muscle and posture). They advised to take it easy, not the easiest thing to do, So that's the route I went with. by feb I was almost up to par. Just my experience though.

Hah you can join me on some hardcore trail/scouting rides as I pulled my rotator cuff pretty good and still am in recovery mode.... For now ;)
 

bayman

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I had a major whiplash injure one year, I was basically down to half day rides in the mountains. I would suggest good trail rides off the start of the season to build strength back. I know my doc/theropist advised against a brace as your muscles can become depends on a neck brace. Tis is turn wouldnt not buold strength as quick and potentially bad habbits (muscle and posture). They advised to take it easy, not the easiest thing to do, So that's the route I went with. by feb I was almost up to par. Just my experience though.

Hah you can join me on some hardcore trail/scouting rides as I pulled my rotator cuff pretty good and still am in recovery mode.... For now ;)

It's been tough doing nothing...gained 20 lbs driving a desk at work now instead of being in the field. My physio therapist is a joke, just grabbing my cash with little improvement. Gonna find a new place.

Some hardcore scouting and trail rides sound pretty good to start with. I'm hoping for January on the snow. Mountains by Feb/March. BTW, gonna need that bottle filled before then.:rolleyes:
 

cnelson6

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The brace does not make you dependant on it. It just limits your range of motion. It's not going to affect your muscle strength it will only help when your in a crash.
 

250mark1

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It's been tough doing nothing...gained 20 lbs driving a desk at work now instead of being in the field. My physio therapist is a joke, just grabbing my cash with little improvement. Gonna find a new place.

Some hardcore scouting and trail rides sound pretty good to start with. I'm hoping for January on the snow. Mountains by Feb/March. BTW, gonna need that bottle filled before then.:rolleyes:
Try physio therapist tat specializes in sports medicine injury. I had very good luck with one after my shoulder surgery ( rotator cuff and biecp tendons ) this spring surgery way beginning of April and back dirt biking and golfing by mid August
 

Rufer19

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What other brands are out there for braces? Alpinestar, EVS, Leatt.....? Looking at starting to wear one myself and wondering what others have had luck with? Might sound silly but you wear the brace on top of your jacket correct? Also do you have to wear with a teck vest? Are these braces custom fitted? Will they work with an avy pack?
On a side note anyone have good luck with knee braces? CTi, Fox, EVS?
Geez I must be getting old talking about all these body braces.
 

0neoldfart

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My wife broke her neck in a vehicle accident. She does not ride with a brace, as she found it to be very bulky combined with her avy backpack and vest. I believe that most neck braces require an anchor point such as a tek vest, and avy bags that offer c-spine protection are not going to fit well. She is outfitted with the lightest carbon fiber helmet, and of course the body armour provided by the snowpulse vest. I've used the CTi knee braces in the past (knee surgery from racing MX), but I found that excercising the knee was far more beneficial then wearing the brace, as I tended to twist the knee during other regular daily activities. Good muscle tone and being at a healthy weight is your best defence against injury.
 

pano-dude

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broke my neck 20 years ago motocrossin', i feel for ya. it takes time to build back up, slow and steady. best thing i did was pilates and light weights at the gym. i'm not sold on the neck brace thing, i think it may help the neck injury but the stress will be forced lower into the back.

carbon helmets are great and really help on the long days, fox mtb retails for $450 ish and is snell approved.
 

lman

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I've had numerous neck injuries from sports and a car accident! Had a good physio therapist that helped me strengthen my neck to mitigate future problems. I have never worn neck braces for riding or other sports just ensured neck was strong along with back, shoulders and chest.

Would suggest you get a helmet that is light and comfortable that doesn't put pressure on the muscles at back of head as these are the muscles that will be most tender after a day of riding.
 

vodoo103

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It's been tough doing nothing...gained 20 lbs driving a desk at work now instead of being in the field. My physio therapist is a joke, just grabbing my cash with little improvement. Gonna find a new place.

Some hardcore scouting and trail rides sound pretty good to start with. I'm hoping for January on the snow. Mountains by Feb/March. BTW, gonna need that bottle filled before then.:rolleyes:

Been to a few different physio clinics and they're definitely not all the same. If all they are doing is hooking you up to machines, they're not doing their job. If you can find someone that does manual / traditional therapy to work out the scar tissue, the recovery process will be a lot quicker.

I'd be a disaster if it wasn't for Weber Clinic in Red Deer.
 

shoppingcart111

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I'm kinda in the same boat but my problem is herniated discs so a crash could make it worse. I have a leatt roost guard which I think I'm going to start wearing under my gear and then I can attach a leatt neck brace to it but not sure how it will work with my snowpulse avy pack.
 

thegeneral

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Good to hear you're getting back on the horse so to speak.
I'd go with the neck brace as well. Bear in mind that no combination is going to be as comfortable as it will be without, but it will sure be much better than not riding or even worse, possibly re-injuring your neck.
 

jockdoc

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What other brands are out there for braces? Alpinestar, EVS, Leatt.....? Looking at starting to wear one myself and wondering what others have had luck with? Might sound silly but you wear the brace on top of your jacket correct? Also do you have to wear with a teck vest? Are these braces custom fitted? Will they work with an avy pack?
On a side note anyone have good luck with knee braces? CTi, Fox, EVS?
Geez I must be getting old talking about all these body braces.
PM me regarding knee bracing. I own Action Sports Clinic. We are CTi brace dealers. I've done lots of custom braces for all manner of knee problems.
 

Polarblu

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I stretched everything in my neck 10 years ago doing a 40 ' drop, tail slapped with the old school full face heavy helmet. Took a year to get right. rode with a foam brace the next year. Worked great, nice and warm. Neck still clicks


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jockdoc

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For someone coming off a spinal fracture, I'd for sure invest in a Leatt or Atlas neck brace. In the event of an impact, the brace will distribute the forces into your upper thorax, and hopefully you'd avoid a hyperflexion/hyperextension injury to your cervical spine. Airoh and Suomy both make lightweight helmets.
Something to watch for... Persistent numbness in your fingers or a loss of dexterity. If nerves have or are being compressed, you may experience either of those symptom patterns.
 

JP.

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ImageUploadedByTapatalk1387951711.815502.jpg

These work great for neck brace, once it's on you'll never realize its there.
 
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