Help With Collar Bone Protection

[mhp800]

I have a 9 year old son thats into BMX racing . Three weeks ago he broke his collar bone chasing after the #1 plate at a NBL national ( sitting in the #2 spot for 2008 ) . He is recoving very quickly and is wanting to get back racing again , but I want more protection for him . He has been wearing a hard shell chest protector that he was wearing when he had the crash . So can I get some advice on what would be the best jacket to buy with collar bone protection ?

Thanks mhp800

[randya]

I don't know about collar bones specifically, but there is a lot of BMX and MTB body armor available, hockey gear is good too. A chest protector alone won't necessarily protect collar bones, which commonly break when you land too hard on your shoulder or upper back. Better to break a bone than do soft tissue damage, though.

[wethepeople]

A broken collar bone has, and always will be the biking injury when it comes to more extreme types of riding. You can't really get much to protect it, because it isn't a straight on force that will break it, it comes at an angle. A chest protector is still a wise investment to protect the sternum and rib cage which are quite often subjected to straight on hits.

My best advice for you is to talk to your son on how to fall properly, to scrunch up while in the air and tuck in and roll onto his back. It's the most valuable trick any BMX rider has, and we have all had to learn it the hard way.

[cman]

I have broken my right collar bone twice, both bike related. Near impossible to protect with gear unless he wears a full body cast. As wethepeople said, teach him preventative measures specifically falling gracefully.

Something like Judo roll or have him watch a skateboard video for other ideas.
http://judoinfo.com/images/animations/ukemi1.gif

[littlewaywelt]

avoid the foosh - fall on outstretched hand

No way to protect it other than proper crashing technique which is the tuck and roll.

[bike2math]

I was going to suggest some Judo (or other matrial art) classes. Learning to fall, as well as the emphasis on balance and knowledge of forces is invaluable in so many different settings. Also it could be a great bonding experience if you find a community center where you could take classes together. Finally it is good for overall health and conditioning.

[wethepeople]

fall on outstretched hand.

Worst thing you can do, because of doing this once I have been unable to move my right thumb and have been going for numerous Xrays and bone scans for the last few months.

[ChezJfrey]

I also broke my clavicle when I was a youngster working my BMX mojo. As others have pointed out, it is nearly impossible to wear any form of padding/protection that will prevent a collar bone break...you just need good rolling skills in a crash and a bit of good luck.

In my case, many, many years ago, I wrecked coming off a jump and got launched over the bars onto my shoulder. I curled up, turned sideways and rolled/slid on my back for a ways, but alas, not fortunate enough to save the bone. You should have seen the look on my mother's face when I walked my bike back up to her :) She said I was pale as a ghost.

[damnable]

Martial arts classes will be of VERY limited help unless they plan to continue with it. It takes years to learn how to fall properly in these types of martial arts. And this is using mats, the types of falls you use on harder surfaces are different.

You also won't wont to do the style of breakfall that someone added in here as an animation. Doing that one at speed of a bike on a hard or even semi hard surface is asking for trouble. Better to continue with the roll and roll up onto your feet. Would still hurt though.