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October 21, 2007

An Air Bag For Motorcyclists!

By John

Community Editor

Motorbikes are pretty much the coolest things ever. And until you’ve ridden a new, fast motorbike, you have absolutely no idea how quick these things are. For the uninitiated, here’s a quick primer. A 2001 Suzuki GSXR 1000 weighs in at about 450 pounds, and in in stock trim, packs over 140 horsepower. At the wheel. You do the math. Honestly? I think motorbikes are the most fun you can have with your pants on. But the obvious problem with these wonderful machines is the safety factor. Riding a bike is easy. The difficult part is riding a bike and not getting killed. So that’s why I think this trick piece of kit is so awesome. Upon sensing that you’ve gotten off the bike in a hurry, the Impact Jacket will inflate to protect your neck and torso, and if I had to take a nasty spill, I’d want to be wearing one. While these have been available in the States for years, they’ve just proven their mettle in a real world crash. Read about the accident on this Baltimore NBC affiliate’s website, and to see how the impact jacket works, check out the video below.

Comments

Oliver
Oct 23, 2007 at 2:06 pm

Good thinking, but still what difference does it make. FACT….you crash a motorcycle, 90% of the time it’s because you’re being stupid; driving your crotch rocket way too fast, you hit one little bump, and either you die instantly, or your a cripple/vegetable for the rest of your life. An airbag will make no difference. Speaking with such a negative tone b/c my best friend died on a motorcycle, and my friends brother. Granted they were being stupid, and what happened was their fault; accidents can happen, and why take the risk.

Doug
Oct 22, 2007 at 5:03 pm

WOW… I’m actually excited to see this.. cause I would LOVE to own a bike, but damn I don’t even skateboard for fear of injury… so I wonder, are motorcycle drivers that safe, or are the SALES that low, that this Baltimore incident is the first report of the jacket working?!?!??!!? HMMM………….

Evan
Oct 21, 2007 at 8:07 pm

Extremely shaky video depicting the jacket. IE Blair Witch Project.

Awesome life saving device, though. Hopefully more and more riders will look at these jackets.

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