I’m asking a few ladies to do safety checks, like a bike check but with helmets and pads. I’m curious to know what brand these inspiring ladies are wearing. I already know that Nikita is all about the G-Form :p , but who are you curious about? Who would you like to see a safety check from? While we wait for those answers, let’s go in depth with Nikita Ducarroz.
I’m definitely an advocate for safety gear. I’m covered pretty well when I ride and definitely have more respect for riders who promote wearing helmets because it really is an important topic. Here’s a little rundown on what I am currently wearing when I ride, and why I like it.
FULL FACE HELMET: Fox Rampage DH Helmet
My mom got me a full face helmet back in August when I started learning flips, but since then I’ve started wearing it more and more during regular sessions, and always at contests. Yes, it’s pink. It’s not some mega-light carbon helmet, but for $130, it’s pretty dang good. It doesn’t feel too heavy and I was able to get used to riding in it very fast.
HALF CUT HELMET: Bell Segment Helmet
Up until a couple months ago when I was not wearing my full face I was wearing, like many other riders, the Pro Tec Bucky helmet. After Brett’s crash, and all of the information on certified helmets started to really come up in the BMX world, I started looking for something as comfortable as the Bucky, and came back with nothing. Then I heard about the Bell Segment. A new helmet that was coming out that offered the flexibility and comfort that I was looking for, except this one was certified. I ordered that as soon as it came out, and was so happy that it was just as good as I had hoped. Been wearing that one ever since and hope that all of you other rider’s currently wearing uncertified helmets will reconsider and spend a little extra money to get a certified one or even better, a full face….it’s worth it.
KNEE & ELBOW PADS: G-Form
If you’re Facebook friends with me you will probably know all about G-Form from my posts. I’ve been fortunate enough to be riding for them and always want to share them with the world because they really are that good. They are tiny like those cheater pads with a few differences: they actually protect as much as big hard shelled pads, and you don’t feel like you are wearing anything. It can be hard to believe without trying them, I was skeptical at first, but was quickly proven wrong. These pads are taking over.
SHIN PADS: Fuse
For shin pads, I am wearing the Fuse ones. They are on the more bulky side, not too bad though. I wear these ones mainly for two reasons. Unlike most shin pads that have just the front part covered, these ones, specifically for BMX, have extra padding on the insides (covers your inner calf) as well where I tend to get hit a lot. They also have ankle guards built into them which I probably need a lot.
MOUTHGUARD: Fight Dentist
I recently got hooked up with a sick custom mouthguard from Fight Dentist, owned by Dr. Adam Persky. I’ve been wearing boil and bite mouth guards on and off since August but wasn’t too stoked on them. For those who can afford it (remember it’s going to be cheaper than medical bills) a custom mouthguard makes such a HUGE difference. I got mine back and the fit was amazing. Previous mouth guards made my mouth sore trying to keep it in all the time. I had to pull real hard to get this new out and it felt like part of my mouth. I keep wearing it around the house much to the annoyance of my mom whenever she tries to talk to me.
GLOVES: Novik
Some might not consider gloves “safety gear” but I hate to ride without them. They really do protect my hands, and not just from getting blisters. I really like my Novik Gloves because they sort of just feel like a second skin (the thin one’s they have are called T.E.Cs.) For those of you who don’t like bulk those are great, and for those of you who like more fabric, they have thicker ones as well. This might sound crazy but I feel like I hurt my fingers more when I don’t wear gloves so I pretty much always have them on.
