HIT-Air Vests are taking the motorcycle world by storm! Already extremely popular in the horse riding community, for motorcycle riders, safety is becoming notably important as more and more accidents are occuring every year. The leading brand of HIT-Air have manufactured some of the most protective vests, jackets and neck braces around at the moment, and they include their own internal air bags in every garment.
So how do they work? Well each garment has a gas canister hidden inside which is attached to a key box. Inside the key box is a key ball which leads out of the box and garment. This key ball attaches to a lanyard which you fix to your horse/bike and it stays there permanently. So every time you get on your horse/bike all you do is clip the lanyard to your key ball and visa versa. Easy!
In the event of an accident, as you are falling off your horse/bike, the lanyard pulls the key ball out of the key box puncturing the canister and thus inflating the airbags.
The airbags take 0.2 seconds to inflate – faster than the blink of an eye (0.4 seconds for those of you interested). After the inflation, if the airbag is not punctured (it is more likely to be damaged if used in a motorcycle incident), all that is needed is to buy a new gas canister (£20) and re-set the vest.
Note: It is very difficult to inflate the airbags by accident, as it takes a weight of 35kg to inflate the vests – this is roughly 4.5 stone.
Available in an array of different sizes and for motorcycle and equestrian use, the success of HIT-Air is escalating rapidly. With each garment also being extremely adjustable with waist and side straps, it really is easy to find the perfect one for you. Ranging from £230-£450 (the equestrian ones being slightly more expensive) this really is a great investment into the future of your safety.