If you're new to mountain biking, you'll probably have noticed a few things. Mountain biking is fun. It's addictive. Turns are great. Jumps are amazing. The ground is hard.
While many more experienced riders tend to pare down on the protective kit – you’ll notice most folk rocking simply knee pads, gloves and a decent helmet – an upward learning curve warrants, and indeed necessitates, protecting yourself from head to toe.
We've selected a few of our favourites items of protection for each body area below. These aren't in any way the best in terms of budget, but if you value your health and would prefer to get back on that horse once it's bucked, we recommend looking at these or equivalents from other established brands.
661's Race Brace Pro ankle supports are the stuff of legend among those with wiry pins. They're great if you're carrying an old injury, and these can also be found on the feet of many top freeriders – the supreme support helps them deal with nagging injuries and massive jumps.
There are few other ankle guards available, but if you're after something lightweight, then G-Form's Pro Ankle Guard will deflect stray rocks and the like.
Scott's Grenade knee pads are simply unbeatable in terms of their protection and comfort. They manage maximum coverage and deflection whilst maintaining a high level of flexibility. Many hard-shelled (less flexible) pads simply push off the knee upon impact, leaving bare skin to ground.
Full-length (knee and shin) pads are a bit out of fashion for modern mountain bikers, as they can be a bit restrictive and hot for pedalling, but if gravity is your thing, look to Leatt's Hybrid EXT for something all-protecting.
At the other end of the spectrum, for those carpark skill sessions, stash a knee pad or two under your jeans, such as G-Form's Pro-X lightweight, highly flexible pads.
There are plenty of very comfortable protective undershorts on the market, and Alpinestars' Sequence Pro Short ticks all the boxes, providing great coverage while remaining slim and flexible enough. Thighs, hips and coccyx are covered and you'll forget you're wearing them – until that unexpected backflip.
Full upper body armour can be quite restrictive for all day pedalling, but if you're serious about keeping yourself on the trail, then a vest with good chest, spine and shoulder padding is a no-brainer. Bliss Protection's ARG Comp is up there with the best: a flexible and slim profile meets decent spine, chest and shoulder coverage. It's a little heavy, but you’ll get used to it and thank yourself when shoulder-barging the ground or a tree.
For something stripped back, Dainese's Trailknit Pro-Armor Tee is essentially a base layer with spine and shoulder pads, which is great for summertime trail rides.
05
Elbows
Elbow pads are a tricky area to protect. While it seems essential to cover them up, there are few manufacturers who've managed to make a pad that covers the elbows well and actually stays on them. Some that do stay put can be restrictive around the forearm, which can lead to sore arms on longer descents.
Alpinestars' Sequence Pads seem to strike a good balance. They offer great coverage, a high level of protection and extend higher on the upper-arm, which means they tend to stay in place longer than most.
Wide handlebars lead to great bike control and, well, sore knuckles from the closer proximity to trees. If you want to avoid one of mountain biking's most prolific injuries – the crushed pinky – 661's EVO II Gloves pack D30 (a supple protective material that hardens on impact) on the knuckle area. Trees beware.
First things first, neck braces only work with full-face helmets. They aim to reduce the risk of serious neck injury by lowering forces transferred through the neck when performing that surprise headstand dismount. Leatt were the pioneers and remain the experts in neck braces for mountain bikers, with the DBX 6.5 Carbon option weighing in at just 600g. You'll hardly know you’re wearing it. Just ignore jokes about wearing a kids' potty around your neck.
08
Head
Of course, none of the above comes anywhere near the importance of a good helmet. You should never leave home without one, and always replace a lid that's taken even a mild blow. There are many great mountain bike helmets on the market, and of utmost importance is finding one with a comfortable shape for your head, fits securely and ticks several safety boxes.
Make sure it conforms to European safety (CE) standards (all major manufacturers' lids of course do) and think about spending a bit extra for added MIPS – a patented system that many helmet manufacturers lease for good reason. The MIPS system, a thin layer between the helmet shell and your bonce, essentially allows the helmet body to rotate slightly on 'angled' impacts, slowing deceleration and hopefully reducing brain injuries.
661's EVO AM lid is MIPS-equipped, plus it boasts a BOA retention system that allows for perfect fit. If you're looking for full face coverage, Giro's Switchblade is also MIPS-equipped and has a removable chinguard too – great if you pedal up to get your downhill thrills.
With your consent, this website shall use additional cookies (including third party cookies) or similar technologies to make our site work, for marketing purposes and to improve your online experience.
You can revoke your consent via the Cookie Settings in the footer of the website at any time. Further information can be found in our Privacy Policy and in the Cookie Settings directly below.
Privacy Preference Center
When you visit any website, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. This information might be about you, your preferences or your device and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to. The information does not usually directly identify you, but it can give you a more personalized web experience. Because we respect your right to privacy, you can choose not to allow some types of cookies. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings. However, blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer.
More information
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.
Performance
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance.
Third Party Content Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by third-party providers of third-party content that is embedded on our site. They may be used by those companies to load, display, or in other ways to enable you to use that content. As this third-party content is provided by autonomous companies on their own responsibility, those companies may also use these cookies for their own additional purposes, such as marketing. Please refer to the privacy policies of those companies for that information. If you do not allow these cookies, you will not be able to use this third-party content embedded on our site, such as videos, music, or maps.