Once again it's time to review some body armor since every serious mountain bike rider should own some. The type that you own will be determined by what kind of riding you do since you most likely don't need the full heavy duty protection for your fun in the sun cross country type rides. But at the same time you don't want to be out on the trail and find yourself under protected and have to take it easier than you need to or end up getting hurt.

Fox Launch Knee-Shin Pads Reviewed by Jim Bernstein Review Date: 03/11/2014 Product Rating

As you may know, Fox is one of the top manufacturers of mountain biker protection as well as suspension components and so on. Fox offers a wide variety of protection products such as pads, helmets, gloves, shorts and jerseys. If you are into any type of downhill mountain biking or riding in really rocky areas then it's a good idea to get a pair of knee and shin guards. There are different levels of protection from your basic soft pad knee guards to the full on hard plastic knee and shin guards made for the rough stuff.

In this review we discuss the armor made for the rough stuff and talk about the Fox Launch Knee-Shin Pads. This model has been around for a while but deserve mentioning because of how well they work. Plus you can still get your hands on a pair if you are looking for some good knee and shin protection.

One problem with many pads out there is that they don't like to stay on very well when riding or even when crashing. If they can’t stay on your legs then they can’t do their job. With the Fox Launch Knee-Shin Pads you get the protection you need and they stay in place. This is because of the 'X-Up' strapping system used by Fox which secures the pads on both sides of your knee and prevents slipping. The pads also get secured around your leg above your knee as well as around your ankle. One thing to note is you don't want to go too big because there is a chance they can dig into the bottom of your shin at your foot if they are too long. They come in a small\medium or large\extra large so there are only 2 sizes to choose from.

We have been using these pads on a couple of riders for some time now and have not had any issues with them slipping or coming apart etc. We have even tested them out with some unintentional crashes and they did a great job of protecting where they are supposed to be protecting and then staying ready for more abuse. Even though they are a hard plastic guard they have padding on the inside which makes them very comfortable. Once you get on the trail and start doing your thing you don't even notice they are there. Well if you are pedaling a lot you may notice them a little but if that's the case you are on the wrong type of trail to be using these pads!

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