# Separated AC shoulder joint - thoughts on body armour for next season



## mani (Feb 6, 2010)

Body armor will not really prevent an ac joint separation. I'm guessing you fell on your elbow jarring the shoulder. i've had this injury a couple of times, twice playing hockey and once snowboarding. 

Armor will help to some extent on some shoulder injuries, but I doubt it will help with an ac joint.


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## Ryan_T (Oct 18, 2011)

How do you normally fall? Try to do the tuck and roll more - this will prevent awkward impacts transferred to the inside joints.


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## Riley212 (Nov 9, 2011)

lacrosse shoulder pads just do a google search


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## globe (Jan 9, 2012)

Ryan_T said:


> How do you normally fall? Try to do the tuck and roll more - this will prevent awkward impacts transferred to the inside joints.


To be honest the fall that lead to this injury was over in such a flash I had No choice on how to fall!!


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## BruceWard (Dec 8, 2010)

"Learning" how to fall...part of it being an accident is that it is an accident that you didnt expect to happen. Anyways, probably some merit in trying to at least learn how to control a tomahawk. I feel like an idiot in a time bubble cause eventually there must be a safe way out of bindings that doesnt get your board going crazy out of control or slicing you - feel like we are still in the early years of boarding where we look like those stupid people from the 1920s doing dumb shit for fun. Anyways, if you are over 35, you need protection or if you have a family or decent job or worse, no health insurance. I am a downhiller, rare in the park and go at speed. I have the crashpad bottoms and dragon pro flex and regular demo flex and flexmeter docmeter gloves ---> Given icy east coast hardpack and my speeds I wear it down and feel no pain if I catch a small clip that puts me into a tumble. I dust off and go back at it. At some point one day in Utah, I'll ride free in tit deep powder but on the icy east and with a brain and body to protect, some armour is better than nothing to keep you coming back all season. Check out extremeprotection sports on the net.


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## globe (Jan 9, 2012)

@Bruce - are those pads hard plastic or high density foam?


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## Efilnikufesin (Oct 8, 2011)

mani said:


> Body armor will not really prevent an ac joint separation. I'm guessing you fell on your elbow jarring the shoulder. i've had this injury a couple of times, twice playing hockey and once snowboarding.
> 
> Armor will help to some extent on some shoulder injuries, but I doubt it will help with an ac joint.


This ^^. You have to really watch how you catch yourself snowboarding. Sometime learning to be pliant rather than stiff shouldered when you land can help alot of these injuries though I am guilty of this behavior myself. May take some heavier load in falls to your upper core body, but I find it can take more punishment than shoulder joints can ( especially with a helmet.)


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## BruceWard (Dec 8, 2010)

*Armour*



globe said:


> @Bruce - are those pads hard plastic or high density foam?


I have an older Demon Flex Force Pro that has hard plastic elbow and shoulders reinforced by density foam. You can take out the hard parts but I tend to keep them in and they have definitely saved me a few times. The hard plastics takes a lot of the ice edge away and the rib protection, should you jib or jibe, comes in handy.

Check out Xprotective Sports as they carry a bunch of different manufacturers/models to choose. Snowboard Body Armor: In Stock, Free Shipping. Click Here Now to Shop Snowboard Body Armor from Vigilante, POC, SixSixOne, Crash Pads, RED, and more.

If you are doing mega-jumps there's a ton of more expensive stuff out there and I have no clue it works but you can always upgrade if need be. I started with the soft shell Demon Flex Force and liked it enough to get the Pro version which is what I wanted in the first place. Now, if I can only get some snow....


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