Dainese Trail Skins Pro Knee Protectors

Product Information

Knee protection has progressed significantly since the days when I borrowed my sister’s Bike brand volleyball pads to ride down logging roads. The marshmallow-shaped pillows didn’t stay in place whether crashing or pedaling, making them more of a nuisance than they were worth. The new Trail Skins Pro Kneepads from Dainese have more tech woven in than my mountain bike did twenty-some years ago, and the innovations are focused on more than just protection. The tab with Dainese logo got dog-eared, exposing the hooked section of the Velcro fastening. Ian Linton / Immediate Media

Dainese sponsor some of the world’s very best mountain biking and downhill riders including Troy Brosnan, Mark Wallace, Ines Thoma and Florian Nicolai. As well as designing and manufacturing the very best in body armour and cycling wear, Dainese has one simple mission objective - that is safety, and this is illustrated in the following Dainese mission statement:The Trail Skins Air elbow guard is also constructed around the Pro-Shape 2.0 protector and shares the features of the knee guard. The elbow guard remains stable, even during intense activity, thanks to a very long transparent sleeve that extends to the bicep and a practical elastic at forearm height. XS - XL, €59,95 I rode first with the Pro version ( above) but never was super happy with my fit. Sizing down to S kept them from moving at all. But I never really liked the short velcro straps that had to be adjusted behind my leg where I couldn’t see them, preferring the more simple fit of the Air or Lite pads.

For now the Lite line only includes the 60€ Trail Skins Lite Knee Guards, that take an even more simplified approach. Dainese Trail Skins Lite Knee Guards The Trail Skins Air elbow guard is constructed around the Pro-Shape 2.0 protector, inspired by the geometry of auxetic materials present in nature that, following an impact or stress, expand in all directions simultaneously, increasing the area of coverage. mollow: Yeah, lbs vs online is a bit of a compromise either way. Online gets you more options, the lbs allow you to fit what they have available.

More than just three levels of knee protection, the expanded Trail Skins family now includes two levels of elbow guards, two levels of chest protection, and a pair of padded shorts. Mix and match to get the best combo for your style of riding… Dainese Trail Skins Pro light mountain bike protection Dainese Trail Skins Pro Knee Guards All of the latest Dainese Trail Skins pads are available now, direct from Dainese or through their international dealer network. Our personal suggestion is to find a shop where you can try them on, as a close and secure fit seems critical to get the most out of their comfort and flexibility while riding. It’s a solid idea, but seems to require a precise fit from the start, maybe more so than most other knee pads we’ve ridden in. The knee pads are all available in sizes XS-XL. I was able to fit into sizes S, M & L, generally getting the sense that dropping down one size (from Dainese fit charts) gave me the best overall comfort, although sizing down two time resulted in pads that stayed even better in place.

As for the padded protection shorts, they are the Trail Skins element I have used the least probably. They are comfortable, with super soft body fabric and a comfortable chamois, but I haven’t gotten the sense that the little hip pads offer much real benefit to me personally. They feel a bit odd when you pull the waistband of many regular trail short over top of them, but once in place they do their job & disappeared from my thoughts mostly. But again, I get the sense that sizing down would give me a more secure fit, especially in a crash. The Trail Skins Lite knee guard is constructed around the Pro-Shape 2.0 protector, in a compound version that is even softer so that it can be folded in on itself, taking up minimal space.Combined with the use of highly breathable fabric, the structure, open across 55% of the area of coverage, ensures lightness and greater ventilation during every stage of the ride, even on the hottest of days. Pro-Shape 2.0 is inspired by the geometry of auxetic materials present in nature that, following an impact or stress, expand in all directions simultaneously, increasing the area of coverage. This inverts the hooked section so a part of it points outwards and snags onto the inside of riding trousers, shorts and bibs.

The structure of the Pro-Shape 2.0 protector allows for maximum flexibility and adaptability whatever the knee position, tracing its movements throughout all phases of activity. It absorbs 83% of the force of an impact, rather than transmitting this to the knee. 55% of its surface area is completely open, ensuring ventilation and greater heat exchange during both the uphill and downhill phase. An ideal feature for riders who plan to take on long rides, even on the hottest of days. Self-preservation makes crash testing knee pads particularly difficult and whether or not a tester crashes in them is a roll of the dice rather than a scientifically controlled procedure.

Dainese Trail Skins lightweight MTB knee & body protection

Now, a similarly constructed 75€ pair of Trail Skins Pro Elbow Guards offers the exact same protection tech for your arms. The 70€ Trail Skins Air Knee Guards share the same Pro-Shape 2.0 knee pad & side skid plate, but feature a simplified fit. Held in place with a simple extended sleeve design – essentially a long lightweight mesh knee warmer, elastic grippers at the top and bottom hold the knee guards in place, likely reaching up under the grippers from a pair of padded cycling shorts. The ventilated front sections worked well at keeping air flowing across my knees and proved to be significantly cooler than knee pads with solid front protection panels. This was most noticeable on cooler days when it was possible to feel the cold air. To get them positioned correctly, I felt like I needed to wear them a little higher than I was expecting, but doing so didn’t appear to impact their stability. I adjusted the Velcro straps to their tightest setting to enhance the secure fit further, too. Thanks to the close fit and elasticated hems with silicone grippers, once the pads were positioned correctly on my legs they remained fairly static while riding, requiring only one or two minor adjustments throughout the day.