Wearing knee guards make sense, but often finding the balance between fit, comfort and protection is difficult. While many of the best mountain bike knee pads perform well, it hasn't always been the case.
For years, most knee guards that allowed adequate freedom of movement offered too little protection. And those knee guards that could effectively mitigate terrain impacts in the event of a crash, were too ungainly.
Breakthroughs in fabric design and energy-absorbing materials have allowed for a new generation of mountain bike knee guards. Like the Leatt AirFlex Pro knee guard – light, comfy, yet robust enough when you need it to be.
The Leatt AirFlex Pro shows how far softshell knee guards have evolved. It uses an AirFlex impact gel, to reduce collision energy during a crash and save your knees from abrasion or more severe damage.
Supporting the core impact surface are side and upper pads, too, offering protection for those high-speed berm dismounts, which often occur at an acute angle.
The AirFlex Pro knee guard is certified to an EN1621-1 standard of impact protection.
Beyond the quality of crash protection offered by its gel padding, the AirFlex Pro knee guards are designed to have a negligible effect on your pedaling.
Leatt’s industrial designers have shaped the AirFlex Pro with a pre-curved material profile and tension in the fabric stitching, to ensure it sits with great comfort around the knee.
Few things are more annoying when riding with knee guards than having them slip or sag, during a climb. To prevent this, the AirFlex Pro uses silicone grippers along its cuffs and a silicone cupped knee grip, which helps to keep these knee guards in place, even if you are climbing at a high-cadence – as is the norm with 1x12 drivetrain trail and enduro bikes.
Lightweight knee guards might pedal great, but discomfort is only a climb away on a hot summer's day if they have weak airflow properties. Leatt’s solution with the AirFlex Pro is to use perforated materials on the knee guard’s protection surfaces, without weakening them.
Further temperature regulation and comfort is provided by Leatt’s MoistureCool and AirMesh fabrics, which have moisture-wicking properties. These material technologies also help the AirFlex Pro knee guards to dry rapidly after you wash them.
Available in sizes from S-XXL, the Leatt AirFlex Pro weighs only 300g, for a pair.
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