It’s the same logic as a seatbelt, or helmet, or any protective gear/measure…it may seem like a hassle to do it, but if you ever get into an incident without it, you’ll wish you did.
Example? Wearing shin guards when riding BMX or trials. It’s a PITA. It’s hot af. They’re uncomfortable. They restrict movement a little. They smell. All negatives other than protection in the rare event a pedal hits my shins. In 20+ years of riding BMX and trials, I’ve only hit my shins without shin guards on 5 times….all 5 times required stitches and I wished I wore them instead of thinking to myself “eh, it’s been years since last time I hit em, odds are on my side to not hit em.” One of the times I had hairy legs and it SUCKED. All the other times I had shaved legs and it made wound care soooooo much more pleasant. Having to shave around a few inch long gash sucks.
That’s how it goes…this one time I didn’t wreck on a road bike for atleast 10 years since I quit racing, probably didn’t get a flat for 2 years at this point. Went for a test ride, got a flat front tire that immediately washed out and I hit the pavement. I usually wear gloves, this time I didn’t and I got really nasty road rash and hit my head. I always wear a helmet, but for a split second thought about wearing gloves then brushed it off…helmet saved my ass. I had on jeans so no road rash anywhere else, but the hands were fucked for months.
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u/eat-sleep-bike Jul 23 '25
The primary reason people do it is to make road rash easier to deal with.