grimfandango
10-08-2006, 07:53 PM
so i'm jacking chuckie's gear review format...
i hope that's ok...
Summary
-ok, we all can agree that teeth are important.
-why waste the investment of years in painful braces and retainers, over some (sometimes dumb) accident.
-As a motorcyclist if we crash, we subject our heads to many kilo-newtons of force. --Though our helmets protect our precious gooey insides, they don't protect your teeth from
1. slamming closed
2. breaking
3. looking like this guy
http://www.fm99.com/EventImages/Toothless.jpg
the helmet also doesn't prevent you from biting your tongue off...
(sux, but it has happened)
-so.. prices of these mouth-guards rage from... 5 to a couple hundred dollars.
-depending on how much you pay, they can be very comfortable, and they don't impede proper understandable speech, but again you pay for what you get.
The lecture at hand
Huh what’s that you say?
aside from riding gear, i'm sure that when growing up, my parents spent several thousand dollars on my oral hygiene/teeth straighenings/shininess (i had a couple removed and one was twisted on my lower jaw). I've been very irresponsible over the years by neglecting to wear my retainer and chewing ice to name a few, but it took me one moment to realize that i should take better care of them.
I was riding down near otay lakes/campo , talking to my friend on my chatterbox, when i hit a dip.. and nearly bit my tongue off... i spoke with a lisp for a couple days.
on my way home... still bleeding a bit, i stopped off at sport's authority and picked up a mouth-guard.
quoth the chuckie
Most all of the Hypercycles kin are of the mind that always wearing gear is pretty much the greatest idea since sliced bread.
Why do we believe this? We realize that the bottom line is every time we straddle the saddle and thumb starter, we accept the fact that there are certain risks involved in our sport and catastrophe is always lurking around that next corner. We wear gear in case something happens. Luckily, chaos accompanied with bodily injury does not strike every time we ride and we do not always have to use this gear.
endquote
this time its not a earplug but a mouthguard.
Forceful Information
a motorcycle crash will generally generate more force than say.. a fall from tripping on a soccer field.. or a racquetball racquet to the face. (all of which i have done)
but can generate forces similar to... skating full speed into the crossbar of a hockey goal, getting a rubber puck/lacrosse ball hit you on the head at 100+ mph, checked into the boards by three guys at full speed, or even getting viciously beaten by an irate goalie, after screening the goal. (all of which i've done)
so we wear a mouthguard in all these athletic situations, why don't we wear a mouthguard in a practice that can generate as much if not more force.
though they are not motorcycle specific here are some links
http://www.sportsdentistry.com/mouthguards.html
and this one is kinda gruesome
http://www.dentalgentlecare.com/mouthguards1.htm
and here's one that is motorcycle related
http://www.trailrider.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=30
My Newest Piece of Safety Gear
the mouthguard that i bought was a Shock Doctor Gel Ultra. Their top of the line model.
http://www.onlinesports.com/images/mw-ez7101a.jpg
ok mine doesn't have the lanyard attached to it..
They are 19.99 from your local sport's store. play it again sports has it for less (18 dollars i think)
mine came in green, but they are avaliable in red and green as well.
quoth the chuckie
The question I always get is “are they comfortable?”
ok so i don't really get asked this, but yes they are comfortable. my teeth get sore sometimes from biting down too hard on it, but i just have to remember not to bite down too hard (maybe i'm going too fast... prolly not) i think i just bite down hard, when i'm concentrating on something... atleast i'm not griding my teeth anymore.
Common complaint: "I can't speak with these in my mouth"
ok I agree.. these mouthguards do infact impede speech a bit. but not so much a fellow rider cannot understand him/her. It is akin to speaking while wearing a big retainer. And you get use to talking through your teeth quite fast. Generally the more money you pay for a mouth guard, the easier it will be to speak.
This mouthguard is a "boil and set" variety. You simply open the package.. drop them in a pot of boiling water.. count to 12.. then remove from the water.. shake excess boiled water.. and bite down really hard. The plastic gel will mold to your teeth.
If you get an improper fit the first time, drop the guard in the boiling water again and reset.
as i said the more you spend for your mouthguard the better quality it will be. I've spoken to athletes with 100-200 dollar mouthguards from dentists, and they can speak just fine + and they are also more effective in protecting your teeth from accidents...
but for 20 dollars i'll stick to my mouthguard.
The company
Shock doctor also stands by their product by offering an insurance policy for your teeth while using their mouth guards. If they are properly used, any damage to my teeth are covered by a $12500 insurance policy.
The amount of coverage for these products goes up and down, through their product rankings... so.. a cheaper mouthguard will offer less insurance coverage.
in conclusion i'm very happy with the guard, and reccomend them to anyone who rides a bike.
my disclaimer is that i have not crash tested the mouthguard (knocks on wood)
but have road tested them. Also with previous experience I have survived a concussion, from an irate goalie beating on my helmet.
thanks guys
and thanks chuckie for letting me steal your format
-grim
i hope that's ok...
Summary
-ok, we all can agree that teeth are important.
-why waste the investment of years in painful braces and retainers, over some (sometimes dumb) accident.
-As a motorcyclist if we crash, we subject our heads to many kilo-newtons of force. --Though our helmets protect our precious gooey insides, they don't protect your teeth from
1. slamming closed
2. breaking
3. looking like this guy
http://www.fm99.com/EventImages/Toothless.jpg
the helmet also doesn't prevent you from biting your tongue off...
(sux, but it has happened)
-so.. prices of these mouth-guards rage from... 5 to a couple hundred dollars.
-depending on how much you pay, they can be very comfortable, and they don't impede proper understandable speech, but again you pay for what you get.
The lecture at hand
Huh what’s that you say?
aside from riding gear, i'm sure that when growing up, my parents spent several thousand dollars on my oral hygiene/teeth straighenings/shininess (i had a couple removed and one was twisted on my lower jaw). I've been very irresponsible over the years by neglecting to wear my retainer and chewing ice to name a few, but it took me one moment to realize that i should take better care of them.
I was riding down near otay lakes/campo , talking to my friend on my chatterbox, when i hit a dip.. and nearly bit my tongue off... i spoke with a lisp for a couple days.
on my way home... still bleeding a bit, i stopped off at sport's authority and picked up a mouth-guard.
quoth the chuckie
Most all of the Hypercycles kin are of the mind that always wearing gear is pretty much the greatest idea since sliced bread.
Why do we believe this? We realize that the bottom line is every time we straddle the saddle and thumb starter, we accept the fact that there are certain risks involved in our sport and catastrophe is always lurking around that next corner. We wear gear in case something happens. Luckily, chaos accompanied with bodily injury does not strike every time we ride and we do not always have to use this gear.
endquote
this time its not a earplug but a mouthguard.
Forceful Information
a motorcycle crash will generally generate more force than say.. a fall from tripping on a soccer field.. or a racquetball racquet to the face. (all of which i have done)
but can generate forces similar to... skating full speed into the crossbar of a hockey goal, getting a rubber puck/lacrosse ball hit you on the head at 100+ mph, checked into the boards by three guys at full speed, or even getting viciously beaten by an irate goalie, after screening the goal. (all of which i've done)
so we wear a mouthguard in all these athletic situations, why don't we wear a mouthguard in a practice that can generate as much if not more force.
though they are not motorcycle specific here are some links
http://www.sportsdentistry.com/mouthguards.html
and this one is kinda gruesome
http://www.dentalgentlecare.com/mouthguards1.htm
and here's one that is motorcycle related
http://www.trailrider.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=30
My Newest Piece of Safety Gear
the mouthguard that i bought was a Shock Doctor Gel Ultra. Their top of the line model.
http://www.onlinesports.com/images/mw-ez7101a.jpg
ok mine doesn't have the lanyard attached to it..
They are 19.99 from your local sport's store. play it again sports has it for less (18 dollars i think)
mine came in green, but they are avaliable in red and green as well.
quoth the chuckie
The question I always get is “are they comfortable?”
ok so i don't really get asked this, but yes they are comfortable. my teeth get sore sometimes from biting down too hard on it, but i just have to remember not to bite down too hard (maybe i'm going too fast... prolly not) i think i just bite down hard, when i'm concentrating on something... atleast i'm not griding my teeth anymore.
Common complaint: "I can't speak with these in my mouth"
ok I agree.. these mouthguards do infact impede speech a bit. but not so much a fellow rider cannot understand him/her. It is akin to speaking while wearing a big retainer. And you get use to talking through your teeth quite fast. Generally the more money you pay for a mouth guard, the easier it will be to speak.
This mouthguard is a "boil and set" variety. You simply open the package.. drop them in a pot of boiling water.. count to 12.. then remove from the water.. shake excess boiled water.. and bite down really hard. The plastic gel will mold to your teeth.
If you get an improper fit the first time, drop the guard in the boiling water again and reset.
as i said the more you spend for your mouthguard the better quality it will be. I've spoken to athletes with 100-200 dollar mouthguards from dentists, and they can speak just fine + and they are also more effective in protecting your teeth from accidents...
but for 20 dollars i'll stick to my mouthguard.
The company
Shock doctor also stands by their product by offering an insurance policy for your teeth while using their mouth guards. If they are properly used, any damage to my teeth are covered by a $12500 insurance policy.
The amount of coverage for these products goes up and down, through their product rankings... so.. a cheaper mouthguard will offer less insurance coverage.
in conclusion i'm very happy with the guard, and reccomend them to anyone who rides a bike.
my disclaimer is that i have not crash tested the mouthguard (knocks on wood)
but have road tested them. Also with previous experience I have survived a concussion, from an irate goalie beating on my helmet.
thanks guys
and thanks chuckie for letting me steal your format
-grim