Car airbags have been around for so long, you forget they’re even there, ready to save your life in a crash and saving thousands of lives each year. But for motorcyclists they are a comparatively revolutionary phenomenon.
The Standard reported on Italian firm Dainese’s sophisticated - but costly - ‘D-Air Carvemaster’ jacket over a year ago, featuring an electronically-triggered airbag built into a stylish motorcycle jacket. It inflates around the rider’s upper body, inside the jacket, creating a safety ‘envelope’ in a crash, cushioning blows against the road or other objects.
Today however the fastest-selling motorcycle airbag product is not an electronic jacket but a ‘vest’ that can be worn over any bike jacket, offering high levels of protection in a collision. The Helite Turtle 2 is triggered by a lanyard, attached at one end to the bike and at the other end to the vest - detonating the airbag automatically when the rider falls off.
It’s such a breakthrough product it’s now often worn by motorcycle racers and police motorcyclists on 18 different UK forces.
Made by French firm Helite and marketed here by Helite UK, it comes in two basic forms. The Turtle 2 Air Vest (with the detachable lanyard) and the more sophisticated but costlier Helite E-Turtle, which detects when an accident is imminent with ‘algorithm technology’, not dissimilar to that used in cars, and triggering the airbag electronically.
We trialled the more accessible Turtle2 Air Vest to see how it performed during riding in and out of London. It’s in the capital, after all, that 1,019 motorcyclists were killed and seriously injured in 2019 - dwarfing the comparative casualty figure for cyclists (778).
Transport for London figures show that in 2019, 31 motorcyclists died in the capital, compared with five bicycle riders, despite far higher attention that cycle safety receives. So despite the relatively low speeds in London, extra layers of safety are desperately needed.
For London motorcyclists the latest airbag technology - in addition to skilful riding and better-designed roads that give riders more space - is all part of the safety solution.
Helite’s Turtle 2 Air Vest comprises a hard-wearing, abrasion-resistant outer shell encasing a high-performance back protector and an airbag that - once detonated by a small, replaceable gas canister - inflates powerfully to create an instant, protective ‘wraparound’ tube shielding the rider’s vital organs.
Inflating in less than a tenth of a second, when force on the tether activates the canister, it encases the rider’s spine and internal organs in a protective system of ‘tubes’, aimed at minimising injuries. Inflating in less than a blink of an eye, it remains inflated long enough to ensure protection even if the rider slides along the road.
An additional benefit of the Turtle 2 is that by rising around the lower neck on inflation, it helps brace the helmet, offering some neck protection too.
In practice, remembering to strap the adjustable vest over your standard riding jacket and attach the tether to the ‘anchor’ on the bike is a chore - but you get used to it.
Adjusted correctly, the air vest lanyard lets the rider stand on the foot pegs - handy when getting on and off or when riding over rough ground - and while worn is lightweight to feel entirely comfortable.
It’s available in hi-viz - as well as black - to help riders stand out in traffic. If detonated in an ‘off’, the vest can be fitted with a replacement gas canister - costing around £20 - within minutes at the roadside, unlike some airbag jackets which have to be sent away for re-charging.
Advantages of the Helite vest are obvious and welcome, although there are downsides too. The most obvious disadvantage is that - rather like a seatbelt - once worn, you feel naked without it. So there’s no more nipping down to the shops without strapping on the three-buckle vest first, even if you are in a hurry.
The Turtle adds a slight layer of warmth; not always desirable, especially in sunny weather. The vest can also obstruct motorcycle jacket air vents; the answer is to experiment with fit and adjustment to get the best of all worlds.
Another drawback - at least initially - is remembering to untether the vest before walking away from the bike. Fortunately, you get a gentle reminder as the tether tightens - and it’s not enough to trigger the airbag. The jacket weighs only around 1.75 kilogrammes but - combined with the weight of your motorcycle jacket - it feels heavy when you carry it around.
The other issue is cost. At £525, the Turtle2 is costlier than many good quality motorcycle jackets. The electronic e-Turtle - requiring no tether - costs even more, from £625-£775, depending on specification.
For many - especially poorly-trained delivery riders who might need it most - the cost is prohibitive. Others calculate that it takes just one injury-free accident to make it worthwhile, whatever the cost.
As Helite UK managing director Peter Riley observes: “Riders do rave about our vests - but mostly after they’ve fallen off.”
More at heliteuk.co.uk
