Meteorologist Garry Seith, who was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident, recently did a report about air bag jackets that act like an air bag for the body. Garry looks at how the new jacket works, and how it could’ve prevented his injuries in his report for local news station CBS 11 in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area. Below is the full story as it appeared on the station’s website.

 

Sep 23, 2010

Motorcycle Jacket Is Like An Air Bag For The Body 

By Garry Seith

NORTH TEXAS ― Recently,CBS 11 Storm Team Meteorologist Garry Seith was seriously injured in a motorcy new type of motorcycle jacket that’s like an air bag for the body. Garry looks at how the new jacket works, and how it could’ve  prevented his injuries.

"I think it’s an adrenaline rush, and it’s exciting," said motorcycle racer Jeremy Louder. "To me, motorcycles is a way of life," explain racer Kevin Gregory. "It’s more than just a hobby."

Both Louder and Gregory are avid motorcycle enthusiasts. It’s that same excitement for adrenaline that draws me to motorcycles, too.  I started riding my 20s, but gave it up until three years ago when I decided to learn more about racing.  I always wear protective gear – racing leathers, gloves, and a helmet – but, despite those precautions, I was still seriously injured when I crashed earlier this year.

On June 26th, I was doing practice laps at the Cresson Motor Sport Ranch. I came up a hill going about 100 mph. Not seeing the turn over the hill, I went off the pavement into the grass, then back across the track and into a field. The nose planted on the bike and threw me 40 feet into the air.  Ultimately, I was airlifted to the hospital.

When it was over, I injured my neck, and broke my shoulder blade and several ribs.  Even with a full-face helmet, I had a pretty bad lump on my forehead, and a minor concussion.  It took more than two months to recover.  But, makers of a new type of jacket say their product might have prevented many of my injuries.  It’s called an Armored Air Jacket.

The jacket is made of a strong mesh material, and is fairly heavy with the air bag system running through it.  Once you’re on the bike, the tether cord attached to the chassis, usually on the right side.  Then, during an accident, when the trigger system is pulled with at least 30 pounds of pressure, the jacket inflates to protect the neck, torso, and back.

Joe Bass was wearing one of the jackets when he crashed in Maryland last month.

"I ended up rolling over at least twice and going back-first into the guardrail," Bass said.  "I realized that the air bag vest that I was wearing had deploy and it worked."

He says both the paramedics and doctors told him how bad it could’ve been. "You’re lucky you were wearing that, you know, you could be dead," he recalled rescuers saying.

But, some local riders I spoke to worry the jacket might give some inexperienced riders a false sense of security.

"It’s that ‘I have a jacket, now I have an air bag inside my jacket, so it’s okay for me to crash,’ type of mentality," Kevin Gregory said of some riders mindset.

Jeremy Louder says with more people buying motorcycles, though, and getting on the road with little to no experience, any added protection is a bonu "I think that a lot ofpeople out there that are riding on the street don’t wear hardly anything until they wreck," he said.  "And, once you wreck you realiz you are vulnerable."

Armored Air Jackets is just one of several companies putting out this type of jacket. They cost between $250 and $600.

 

The original story can be seen here.