Some things are very difficult to transfer from the abstract to functional reality; protection is one of those concepts.  All too often the thought “I should wear more protection against falling down and going boom” translates to, “I’m encapsulated in hot uncomfortable unwieldy amour and the only people who want to hang around with me have a misunderstood transformers fetish.”  Which is why I think the folks at T-Pro have got it all sorted with their comfortable and cool Forcefield Back Protector.

The most unwieldy part of this product is the name, the product itself being primarily composed of a flexible triangular mesh of shock absorbing material (Armourflex Technology) combined with dense and lightweight foam layers.  The joy of the Armourflex is that it molds to your body for a snug and well-shaped fit, the protection also extends far down the back with the multi-density foams covering the tailbone.  Keeping this slim-line piece of pro snugly in place is the double adjustable waistband and shoulder straps.

So does it work?  Shamefacedly we’ll admit to not having gone beyond whacking each other on the back with various blunt objects while wearing the TPro to test impact absorption, with crashing a bike being right out of our spectrum of destructive quality assurance.  The Armourflex is just plain neat, the force of an impact seems to be distributed through the rubber triangle mesh, while the multi-density material layers seem to absorb the energy of the blows – as the marketing materials claim. That the TPro Forcefield Back Protector is able to take repeated impacts is also a plus, with most hard shell protectors being single use items.  We don’t recommend going down repeatedly, but if you must then this is the armour to do it in.

Protection though is only good if you wear it, and that’s where the comfort part of the equation slides back in.  The TPro Forcefield Back Protector is breathable, with venting holes running across its surface and through the multiple foam layers.  A cool biker on a hot day is a comfortable biker, and a comfortable biker tends to be more focused. That combination hopefully means you’re less likely to need this product, but in the case that you do the TPro Forcefield Back Protector complies with the Level 2 European Personal Protective Equipment directive.

So the TPro Forcefield Back Protector is comfortable, a cinch to slip on, well ventilated, slim enough to be used under tight leathers, and as an added bonus should provide good protection should you go down according the Euro-standards-chaps.  As a bonus, if you’re attacked by a photographer with a blunt object across the back you should be in good stead too.

TPro Forcefield Back Protector available at: http://www.johnsonleather.com
Price: $140.00 USD