split my right eyebrow nailing the fuck out of a rock

[seldon]

pictures to come.
flipped on a peel out as i was still figuring out a playboat.
rolled up once, went over again.
was going for another roll, on my way up, when my head cracked a rock.
10 stitches in the emergency room. going to be a nice looking scar when it comes.... mostly vertical, but my right eyebrow will be a bit funky. heh.

chicks dig scars, eh?

[DamRepublican]

scars = hardcore

i have a couple bigguns on my legs and a nice one on my jaw line from wakeboarding, chicks def dig it.

[ridinshockgun]

Welcome to the club, now get a new helmet.

[Storm11]

Yeah, you may want to consider finding a helmet with a little better coverage if you're nailing your eyebrow (not that it can't happen with any helmet under the right circumstance, but that's a bad spot to take a hit). Not sure what kind of helmet you have, but check out the WRSI Current helmets...one of the best full coverage lids on the market for the price point ($70 for 3-layer ABS shell).

[Gerome]

Been there, done that, in class I of all places. Ended up with 4 stitches. I waited in the er for 3 hours, doctor said it wasn't that bad & I could go with tape. After 3 hours, I was like - put those stitches in!!! That incident and another where I cracked my plastic helmet on a sharp rock converted me to a kevlar NFA helmet. I've had two hits where I saw stars with the kevlar since then that made me super happy I upgraded.

Pro-Tec & Plastic = Stupid

[AsheanMT]

Worthless without pics

[seldon]

yeah i was using a helmet loaned by the school - one of the el cheapo cascade types. suggestions for a new (spendy is ok - the now freaked out mom said she'd be willing to shell out for it) helmet?

10 stitches + 2 steri-strips all told.

funny the way it freaked everyone else on the trip (otter bar) out way more than it did me. after about 1/2 an hour, I was back to normal and a couple people never really got over the reality check.

after getting cleaned up and steri-stripped, pre-stitches:


2 days after getting stitched up:


Felt a lot worse than it was (at first) - and then it stopped hurting (and my dizzy headache went away) after an hour post-impact.

Full TR to come - the trip was fucking awesome.

[DamRepublican]

that will be a kick ass scar if it turns out nice....haha

[spindrift]

The WRSIs seem like a good idea. But one of my kids had the internal black plastic layer and fittings start to crack after less than a season of moderate use. No abuse of any sort. Just the usual wear and tear of being on the water & traveling. We did not even do the warranty thing because - well, why put your head back in that situation... Most of the family is in regular Sweets & a Shred Ready these days. A couple of friends are using Sweet full faces after a jaw meets rock thing last fall. They all seem happy...

[cloudpeak]

I switched to Shred Ready (they fit my head better than Sweet) because the plastic insides of my WRSI kept falling out every time I took the helmet off. And, as spindrift noted, the plastic on one of the kids' helmets cracked after less than a year of plain vanilla use.

[SuperChief]

Glad you're allright, Since Ma is buying, go for a Sweet helmet, they are the most expensive out there but are probably one the best choices for protecting a noggin, plus the Rocker has good crossover potential as a ski/snowboard helmet.

I tend to disappointed every time I try on kayak specific helmets like, Grateful Heads, Shred ready, Headtrip and others just because they seem more fashion first, function second type designs. None of them provide great coverage of the forehead and back of the head. The minicell padding is suspect to me also, I would trust more in a material designed for the purpose of protecting from head trauma instead of, hey we got some outfitting foam from a kayak lets try it.

On that note I am thinking of paddling creeks with my downhill MTB helmet if it ever rains hard enough to paddle creeks in WV again.

[summit]

So I'm still really new to kayaking but it really seems to me that there is every reason to wear a full face helmet even in low-gnar conditions. I think people don't because of cost and comfort, but mostly because of appearances and style.

Especially with the rivers low right now, it seems that I could be grinding my face on rocks on a flip before I even have a chance to start my roll, much less if I miss one or swim. It seems a high potential withh flips even in Class II+. Someone here mentioned getting worked in flat water! It doesn't have to be gnar for that one rock to get your face. I'm tempted to say I want to buy a FF because looking goofy for an hour hour isn't as bad as looking goofy for life. Reconstructive surgery is a bitch right?

We wear full faces for DH, many of us wear them skiing. Why don't more people wear them kayaking? What say you all?

[hialtitude]

Since everybody is so keen on the Sweet helmets in this thread, I thought that I would point out a sale I found on-line. Free shipping too. Disclaimer-I am in no way affiliated with this or any other on-line distributer.

http://www.rockcreek.com/products/listing/item4988.asp

[SuperChief]

In non gnar water a quick solid roll should protect the face. unless you are pushing your skills by getting into low volume creeks I wouldn't worry too much about full face helmets. I've seen alot more face carnage lately and I don't use one but there are a few creeks I get on that I am thinking of using one. That being said I'm wondering if that Rocker full face chin bar is removable?

[cmsummit]

In non gnar water a quick solid roll should protect the face.

Unfortunately, there is almost always that split second where your face is exposed- particularly if you're only a class III boater and need to go through the mechanics of "setting up" in order to perform a successful roll. I don't know of too many Cl-III boaters who get flipped and they're already "kissing the deck" when they go over. I know I'm usually in brace position when I go over on my side.