Liar, Liar, Pads on Fire
There are two mountain biking products that changed my relationship with the concept of gear reviewing, test-writing*, as I call it. One is the Kali Invader 2.0 full-face and the other is Chromag’s Rift knee pads. In the case of the Invader, after trying on many and riding in a few examples of lighter-weight, more breathable full-face helmets, the acoustics, fit, and airflow of the Kali removed any motivation I had to seek other examples to try. The Rifts were even more of a revelation. Hundreds and hundreds of hours of riding and despite my sensitive {wussy} skin and a left knee with a flesh-covering rendered opaque-thin from years of riding without protection, I’ve had none of the rashes or raw-rubbing that has had me swearing off knee pads many times in the past.
I like to have two pairs of knee pads on the go for multi-ride days, and so I can {not regularly enough} wash them {hang-to-dry} and I love the Rift pads so much I bought a second pair to twin my review set without any hesitation. They’re the most comfortable pads I’d ever worn, including a few ultralight examples that are barely more protective than knee warmers. Durable too, I’ve been in them for a couple of years now, and sharing the miles, I’d guess they have at least a couple more years of very routine use ahead of them. In my experiences, they’re pretty great for crashing in too. Until a month and change ago, I would have unequivocally replaced them with the same, and regularly told folks I’d never need to try on another pair of knee pads again.
Now I look a bit shifty – liar, liar, pads on fire – because I have a new knee pad first love. They’re not just newer, they’re different, and also, for my body and riding, they’re better. Enter the Chromag Shift.
*{A friendly reminder that MEATengines has a Partisan, Partial, & Predisposed review policy.}
{Photos: MEATengines}
On paper, there’s not a ton-ton of difference between the Shift and Rift pads. They both use RHEON™, an energy-absorbing super polymer, which, fun fact, is the same blue low-density-layer that Kali use in their helmets. They’re both intended for all day pedaling, with a dual focus on maximum flexibility and maximum stay-put-iveness*. They’re both black. The Shift ditches the Rift’s low-profile side protection, which had me suspiciously eyeing the Truelove top-tube on my beastly over-forked ArctuHawk Voyager but, at least so far, knock on wood, my awkward cringe-face frame contact has been equally well pad protected.
At the same time that they’re quite similar, the Shift is rated at the EN 1621-1:2012 Level 2 impact certification level, compared to the Level 1 cert carried by Rift, without feeling any bulkier under my shants. If anything they feel more natural to move in, whether pedaling, pumping, or pushing. An upgrade there. Both pads stay well-and-truly in place for me, but on the wettest {drenchiest?} and sweatiest rides I’ve been on in the last month and a bit, splitting time between Shift & Rift, I’ll give the edge to the Shift’s much taller upper cuff. On first glance I was a bit concerned but the shape works fine with my inverted-vase-shaped single-speeder-thiccc-thighs.
*{I like stayputiveness, but Chromag calls this “Stabilized fit” with features to “Prevent pad migration.”}
{Photos: MEATengines}
Helmet, gloves, pads, shoes, etc. There’s always a question of when to write a first gear review. How many hours, how many crashes, how much sweat needs to go into a product before making a consistent performance claim? After putting in a few big multi-ride days in Cumberland last weekend I decided it was well time to talk about the Shift pads. The Rifts were the most comfortable knee armour I’d ever pedaled in, no need to try anything else, and now the Shifts take that crown. That said, it’s not as night & day as that Rift pad revelation versus my previous pad experiences. I don’t plan to retire my Rift pads and buy a second pair of Shifts, my current rotation is great.
Likewise, I can’t say with any certainty that the few folks I know who tried on the Rift but loved another knee pad more, usually 7iDP in my conversations, are going to convert to Chromag now that the Shift is out. But I’m fairly certain that if the Rift works for you then the Shift should enter your next knee pad conversation. They’re so comfy, for me, that I’m almost tempted to try the Shift elbow pads. I agree with anyone who thinks elbow pads are a great idea, I’ve just never found a pair that I could stand to wear for any proper length ride, climbing or descending.
Yeah, so. Now I’m splitting my mountain bicycle time between the Rift and the Shift with no interest in trying anything else. They’re comfy for hours with the on-paper protection boost and ‘stabilized fit’ of the Shift making it the obvious first choice to try on of the two equally price options. I’ll post an update on the Shift after a hot sweaty summer of riding, but based on the my Rift experiences over the last couple of years, I’m confident that they’re going to long-term awesome.
For more information in general, please check out the Shift Knee Guards @ Chromag.
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