Back rest in an accident

[jbim]

I am wondering whether a back rest may be a safety hazard in an accident when the impact causes the body to snap backwards. I wear a vest with a back protector so maybe that would reduce the impact. Is there any real world facts on this issue. Any opinion?

Thanks

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I am wondering whether a back rest may be a safety hazard in an accident when the impact causes the body to snap backwards. I wear a vest with a back protector so maybe that would reduce the impact. Is there any real world facts on this issue. Any opinion?

Thanks

I have my doubts whether or not any crash testing was done and this type of injury was checked ...... the RT model, except for 2020, has Always had a passenger backrest ... Built onto the machine .... ( in 2020 it's optional )... I ride 99.999% of the time with both hands used ....... good luck ..... Mike

[Greven]

Same goes with top boxes, many fit quite snug against the rider and act like a back rest.
Personally I would not worry about it. The potential added risk of a backrest in case of an accident is probably quite low, when taking the overall risk of any motorbike into consideration.

[ozarkryder]

I can't see the rider backrest on a Spyder, or any trike, being a safety hazard in case of an accident. I would think a backrest will be safer, as it may keep you in place for a short time and keep your body from flailing around while the initial impact is happening. On a 2 wheeler many accidents involve the wheels coming out from under the machine - leaning too far in a corner, slipping on sand or oil, hitting small objects in the road, etc. The dynamics of an accident are much different on a trike. An incident on a trike would be more like a car accident than a bike accident - most likely involving another vehicle, or in the case of a single vehicle accident a wall, tree or other stationary object. ATGATT may help a little in a trike accident with armor at the pointy parts like elbows, knees and such, but "Dress for the slide, not the ride" is not too applicable to a trike.