It is not every day you get to try out a world first. But, thanks to the ladies and gentlemen and SHOT I was able to this week. Introducing the SRG SHOT AIR GUARD, the first airbag in off-road competition.
SHOT was founded in 1993 in France. Last year they celebrated 30 years of existence. If you’re from the UK or America you may not be overly familiar with the brand, so if I were to tell you that they are in the top 3 brands in Europe for off-road and are the number 1 brand (in volume) in France, ahead of many more established companies like FOX, THOR, Alpinestars, and FLY racing. You’d probably call me a liar, but it is true. They may not have a big presence in the UK just yet but I’m sure it won’t be long.
In 2019 SHOT stopped subcontracting their R&D and took things in-house with SHOT LAB. This significantly increased their capabilities and eventually brought us the SHOT AIR GUARD. 2021 was where it all started with just an idea. 2 years later it was used for the first time in competition, and now in September 2024, it will be made available to the public.
The SRG1 can be broken down into 6 sections. The front plate that covers the chest area is made from D3O. D3O is becoming increasingly popular among protective equipment due to its ability to absorb energy and distribute it through the material.
Next is the airbag itself. 2 parts of the bag come up the front side of your body, across the back of your neck, and then down either side of your back. This gives you a good covering of any vitalparts of your torso and back.
The third part is the vest itself. The vest uses a 100% ventilated mesh to keep you cool during hot months. When we tested the vest in Italy, temperatures were up around the mid 30°C range. The ventilated mesh worked very well and kept me relatively cool considering how warm it was. The SRG1 uses a self-locking zip. This means that even if you don’t zip the vest right the way up it will not come undone when the vest inflates. Another feature is the poncho-style construction. It has 2 zips up either side making it much easier to remove in the result of a crash where you need medical treatment.
In the back of the vest is another D3O plate to protect your spinal area. On top of the plate sits the shell. This is where the inflater canister sits. It is easily accessible should you need to swap a canister in a hurry. In the shell is a slot for the IN&BOX. This is essentially the brain of the product. The IN&BOX is a product by IN&MOTION, who are partners with SHOT on this product. And they specialise in airbag technology. The IN&BOX contains sensors and algorithms that perform over 1000 analyses a second. The IN&BOX learns the way you ride essentially and inflates the airbag when it senses you are going to have a crash. A common misconception is that it inflates during impact, this is not the case.
The IN&BOX has a battery life of 30 hours, more than enough for a weekend of riding. To turn it on you simply double-click the button on the box and it will light up green, to turn it off double-click the same button. The device will also automatically turn off after being idle for more than one minute but will turn back on when it detects movement.
From the moment the box detects a crash it only takes 0.06 seconds to fully inflate. This is quite literally a blink and you’ll miss it type deal. The airbag is good for 5 inflations before it needs to be sent off to be serviced. They expect there is around a 2-week period from when they receive the vest to when it is back with you. The price for a full service is €199.99.
I can hear you asking, “What happens once it inflates and I want to finish the race?” Well, there are 3 options.
1: You can finish this race whilst it’s inflated, this I would not recommend as it’s much more difficult to ride freely and will most likely cause another crash.
2: You can remove the vest, and take out the canister from the back to deflate the airbag. This of course does take time as you have to take off your helmet and jersey beforehand and then put it all back on.
3: This is probably the best option. There will be an accessory available that begins to deflate the device after a crash. These are quick deflation rings and they will cost you €30.00 for 5 rings. It takes them roughly 30 seconds to fully deflate the airbag so you are able to finish the remainder of your race.
Right, now to the part I know most have you have come for…The price. The price for the armour without the IN & BOX is €399.99. The armour will then come with a QR code that will take you to the IN&MOTION website where you can purchase a subscription for the IN&BOX. The IN&BOX can be bought for a one-off lifetime payment of €400.00, which covers any updates the box has during its lifespan. Or you can pay €120.00 a year, this covers you for any updates and upgrades made to the box in the future and also a life-time guarantee
Some shops may stock IN&BOX’s on the shelf but most likely you will have to use the QR code. SHOT understands that this is a lot of money but if you compare it to a new pair of MX boots or a new helmet it is keeping with the price of top-of-the-range safety equipment in the 21st century. The SRG1 weighs 1.8kgs, which for body armour seems rather heavy, and when you first get it outof the bag you do notice the weight. It wasn’t until I put it on that I realised it would not be an issue.It feels no different from wearing a normal armour vest with D3O pads.
The fit is slimline and comfortable. It doesn’t feel like you have an electronic device on your back. It fits just as well if not better than any other armour on the market. The slim line features make it easy to wear your jersey over the top. Even with today’s super-fitted kit. SHOT provided us with their top-of-the-range Aerolite line which is one of the most fitted kits on the market. However, I could still comfortably wear this over the top of the SRG1.
Obviously, with the electronics in the vest, this device is not suitable for a washing machine. However, it can withstand a certain amount of water and is safe to jet wash clean provided you do not spray the water directly into the IN&BOX area.
Overall, I think SHOT has hit it out of the park with this new piece of protective equipment, and credit to them for having the courage to try and push forward with technological advancements in this area. Yes, it is a lot of money but maybe rather than buying a new pair of boots next year that money could be better spent elsewhere on something that has the potential to not only keep you racing but to save your life.
Tested and written by Brad Wheeler
