"a small price to pay for the protection and comfort the belt provides"
A quality kidney belt is an essential part of the off-road rider's wardrobe. Most kidney belts, however, are nothing more than constrictive elastic devices that support your stomach and lower back at the expense of squashing your insides.
Now there's a kidney belt that supports your vital parts without wrenching your gut. The Kevco/Stubbs Racing belt is manufactured from heavy-duty elastic and nylon webbing, with a perspiration-absorbing tricot liner. Attached to the belt's exterior are a pair of wing-like elastic straps. These Velcro adjustable straps tailor compression and support without altering the pressure applied by the main belt.
Several months of trail riding and bone-jarring motocross revealed that the belt is everything it is claimed to be. The support is as good, if not better than, that of any kidney belt on the market, and comfort is unsurpassed. Street riders, especially those who regularly travel rough roads, will also appreciate the benefits offered by the hand-washable belt.
The belt comes with a six-month unconditional warranty, but even after nine months of regular use, the belt's medical quality elastic shows little wear. Available in many sizes and colors the belt retails for $40, a small price to pay for the protection and comfort the belt provides.
"this is the best kidney belt to ever come down the pike"
It seems like we've endured a ten-year style attack. "Leathers" disappeared more than a decade ago, and in their place we've replaced the protection (and heat) of leather with squashed Day-Glo butterfly-printed nylon. Boots went from leather to plastic to leather with plastic, then back again. We've especially strayed with the kidney belt, a basic support item pioneered by Gold Belt, and lately reduced to a blow-molded piece of plastic and Velcro that has lost most of its initial intention: to hold your insides tight and reduce the pain and suffering that comes from bouncing around on a dirt bike.
Well if you've missed that kind of protection you're in luck. Kevco/Stubbs is a name that's going to be familiar if you're in the orthopedic supply business but they just happen to have a "racing" division that manufactures what is quite possibly the best kidney belt ever made. The Kevco/Stubbs kidney belt seems to wrap around your normally enough, although when you can't get it on and finally read the directions you find that there's a double set of Velcro straps to pull tight-the main belt hooks around you and sticks together, and then two elastic belts get pulled tight from either side (it's a lot easier than it sounds).
When you're all wrapped up you can feel the incredible support this belt offers, without squeezing your diaphragm and affecting your breathing, Nice and tight, plenty of muscle support...but the truth comes out when you ride with it. We rode all six laps of the Delaware hare scrambles this month, a rough, hard, pounding course, and although everything else hurt afterwards, we suffered no low-back or internal pain. This is after coming to accept at least a little bit of "kidney" pain as normal!
If you're concerned about your insides and want all the support you can get, this is the best kidney belt to ever come down the pike.
"they're great for street riding too"
The lower back support benefits of kidney belts for offroad riding have been known for some time to those who like to fool around in the dirt. For us asphalt-oriented folk who schlep over the oh-so-punishing pavement day in and day out, we think they're great for street riding too, and the Kevco-Stubbs kidney belt is one of the best going. The snug, custom fit is attained via a secondary system of elastic straps, which add tension without affecting the compression of the main hook-and-loop closure. The Kevco-Stubbs belt is constructed of elastic and nylon webbing and backed with a tricot liner.
"greater lower back and kidney protection than any other"
Kidney belts are an important asset to any motocross racer's wardrobe. Unfortunately for consumers they all look alike and offer the same exact features. Now, however, there is a new belt on the shelves which may not be the most stylish, but claims to offer greater lower back and kidney protection than any other-and why shouldn't it be the best? It was designed and built by a company that has been making medical braces for over 25 years. Kevco/Stubbs' belt is more flexible than your typical riding belt. It is tall in the back which holds your kidneys in place from he hips to the ribs, and slims down in the front to allow unrestricted breathing. Unlike other belts on the market, the Kevco/Stubbs belt does not have hard plastic over the back, making it more flexible. It is tensioned by two Velcro-type side straps that snug the back and sides more than the front, which allows a more precise tension adjustment and more tightness at the back and sides where it is needed rather than across your stomach.
"offers better fit and comfort than most we have tried"
Kidney belts have been an essential piece of riding gear for as long as people have realized that their bodies, no matter how much in shape, don't have a way to protect the kidney area from the constant bouncing that comes with riding in the rough. Riding belts in general have not changed much from the first types that appeared, but Kevco/Stubbs, a company that has made medical braces for over 25 years, has made one that offers better fit and comfort than most we have tried.
The Kevco/Stubbs belt is taller and more flexible than typical riding belts. It's tall in the back to gently encase the entire kidney area from the hips to the ribs and tapers up front so it doesn't jab or roll at the bottom-front of the rib cage near your diaphragm to allow unrestricted breathing. The entire belt is flexible, unlike the hard, plastic-clad items common today, and closes at the front. It is tensioned by two Velcro-type side straps that snug the back and sides more than the front. The result is more precise tension adjustment and more tightness at the back and sides where it is needed rather than across your stomach. The result is an outstanding feeling of support and comfort, especially on long, rough rides.
"allowed us to ride hard the entire day"
In the early '80's wearing a kidney belt was like strapping an oversized tortoise shell to your lower back. The thick plastic that covered the belt dug into your sides like a set of Ginsu knives. Luckily, a company with a history of designing medical support systems decided to update the most archaic version of apparel since the motorcycle grip.
At first glance the Kevco/Stubbs belt looks like nothing more than a piece of flexible nylon pulled together by two-hook-and-loop closures. In reality, this simple hooking device has the capacity to hold a 20-pound side of bacon to your waist. Once the double-hook front closure is tightened, the two adjustable sides can be pulled down to snug the belt to your sides. In addition, the front panel is a full three inches shorter than the rear so leaning forward doesn't send the belt unmercifully into your gut. The belt's shape is designed to give extra support in the back while limiting chaffing on the hips.
In the desert we found it holds your gut fine, but like all kidney belts is makes your waist feel hot enough to cook a pizza. On a motocross track this heat factor was not a problem, and the added support for the lower back allowed us to ride hard the entire day. The belt comes in an assortment of sizes and colors and at $39.95, the Kevco/Stubbs belt is the best low-cost alternative to back pain and kidney ache.
Tommy Norton
"forgotten I was wearing it"
I was introduced to the belt at the '93 Blackwater 100. As soon as I put it on, it felt so comfortable. I have been wearing the Gold Belt for 12 years and had not found anything to replace it. The Kevco belt takes the Gold Belt one step further. It applies pressure where you want it, on your lower back and kidneys not on your stomach and diaphragm. At the Blackwater 100, I wore my Gold Belt practicing and my lower back would hurt after only one hour of riding. On race day, I wore the Kevco belt and had no back pain after almost 4 hours of racing and 2 hours of autograph signing. I had even forgotten I was wearing it.
Sincerely,
Tom Norton