How land mines and trauma surgeons are making your bike gear safer

From consulting trauma surgeons to using land mine tests and bulletproof goggles, Leatt is redefining the meaning of rider safety. We caught up with company founder Dr Chris Leatt to discover how it is quietly revolutionising the way our gear protects us.

Founded in 2004 in Cape Town, South Africa, Leatt started out as a neck brace manufacturer back when neck braces were unheard of in motorcycling, and riders risked serious spinal trauma in motocross and other off-road sports. Fast forward to today, and the brand is known globally for its wide range of off-road and adventure riding gear.

Leatt’s adventure gear is designed for all weathers.

But what most riders don’t know is that Leatt takes safety so seriously it still creates it products in collaboration with consulting trauma surgeons, and tests them using innovative means including military land mine beds (yes, you read that right) to gauge how to best dilute the force of impact for its FlexLock boots.

Leatt’s story begins

It all began when, attending a local enduro event, the company’s founder Dr Chris Leatt witnessed a rider crash and pass away due to a severe neck injury. “I had my four-year-old son Matthew with me, who was just beginning to ride at the time, and I knew I had to protect him. I’d studied medicine at the University of Cape Town and rotated through general and orthopaedic surgery on my way to becoming a neurosurgical trainee. I’d seen a lot of trauma and, as an avid rider myself, I knew just what the risks were. So, I set out to design a neck brace that would prevent some of the most serious neck and spine injuries,” Dr Leatt shares.

Soon, Leatt expanded its product range. First came the body armour, then knee braces, boots, and eventually, a full range of off-road motorcycle, mountain bike, and adventure gear.

Company founder Dr Chris Leatt.

“To this day, we build our products from the ground up focusing on the problem first. For example, our body armour was the next natural step, because our neck braces didn’t fit with other brands’ armour, and we wanted to find a solution for riders. Then, we focused on knee braces but, just like with the neck brace, we designed our knee protection from scratch in consultation with top-tier surgeons to help us evaluate how best to prevent most common rider injuries instead of just designing something similar to what was already on the market,” Dr Leatt explains.

Unique approach to gear design

While releasing Leatt body armour into the market created some initial difficulties now that it became competition for other brands, the company doubled down on putting a solid team together and worked on creating exceptional products that kept riders chasing their dreams safely.

What makes Leatt unique is its approach to designing its pieces of gear from scratch. And despite rapid growth, this remains the guiding principle of the company’s work to this day.

Leatt’s story began with the development of a neck brace.

“Instead of looking at what other people are doing, we look at the problem. For example, when it comes to boots, most brands just make a stiffer boot. We look at it differently. We consult with medical experts to see how to mitigate injuries, then design and build each piece of our protectives based on that.”

Adventure boots: what’s the problem?

“When we see a problem, like the one with traditional off-road boots not absorbing the impact forces as well as they could, we first zero in on the solution, which often means inventing our own testing system. Once we figure out what the solution is, we then build a prototype and test it. If it works, we develop the product, and if not, we go right back to the drawing board,” Dr Leatt explains.

Science backed solutions are used to design and test gear.

Staffed with biomechanical engineers and gear designers with Dr Leatt at the helm spending most of his time on biomechanical engineering and scientific research, Leatt Labs (the company’s design and development facilities) remain thoroughly committed to rider safety and science-backed solutions. The result is boots that resist high speed abrasion and protect from impacts by non-traditional means in our FlexLock boot offering. Here, the lower limb can initially escape the loading and then lock to prevent extreme range of movement injuries.

Since the release of Leatt’s first adventure boot, the 7.5 ADV boot, riders have reacted well to its level of protection and comfort. For 2026, the brand is going even further, releasing the 8.5 ADV boot, the first adventure boot which is a blend of offroad enduro protection and adventure style comfort.

Sometimes the best solutions are simple, like Leatt’s SlideLock.

Part of its design proves that solutions don’t need to be highly technical or complex. Take, for example, another patented technology, called SlideLock. This is a one directional hook and loop closure system that makes closing boots easy and ensures the perfect fit. Simple but effective.

Leatt adventure helmets: raising the bar on rider safety

 The company used the same method with its helmet design. Dr Leatt’s work is focused on brain injuries, and the science is progressing. The understanding of brain injury has evolved significantly over time, and with this in mind, Leatt has created its own helmet crash test system and its own anti-rotational helmet turbines designed to minimise harm. This is called 360 Turbine Technology, a technology patented by Leatt.

“Traditional anti-rotational impact protection systems produce great results during a classic crash test dummy testing, but that doesn’t necessarily take human biomechanics into account. So, we created our own anti-rotation turbine system for helmets. The reality is, repeated low-speed crashes may also have a cumulative effect on the human brain, so our turbines are designed to provide linear damping to help reduce the harm. You don’t see this in traditional testing speeds, but at lower speeds, you do”, Dr Leatt says.

Not all testing is done in a lab!

This is why Leatt Labs have their own testing systems in addition to the traditional ones. Thorough understanding of human biomechanics, trauma, and injuries, while consulting with top surgeons and medical experts, is still at the very core of Leatt’s commitment to rider safety. And Leatt released its first adventure helmet in 2024, two decades after the brand’s beginnings. The result is a strong market competitor for rider safety, comfort and function, all at a good value price.

Venturing into adventure biking

Leatt took another big leap forward in 2004 by releasing its first adventure motorcycle gear line. According to Dr Leatt, the popularity of its adventure products lies in the company’s origins in the off-road world.

“Most adventure motorcycle brands aim for a more road-based approach, whereas our background is in off-road. Because of that, we feel that we can offer products that are more versatile and more tailored to the real-world needs of adventure riders”.

Leatt’s ADV 9.5 Carbon helmet.

For example, Leatt’s ADV helmet has an incredibly ample field of vision and excellent ventilation. Why? Because it has been designed as a metamorphosis from its original motocross helmets where ventilation and a large field of vision are crucial.

“In essence, coming from an off-road background, we are able to offer more features and solutions that are rider-focused. We know what it’s like to be doing long miles on dirt needing all the help you can get from your gear, like a properly ventilated, lightweight helmet that allows you to see well and is seriously protective. The same things matter for adventure riders, so we designed our ADV gear line with this in mind, modifying our off-road knowledge to include road-riding needs, instead of the other way round.”

Leatt uses its expertise in off-road riding to develop new gear.

“As an avid adventure rider myself, I know you also want to get off your bike and take a short walk sometimes, so the way we designed our adventure boot was this: we begin with ultimate protection as the main focus, then developed the boot to adapt for comfort features,” Dr Leatt explains.

 The road ahead

Leatt is also excited to be offering more and more adventure gear aimed at female riders in a bid to equip them with the best gear options out there. By building consistently and sustainably with science-based solutions and rider feedback in mind, Leatt is gearing up for an exciting new chapter. While Dr Leatt is not yet at liberty to share the specifics on new products and rider solutions coming soon, watch this space. Leatt is growing, and it’s sure to surprise riders worldwide with innovative new gear lines guaranteed to make a splash in the industry.

You can find out more about Leatt’s range of adventure biking gear HERE.