This has been updated in 2021 to reflect the wrist guards available now (it took me ages by the way)
Wrist injuries are the most common injuries from skating…
Let that sink in – it means if you’re going to get injured and sent to the hospital at any point, it’s going to be because you hurt your wrists – fractures, extensions and ligament tears. Whereas helmets top the importance chart because, well, you die from head injuries, wrist guards are valuable because of the frequency of those types of injuries.
So which pair do you buy? As with everything in skating there dozens of options from different brands and if you’re a novice (or even a skilled skater who’s recently changed their mind in favour of protection) it can be a nightmare to know what to get.
So I’m going to simplify this and just tell you the ones you should get. I’ve limited to this to my top picks for three models you should consider, depending on exactly what you’re looking for in a wrist guard.
Best All-Round Wrist Guard – Ennui City Brace
Coming with brilliant materials and build quality, this offers a good mix between comfort and safety. It’s the most expensive on here… but probably offers just as much protection as the Triple 8 actually.
Available on Amazon (medium) and (X-large)
Best Protection – Triple 8 Wristsaver
If you’ve injured your wrist previously, or are particularly worried about hurting your wrist, these offer high protection.
(check size – before buying)
The Least Restrictive Wrist Guards – 187 Derby Wrist
Small, light, but still do the job. You’ll get less protection with these but they’re still offering enough. Popular choice.
That’s it – those three. There are loads of others out there, some good, some cheap ratty pieces of plastic… But you can’t go too wrong if you pick one of these three.
And if you click one of these amazon links, amazon might send me some money. Woo hoo! Imagine that! I bet you’re thinking, wow, yes, better help out this random person on the internet.
Best All-Round Wrist Guards – Ennui City Brace (Most Expensive)
Which wrist guards should you go out and buy now?
Depending on where you buy it from this can range from around the £40 – £50 sort of range. So it’s a bit expensive, but then again, you’re wrists are probably worth it…
These aren’t as small as the Derby’s later mentioned, but they are probably just as sturdy and protective as the Triple 8’s.
The build quality stands this out the most.
With an inner section designed to fit well and be comfortable on your wrist, and the outer section where the guards are located at the front and back. A decent chunky bit of Velcro that sticks well, and a series of shoelaces as a tightening mechanism to keep it tight and in place.
Front section may wear through a bit if you fall on it a bunch, it catches the ground and doesn’t quite slide as much as the Triple 8s. It’s unclear whether this ‘sliding’ that comes from the plastic is ALWAYS the best thing – the idea with sliding is to take the immediate pressure off your wrist when you fall by having some of that momentum travel forwards across the floor, rather than jarring your wrist.
But then again… sometimes that might mean you faceplant as your wrists fall beneath you.
Both ways work. Possibly a bit the luck of how you fall as to what happens and what helps.
But almost everyone who wears this wrist guard has good things to say about it.
This glove also looks good.
Any criticisms of these?
Most people love these wrist guards and find they last a very long time. However some (but few) have not been happy with the stitching. The good news is that Smiths have good customer service if this happens to you and be able to sort this out.
As of time of writing the only sizes available on Amazon.
The Most Supportive Wrist Guards – Triple 8 Wristsaver II
Your absolute priority could be support. Perhaps you’ve suffered a wrist injury in the past and really need to protect your wrist. You may be happy to sacrifice a little in terms of movement to get it (you basically have to anyway). If so, get the Triple 8 Wristsaver II.
Strong, secure, well-made, these have a tough stretchable nylon mesh body to provide a snug fit, with molded ABS splints on both the front and the back. The design is slide on (can be difficult to get your hands in initially). These also have shock-absorbing EVA foam to add a tiny bit more wrist protection but nothing to write home about.
These are the type that lock your wrist into a place in order to protect it. I wouldn’t want to try riding a bike with these on…
What About The Size?
These come up a size small. Get the size above. They’re quite hard to get on, and you might not even be able to get your hand in if you get the same size.
Any criticism of these?
They haven’t got the sizing down to a fine art yet, and even when you get one that fits (which should be just a case of getting the size up), you can then find a little bit of wiggle room where you’d hope they’d be perfectly snug, but they still do the job, and still offer more protection that the others on this list.
Another critique of these is the generic critique of wristguards – in severe crashes there’s the possibility that they move the break up the arm – as the wrist is protected the point of weakness is found higher up and you could break your arm instead. The general response is that even given this possibility in extreme cases, wrist guards are still worth it.
The Least Restrictive But Still Safe – 187 Derby Wrist Guards
Wrist guards can feel very restrictive on your wrists when you first try them on. I was a bit shocked with the first pair I ever had. This can bother a lot of people and lead them to just not wear them. The 187 Derby Wrist Guards are the option if you think you fall into this camp.
However, these are not as protective as the others on the list.
But… they are probably the most comfortable and that is a big deal.
Why wouldn’t these be for you?
If you’ve broken your wrist before and you don’t want to take any chances, then these might not be the ones for you. The big missing feature is they don’t have a splint on the back. This doesn’t mean they’re useless, they’re a really popular model, and they still offer protection for your wrists. They do have a protective area on the front to disperse energy of impacts, and do prevent full range of movement backwards, but if you’re expecting a massive impact on your wrist from a huge fall, then there’s no back splint to provide the maximum possible protection.
That said, for the vast majority of falls most people have, these should provide enough protection.
Why would the 187 Derby Wrist Guards be perfect?
They’re super light weight and you don’t notice them on your wrist nearly as much as you do the other wrist guards on this list. They’re a slip on wrist guard, two simple Velcro straps. The stitching is great, materials are good quality, the padding is thick and solid and should hold up reasonably well (most pads do wear and tear though).
But they also allow a further range of movement than the other wrist guards. They come up shorter in the wrist and not so far up on the hand. They permit a more normal hand action. Your wrist and hand is not pinned into a specific position. This is both their positive and negative – but actually for the vast majority of falls you’re going to have these are going to be just fine.
What About Sizing?
These ones should fit to size fine. Every wrist guard on this list is tight when you first put it on and these are no exception, but they they do fit to your size better than some of the others out there.
