Knee Brace Suggestion

I was recently reading through some of the "Knee Brace" threads and thought I would give some feedback and/or suggestion.

In the fall of 2003 I tore my MCL, meniscus, and ACL on a raley that went bad. Luckily, the ACL tear wasn't bad enough to need repair but my MCL was basically torn in two along with a slight tear in my meniscus.

Well, after surgery and much rehab and I was back riding with no problems last summer. I wore a brace all summer that was comfortable and gave me no problems at all. I actually felt my leg lock out on a couple of falls in which I truly felt like the brace saved me from possible repeat injury.

So, I thought I would share the brace that has saved me. It is a Townsend Rebel 99...although the model name may have changed since. Check them out: http://www.townsenddesign.com/

The guy (Steve) that fit me with the brace is located in the DFW (Texas) and you can reach him at 817-469-1951 if you're interested. He has been in this business for 18 years and can offer any brace out there you want. For most high impact type sports such as wakeboarding, motocross, etc. he does suggest the Townsend over many others including the cti2. He will just flat out tell you the pros and cons of each brace, but the Townsend is supposed to have the best hinge out there that most closely mimics the movement of your knee. He has seen several instances where the cti braces have cause femur fractures in motocross riders because of the fit of the brace on your leg.

Anyway, I'm not trying to get into a debate about this brace is better than that brace, but this guy has been amazingly helpful to me so I thought I would at least throw him some pub. I'm obviously not benefiting from this at all, but I just wanted to share my experiences with everyone. Happy brace hunting and may your 2005 be injury free!

Holla!

This is the one I use
http://www.muellersportsmed.com/hingedwraparoundkneebrace.htm
It works great, the ring around the knee cap keeps the ligaments from getting too tight which can lead to an injury. Never heard of townsend, looks nice though

Do the braces you guys wear have any kind of metal supports in them, or are they just fabric?

metal supports that keep you from hyperextending your knee, which causes ligaments to tear.

I wear the Don Joy Defiance. It is built of all carbon composite materials and weighs about 18 ounces. Also comes with a "knee guarentee" which is kinda cool. You can view it here...

http://www.djortho.com/products/DonJoy/physdistrep/detail.asp?id=20

McFly

Here is the actual Rebel brace I was talking about. Although, my brace has an extra strap that runs across the thigh just above the knee but below the frame.

http://www.townsenddesign.com/rebel.html

Your brace looks nice Marty and I know everyone appreciated your step-by-step update throughout your surgery and recovery.

There are so many brace choices out there that it can be a hard decision! Especially since the brace market isn't regulated and any Joe Bloe can go make a brace and call it an "ACL brace".

Jarret: Thanks so much for the info!! I am doing my research now for a knee brace. ACL/MCL/Miniscus tear in 08/04, surgery in 11/04. I like the Rebel good enough, but the Premier looks really good too. Do you know if anyone in CA carries them? Preferably Nor-Cal.

Thanks, Jarret.

I have heard a lot of good things about the different braces out there. But honestly, the Defiance is the only one that I have tried. I guess braces are like boards, its all personal preference.

I know mine saved me last Sunday! And I had considered not wearing it anymore, but I figured since I haven't been riding much lately, I should use it just in case...glad I did!

McFly

Misty: No problem and I'm glad to help. The guy I mentioned has a relationship with the doctor I went to so that's how I got hooked with with him. You might should ask your doctor if he recommends anyone to do your measurements and that can fit you for a brace. The guy I had wasn't a rep for any particular brand. I just told him what I wanted the brace for such as wakeboarding, and the Townsend was his suggestion. He should be able to choose whatever brace you want just make sure you have a professional to properly take your measurements and customize the brace once you receive it.

Marty: I think I'm in the same boat as you. I want to get off the brace and haven't worn it for anything else other than wakeboarding. It may take wearing it some this season until I build up more confidence it riding without it. What kind of exercises if any are you still doing? Even though I went through extensive rehab and have been actived since 4 months after surgery, I still feel that my knee is decently weak. Thanks!

Well, my knee feels great, so I am not doing anything extra to keep it built up besides riding and playing golf.

I do remember vividly though, that when I first started riding after surgery, my knee felt strong, but now that I look back on it, I was extremely weak, even after all of that therapy. My best advice is to just take it very slow and ease back into riding.

Here it is, 2.5 years later and I am feeling great. However, I am still very self conscious of the knee, and sometimes treat it as if it were weaker than the other, although its not.

McFly

Speaking of knees, I think I might be in the same boat as you guys fairly soon...if the same boat is a messed up knee before surgery. I have to go in and get an MRI, but something is definitely wrong. I'm not gonna be happy if it messes up my season...

Marty...I actually tried to call and get into Dr. Donegan, but I couldn't, hes out of town the one week i'm back in town! So I'm hoping the place I'm going to knows about wakeboarding...

I had surgery a year ago and have the CTI2 custom, it is a great brace custom built to your leg. I seems to work great i rode in australia in november hard and have skied all winter in utah and it holds up to everything. The company sponsers alot of pro athletes and they have a few wakeboarders on there list WAKEBOARDING JETSKIING WATERSKIING SKATEBOARDING

Tina Bessinger
Parks Bonifay
Chris Bischoff
Andrea Gayton
Joey Meddock
Shaun Murray
Charlie Patterson
Billy Pointer

There website is http://www.innovationsports.com/by_cust.htm

hope this helps a little

J