Protecting your Kidneys
By Edward G. Kilburn

Young boys become keen to the advantages of their male endowment at an early age. The gift of being able to urinate standing up is a blessing reserved only for the male of the species. Of course my freshman peers believed our high-school drama teacher could pee and aim standing up if she wanted to but she evolved to this state out of a freakish desire to do so – that’s another story altogether. There are a distinct few childhood memories I hold fondly or should I say fondlingly? Writing my name in the snow for the first time, for instance, brought a sense of accomplishment tantamount to passing second grade. Besides, nobody is going to call a parent teacher conference if your yellow flowing cursive penmanship is less than uniform nor will anyone challenge the true ownership of your personally autographed work of art. The absence of any kind of adult pressure to achieve leaves nothing but pure sport - pure fun.

In 1984 my father took me to see the New Jersey Devils get beat up on the ice. New Jersey did not have its own hockey team until the Devils, formerly the Rockies from Colorado, moved to the Garden State in June of 1982. They had spent the later of two years practicing how to get their asses kicked and support from fans was lackluster at best. While the game was not very memorable, peeing in the urinals alongside my dad was. Each john in the stadium lavatories was fitted with a bulls-eye disposable urinal screen. This remarkable product encouraged marksmen of all ages to test their shooting skills. You could pee in a series of small holes arranged in rings of decreasing size. Each ring had a score attributed to it that was designated by white numbers printed on both the North-South and East-West quadrants of the plastic target. Aside from the underlying game of trying to pee in the center bulls-eye aspiring sharpshooters quickly learned that if you aimed anywhere else other than one of the tiny holes you would get splashed with your own warm urine. Some game!

On the second trip to the restroom I experienced some difficulty that I had not anticipated and at the time of this writing still have trouble accepting without some squeamishness. As I undid my pants zipper and worked myself into firing position I had trouble freeing the end of IT because the tip was glued to my Fruit-of-the-Looms with a dribble or two of dried blood. I turned white from the distress and confusion of what was happening and in a zombie-like trance continued to half-heartedly tug my underwear free from the tip. It came free along with some skin and it stung for a good long while. I put some Chapstick lip balm on the end and kept tugging my underwear loose until I would fall asleep that night somewhat freaked out.

I had just graduated from a tired KDX 175 to a near mint 1983 Yamaha IT250 that I had not ridden until just days before. My buddy and I had been riding some rough trails just north of Chestertown, New York and had apparently overdone it. The physician instructed me that the symptoms I was experiencing were indicative of a bruised or torn kidney and the injury would most likely heal by itself. He advised my parents that I stop riding off-road motorcycles, which was not going to happen, and later recommended a kidney support belt if I was going to continue. This was my crash course in kidney support belt knowledge – fortunately I would learn at a young age. .

Not content to let me go without a complete scare the doctor consoled me with the warning that I should let the office know if my urine was bloody, if the pain increased or spread or if I should go into sudden shock. He also noted that if I damaged the blood vessels in my kidney more than expected and my body was not able to properly rid itself of waste that toxins could begin to build up in my body and cause further damage that could be lethal if left untreated. Take an aspirin and put some ice on the area if I felt any discomfort.

Your kidneys are located in the back of your upper abdomen at either side of your spinal column. They are well protected within your abdomen from the front and are protected in the back by your spine, lower rib cage, and muscles of the back. Having strong lower back muscles can protect them further thus the importance of being physically fit. Your kidneys filter about 1700 liters of blood per day and pass the waste into your urine. Injury to the kidney can cause leakage of urine into the urinary tract resulting in uncontrollable leaking, meaning you could piss yourself unintentionally. In rare cases a kidney can become damaged on the inside, this kind of trauma results in life threatening bleeding which is the kind you do not want. Fortunately, most kidney injuries result in only mild bruising and heal naturally.

At the time of my injury, kidney belt technology was nowhere near where it is nowadays. Available units utilized abrasive plastic, were poorly shaped and required that they be cinched tightly around your entire waste in order to provide any usable support. Today, however, you have many choices. I ride with a Kevco-Stubbs kidney support belt and have for many years. When used properly you will forget you are wearing it and with proper care it will last a good long time. My advice is to pick a belt that meets your budget and provides a warranty of some kind. Our sport is rough on the body – protect your kidneys and you’ll lead a safer more enjoyable life.

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If you motorcycle, bicycle, snowmobile, jet-ski, snowboard, ski or abuse your body in any similar fashion you know the importance of protection. But did you know your kidneys need protection too? Don't risk potential problems - protect yourself!

About Kevco/Stubbs Kidney Support Belts

Every Kevco/Stubbs product consists of the finest materials and workmanship. The diagram below illustrates the main quality features found in every one of our kidney supports to insure the wearer hours of unsurpassed service and durability. Some of our features include; soft comfortable front panels, surgical elastic back and tension straps, double hook front closure, Velcro pile reinforcement, vented elastic back and more.

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