lately my very ratey mare has been challenging to get by the second and third barrel.   My outside knee area has really taken a beating.  I have some socks with the shin padding, but is there anything out there to protect the knee?  A barrel racing product or should I look for something for at a sporting goods store   Any ideas? 

I have recently been hitting barrels and taking a beating.  I bought the 5 star shin guard .   I wore them last week and they helpe .  I need to adjust them a little better I thin .  On the 1st barrel it protected it quite a bit but did bruise the inside of my shin and you can out them up over your knee and on the 2nd it skimmed the top of my kne .  I wanted something to go under my jeans.    I looked at the Classic Equine shin guards too.  I think they do offer better protection but they go over your jeans.

I bought my shin guards from Jefferspet.com and they are great!  My little mare is a turning machine and they have saved my knees from her rimming the barrels.  I prefer to save my knees / shins over worrying what it looks like.  They are reasonably priced too.

I have the classic equine shin protectors. 

Depending on how hard you're hitting I recommend the Charmayne James neoprene ones, I liked the movement they gave. I had a pair for a "barrel basher" I got in for awhile to fix years ago. They worked most of the time, but I still hit hard enough one day that I fractured my Tibia and needed stitches. But she was the hardest hitting horse I've ever seen, so she was a bit of an extreme case 

I am curious as to where you found your Charmayne James shin guards.... Those are the ones I originally wanted but couldn't find anyone selling them.  They are "oversold / out of stock" on state line tack site.  Is there somewhere else to find them?

I have an old pair of Martha Josey's like from the late 70's.  They are about the best that I've ever tried and saved me when my horse fell on the second barrel and my knee came down on top of barrel.  I'm not sure if they make them anymore though. https://www.runninghardproducts.com/products/martha-josey-shin-guard...

I don't remember where I got mine, it was 10+ years ago I got them. If stores aren't carrying them maybe try facebook to see if anyone is selling any 

I was at my granddaughter's basketball game yesterday when this post came to mind.  A couple of girls had on what looked like leggings that had knee pads in them.  If it is just your knee that you are worried about, that might be something to check out. I think they could easily be worn under your jeans.

Wonder about what the volleyball players wear? It might not be enough for a hitting a barrel, though, and they dont protect your shins.