I think coroplast would still do more than leave a mark.
I know it makes forming the desired shape more difficult, but perhaps it would be safer to have the coro "tubes" going laterally- less strength aiming at you. Also a little upward flip at the end gives a small flat impact surface vs a knife edge- better than nothing. It should be mounted in "breakaway" fashion, like snowmobile windshields, such that it's on there well enough to resist wind and day-to-day life happenings, but falls off at any force above that.