As I mentioned in another thread, I had a spill 2 weeks ago on my bike and smacked my head good - thus now time for a new helmet. I know there's some serious bikers and bike shop folks on the board - any suggestions?
As I mentioned in another thread, I had a spill 2 weeks ago on my bike and smacked my head good - thus now time for a new helmet. I know there's some serious bikers and bike shop folks on the board - any suggestions?
Whatever fits right. Seriously.
I sold bicycle helmets for ages starting with the original "There's a big white turtle w/ 2 red stripes boinking your head" Bell Bikers up to the Giro Ventoux or maybe a bit later. Giro helmets are the sexy, but only if they fit you right.
I do so wish I was Giro for bicycles and Arai on the motorbikes, but with the exception of my Arai DS supermoto helmet, it's Bell on bicycles and Shoei on the motorbikes.
BTW, the Bell "Alchera" I'm wearing for road cycling now I bought at the local Performance Bikes enormo-store on sale for like $40. I rotated the previous identical one which was looking a bit tired to MTB duty. Nice lid.
motomoron wrote: Whatever fits right. Seriously.
Exactly. Try on a few brands until you find one that is comfortable and fits the shape of your head the best. Then, once you have found a brand you like it is easy to narrow it down to features/price point you are looking for. Also check out the stickers inside for manufacture date and rating. Certainly a helmet you buy in a bike shop will be rated for bicycle use, but not all helmets are and it can be hard to tell by style alone. Helmets have a lifespan too, so you would want to aviod one that was made three years ago and has been sitting on the shelf.
A skaters helmet that goes down low in the back 30 to 40 $ and the plastic shell can get banged around with out breaking . I ride trials / free ride so I fall alot .
Unless you're doing freeride or downhill, more vents are your friend. I've worn Bell helmets for years because they fit right and were reasonable - the real helmets, not the WalMart version. I had to replace one after dropping the road bike this year, and found out the Bell changed the shape after they bought Giro - now I can't wear them. My two favorites for fit right now are the inexpensive ($40ish) Trek, which is ugly, and some of the mid level Specialized helmets, but they're hard to find locally. For reference, I'm a Shoei/GForce helmet guy in the car.
+1 on trying them on and buying what fits well.
I wear a 2008 model year Bell Sweep XC, I got it for $75 on clearance last year at jensonusa.com
+1 for whatever fits your noggin the best. If you stick to name brands (Bell, Giro, Specialized, etc) and it is rated for bicycle use, you are set from a safety standpoint. $30-35 gets a safe helmet on your head...as you go up in price from there, you generally get better ventilation and easier adjustability/nicer straps/buckle.
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