ben4345

You guys think MIPS is worth the premium over standard helms?

maartendc

I just posted something on this in another thread on helmet selection, and I will reiterate here.
Note: I am by no means an expert on helmets!

I just bought a new non-MIPS helmet.
I did some research online, and this article by this group that does a lot of research on helmets sums it up pretty well for me:
MIPS and Sliding Resistance of Bicycle Helmets

Basically they say MIPS has not really been proven to work, it might work. It might not.
The tests MIPS do involves dummy rubber heads that fit very tightly around the helmet, so the extra slip plane really makes a difference there. But a real head already has some 'slippage' between the head and the helmet (hair, scalp, air space,...), so the added benefit of the MIPS slip plane is not certain. This makes sense to me, as pushing any helmet on your head will allow it to shift a couple of mm.

Anyway, not any of the helmets I liked or could afford had MIPS, so I went for the other option. I'm not saying it is not a good technology, but not significant enough for me to alter my choice.

Maybe an independent testing body will do independent tests on MIPS (Bell and Giro own a stake in MIPS apparently, so their claims are hardly unbiased).
Maybe it will become the standard in helmets in a couple of years, who knows. It seems like it is too early to say one way or the other.

I-Like-To-Bike

Thanks for an intelligent response to a question about helmets.

cb400bill

Recently, my UVEX helmet was recalled. I was given a choice of a new UVEX helmet or a credit. Seeing as I didn't want to accept a helmet without trying it on first, I chose the credit.

I ended up purchasing a Giro Savant with MIPS. When explained to me at the LBS, it made sense. The price difference was $20.

Hopefully, I'll never put it to the test.

ItsJustMe

This is a completely subjective question.

My income is relatively high and is entirely dependent on my brain. If there's even a couple percent chance that a MIPS helmet might mitigate brain damage a little in an accident, it's worth hundreds of dollars to me.

I bought a POC Trabec Race MIPS for about $180 and would do it again in a second. I'm kind of thinking of going with a full face MIPS though.

jhazel

It's been 30 years since I hit the pavement with my helmet and I don't expect to do it again but the price of MIPS has come down to a level that it seems worth it to me. I might hit the pavement again and MIPS might make a difference. Besides, the Savant is lighter and more comfortable than the $35 Bell I've been wearing.

ben4345

I tried on the Feature (medium), it fits my head far better than anything I have tried. Might be worth it just for that.

mconlonx

I could be wrong, but I was under the impression that MIPS was an independent thing, originally not affiliated with any specific helmet company. First company I know of that utilized the technology was POC, followed by Lazer and Scott -- I don't think other helmet companies would license technology from competing helmet companies.

I'm not convinced MIPS is all that. There has been at least one study which indicates that skate-style helmets do mitigate oblique strike forces which lead to rotational injury of the kind which MIPS specifically addresses, although that study focused on skateboarding rather than cycling. And unless you are bald, hair provides another slip layer between the helmet and your skull.

I worked in a bike shop which was a POC dealer, and if the Trabec model fit me, I'd probably have a MIPS Trabec at the moment. But the shape just doesn't work for my head, we didn't have a Backcountry MIPS to try, so I ended up with a Giro (non-MIPS) helmet for about a quarter the price.

ItsJustMe

Here's my decision tree. Is there a chance that it will reduce the probability of brain injury even a little? Is it < $1000? sold.

JerrySTL

A few years ago I had a bad accident during my last race. My helmet prevented a skull fracture, but I still had a concussion including about 4 hours of amnesia after the accident.

MIPS for me the next time I need a helmet. Heck I might not even wait until then.

maartendc

To be honest, even if MIPS works, I don't think it will eliminate concussions altogether. Eliminating the rotational force might reduce the severity of the concussion. But, fact of the matter is still your head is coming to an abrupt stop in a collision. Thus, your brain is still going to hit your skull one way or another, which is what causes concussions. To think it will completely protect you from any head injury seems like an illusion to me.

ItsJustMe

Of course it won't. No helmet will stop concussions. Being inside a car doesn't stop concussions. Given enough impact, you're going to get a concussion.

I don't know where people are getting the idea that anyone says that a helmet will be some kind of magic shield against any kind of injury.

What MY statement was, is that if it even slightly decreases the chances OR severity of brain injury, it's worth almost any price to me. I am happy to pay a few hundred bucks for a helmet if it reduces the chance of a debilitating brain injury even by a few percent.

The only magic invulnerability against concussion is to lock yourself in an armored box in your basement.

CTMike

I'm about to take my maiden voyage with a MIPS Savant, matte white. Very affordable and it fits well.

edit: my other road helmet is a Garneau Diamond. With the Savant there were a couple of times where sweat was dripping off my nose. This has never happened while using the Diamond leading me to believe that the Savant doesn't dissipate heat as well. I'll give it another shot but most likely will save the Savant for the Fall. Otherwise, fit and feel were excellent.

Looigi

Make sure it's sufficiently padded... and consider a straightjacket as well.

Robert C

I recently went with MIPS in both my helmet and my wifes. If anything were to happen to her I want to be able to tell myself that I did all I could; in that light the extra for MIPS made sense.

She said that she wouldn't wear the helmet unless I also wore one; so I sprung for one for myself too.

jyl

My scalp moves more than a few millimeters on my skull. My hair moves on my scalp. My cycling cap moves on my head. All of those, individually or collectively, would seem to render moot the few millimeters of movement provided by the MIPS system. I suspect it is a system designed for a crash test dummy who lacks scalp, hair, or cap, and wears his helmet strapped down very tightly.

I suppose there are no downsides to the MIPS system and it only costs $30-40 more, so "why not" is not an unreasonable conclusion.

But if I preferred one helmet even a smidge over another, for any reason at all, I wouldn't choose the second one because it has MIPS. For example, the first helmet being a more visible color, having a smoother exterior, more coverage, a better fit, etc would instantly trump the second helmet's MIPS.

Just my opinion.

tnburban

I decided to MIPS today. Needed a new helmet, and as previously stated, if there is even the slightest chance this improves my odds in a crash it was worth the $25 or so price difference in MIPS vs no MIPS. Bought the Giro Savant.

mr_bill

"BRG Sports, Inc., a leading designer, developer and marketer of branded sports equipment, protective products and related accessories, today announced that it has invested in MIPS AB."

-mr. bill

Chris516

I went to my locale Performance location yesterday to casually(need is not pressing at the moment) look at some bike helmets w/ n' w/o MIPS. The helmets w/ MIPS, didn't seem any better. Than those w/o MIPS. I am going to stick with the Bell Slant. Which I have used since 2007. Replacing with another one only after a bad crash.

Go to Helmets: Bicycle Helmets and look at the extensive data.

skye

Regardless of price, all helmets do the same thing, which is to say, nothing.

mr_bill

You just couldn't refrain?

Off to the everlasting gobstopper thread in 3, 2....

-mr. bill

jfowler85

Because no one else really needs their brain for things like, ah, breathing and blood circulation and stuff.

himespau 

I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did. I'd probably go MIPS next time I by a helmet if the costs were remotely close.

trailangel

Like a fast food restaurant you always have to introduce something new to keep people coming back in and buying.
How about not wearing your helmet so tightly?
They want to reduce rotational forces on your brain during a crash?.... get rid of the wings or fins on the helmet. That will do more than MIPS will.

yooperbiker

Marketing managers must love you