dirtydozen

Hey,

I am looking to buy an helmet for road cycling, looking at safety first, but also a bit concerned about heat since where I live i'm gonna fry all summer.

Bontrager Rally MIPS helmet is one of the safest helmet according to tests made by Virginia Tech and CR (out of like 85 helmets).

MTB isn't quite road cycling though, so maybe the helmet wasn't really designed for road cycling on very hot roads.

That being said, the Bontrager Specter Wavecell which also look great in both rankings is for road cycling but doesn't seem to offer a lot of ventilation.

What do you guys think about this ?

shelbyfv

A friend used that helmet all through last summer here in TN. He didn't mention it being remarkably hot. You might choose a light color.

GlennR

I don't see why a MTB helmet would be any hotter than a road helmet. But then some helmets have better ventilation than others.

From my limited knowledge, MTB helmets generally have a visor. Other than that are they really different?

I have a Giro Synthe MIPS (black) and don't have any problems with it being hot.

freeranger

I ride on and off road. All of my helmets are "mtb" helmets with a visor. All have decent ventilation. I started using a headsweat "skull cap to keep my thin-haired dome from getting burnt thru the vents. Found that it had a side benefit--I actually feel cooler with the skull cap on. Unless you're riding with a "hard core" mtb helmet that doesn't have lots of vents, don't see a problem. If you don't like the visor, they just snap off or on.

hillyman

The Rally doesn't look too bad on vents. Beside visor a little better protection back and sides of helmet. Maybe get a lighter color if possible may help a little on heat. Go with what works for you.

Mulberry20

I have a Kali Therapy, road, the Alchemy is a trail helmet. Great helmet especially for $100.

Mulberry20

I have a Kali Therapy, road, the Alchemy is a trail helmet. Great helmet especially for $100. They scored among the best in CR.

grizzly59

If you ride in the drops and your helmet has a visor, you may have restricted vision in front of you. For me, I can't see the car crossing the centerline 100yds in front of me, so a visor is a no-go.

fietsbob

MTB helmets have a built in Brim, with road helmets we put a cap on then put the helmet on..

wolfchild

It doesn't matter which one you use. You won't feel any difference between MTB helmet and road helmet and they both offer the same amount of protection.

unterhausen

I have a mtb helmet I use in the winter because it's big enough for a hat underneath. I have never had any problem with the visor. And it's handy at night when someone refuses to dim their headlights

philbob57

I've been using a woman's Rally MIPS for a month. It's heavier than many helmets, but I don;t sweat any more in it than I did in my old lighter Bell. I got a hell of a deal because my head is 61 CM around - $50. It's marked 'out of stock' now, though. It's black and magenta(?). I doubt that women's helmets affect one's hormone balance. The Rally MIPS seems to be on sale everywhere for $120 and some places for $80, but I liked the $50/price.

Miele Man

One year on a rail-trail ride (unpaved) my neck and shoulder areas were really painful. Turned out the culprit was me trying to tilt my head far enough back to see underthe visor. Remove the visor and within a few kilometres the pain was gone. Now I just use sunglasses and leave the visor off.

Cheers

dirtydozen

Thank you every one of you guys for your answers ! Helps me a lot.

I can believe I won't feel the difference, but the amount of protection won't be the same. Not necessary comparing MTB and road helmets, but some helmets are (way) better than others at protecting. They all pass the cpsc helmet certification of course but protection can go higher than that. Even helmets that look similar and that come from the same brand have really different positions in the thirdparty rankings!