redcon1

Every bicycle helmet I own or have owned has the shell foam resting directly on pads on my head. MIPS seemed an improvement at not much additional cost.

I ponied up the extra $20 for the MIPS version; the non-MIPS Foray is $65. Still a good looking helmet and a great value.

slapshot18

For those who have the Mojito, I find I can't get a good fit as the helmet seems to interfere with the arm of my sunglasses and knocks them around.

Marcus_Ti

See my last post, the nicer Casco helmets use a hammock-like net system internally to suspend the helmet slightly off the cranium.


MIPS most likely cannot hurt...however there's a wide variation in how manufacturers actually implement MIPS, and what the MIPS people actually say should be done to implement their tech. Some big names claim to be MIPS, yet you tear apart their helmet and you find only 50% of the helmet is actually built the way MIPS says it is to be built-particularly the back side of the helmet. The result being that depending on the specific crash scenario, a specific given helmet that says it is MIPS may or may not actually have any benefit.

MIPS and Sliding Resistance of Bicycle Helmets.


And a dissection of the MIPS article that started it all in Bicycling Magazine:
Bicycling magazine article is misleading

DoubleTap

Y'all are giving me a complex now about my POC Octal helmet. I do look like a mushroom in it, but then it's the only helmet I've found that'll fit my pumpkin head. Seriously, it's ugly, but it fits and feels so good, I'm wearing it and loving it. I just won't be taking any selfies in it.

Kp3legend

Not trying to steal the thread but since we are all discussing about helmet, i think it doesnt hurt to ask.

So im considering a youth helmet cause it fit me well with its wide range around 52-57cm. Whats the difference between an adult and a youth one ? Why youth helmet doesnt split to moutain or road youth type ? Also what im looking is a garneau pro junior . Well youth helmet is kinda cheaper thou.

Thank you.

woodchuck69

I saw a stack of Octals at a local shop and thought there's that huge helmet. Then I tried on the MIPS. Wow this is really awesome, doesn't feel like I'm wearing anything on my head. Then I bought it.

maartendc

I think the Giro Synth or Foray (the budget version with the same style) look good. Not too agressive, but not too "round and bulgy" either.

I have the Foray personally. It fits my head really well, and doesnt bulge at all.

But as said before here, you should try and see what fits your head.

FullGas

fwiw, if anyone is looking at the Foray, PricePoint is blowing them out (size med) for $29.88...

SpeshulEd 

If you ever feel worried, just go on instagram and look at any cycling/style/nerd account and the Octal is one of the most popular helmets out there. I see more and more out on the road every day and everyone that I've ever asked has said it's their favorite helmet.

Edit: also, if the helmet fits, it doesn't look that much like a mushroom. In fact, it barely sticks out from the head when properly sized.

StanSeven

Even Snell now recommends replacement in five years

StanSeven

Between stripes on the bibs, socks, and bottles, no one looks at the helmet

SpeshulEd 

Sako7 ftw! Actually, the yellow and green was not what I would have went with, but the photo does show how small the helmet can look on the head when sized correctly.

ShadowGray

Are my eyes playing tricks on me or is there something wonky with that crankset?

StanSeven

Bending chainrings from monster power is what makes them top pro's

Actually they are supposed to be like that

Sy Reene

Interesting article. So are these new helmets mipsrepresented in the media? I was on Comp Cyclist, noticed Bell Gage regular is $78 while the same Bell Gage with MIPS is $195. Worth it?

SpeshulEd 

Osymetric USA

Some people like them, some people don't.

Marcus_Ti

The Bell Gage regular is probably cheaper also because it is a model clearance....I'd wager.

And those questions are all problems as near as I can tell, are without clear universal answers...And taking any position without "IMHO" qualifiers is a few steps away from being simply FUD. Me, I'm a professed cynic...but I'd say that it seems, from what we know now, that MIPS is over-regarded as a must-have safety feature. It probably doesn't do any harm, but as to whether it does any good and is worth the cost-depends on the specific helmet and the specific manufacturer, and the specific crash scenario. IMHO.

Short of someone taking a box cutter to a specific model and year of helmet and tearing it apart, there's no knowing how MIPS was implemented on it. And no reviewer does destructive analysis of bike helmets.

MIPS being as new as it is...AFAIK no one, aside from those with a massive financial "investment" or "incentive" in trying to sell helmets (MIPS or otherwise), has scientific numbers about it. And no one wants to just take someone who's selling a good at their word. A problem made worse by the evident fact that the MIPS people don't even police what people using their branding are actually doing in implementing their "standard". It is just about as bad as computer PSUs and the "80 PLUS" standard.

ShadowGray

Today I learned...

GuitarBob

At some point I saw a video either by Giro or interviewing engineers from Giro and I was impressed by them. Comments that I might paraphrase (as best I recall) as 'this seems like a good idea, so we're building specific fixtures to test it to make sure we agree before we sell it.' FWIW.

DoubleTap

Depends on the size of the head/helmet. I wear an 8 in a hat and the L in the Octal. Mushroom head.

SpeshulEd 

Did you try the medium at all? You're only getting an extra 2cm in the large.

My buddy bought an xl POC Trabec Race because he thought his head was big. In reality, he could fit into a small.

vinuneuro

I wanted to get the Kask Protone because it looks so good, but unless you're always riding at high enough speeds one of the comparison tests found that the ventilation isn't great. Which isn't unreasonable since it's more of an aero helmet. Many of the reviews do say that it's quieter at speed than many. I ended up getting the Mojito which has been a great all-around helmet. Imho, I don't think anyone does fit and comfort better than Kask. Worth the money.

I wear glasses with the Mojito and haven't had any issues, but they don't have long arms that go straight back.

SpeshulEd 

I think the kask protones look best when they're all one color, the Sky helmets just look goofy with the blue stripe.


That said, these color gradient ones look amazing!!! But, $320.

Bathwater

So I just pulled the trigger on the Protone because I like throwing away money and making my wife angry. Backcountry is running 20% off, plus Activejunky's 10% off which knocks the price down to $216. Not sure if that's enough of a markdown to sway any minds out there, but hopefully that helps someone.

kbarch

A designer helmet? While I appreciate aesthetic design, that's embarrassingly extravagant - decadent even. Makes me want to have something plain gray that only costs fifty bucks, tops.