MikeDeason

I am rapidly discovering that although well-ventilated, my trusty black Giro Fixture absorbs excessive heat on afternoon rides.

I want a white or silver helmet for summer riding and have it down to a White S Works Prevail 3 unless there's some magic cooling helmet I passed over?

veganbikes

My favorite helmet has been the Lazer Z1. Very very light and very well ventilated and extremely comfortable. Mine is black and blue and my new one will probably be similar but a lighter color could help. I know they had at one point cooling replacement for the liner which worked nicely in the couple times I used it. I would also recommend a nice cycling cap dipped in cool water that can help quite a bit and also keep the helmet cleaner.

MikeDeason

The Lazer also looks good. I figure just going from black to white should help.

Camilo

I always wear white helmets, no difference for summer or winter. For visibility and less heat absorption from the sun.

hidetaka

Oh look! A 3-page thread 'debating' the impact of helmet colour on temperature:
And on this forum no less.
TLDR: People here love arguing

MikeDeason

I missed that ^.

Common sense (and science) dictates white will absorb less heat.

Ron Damon

The Giro Fixture comes in a light grey, off white color too. I should know for I own one.

Sy Reene

Abus Airbreaker - excellent air cooling, and very lightweight. Not going to get into debate if there's any proven value to MIPS but this helmet doesn't have it and am not bothered by that fact in the least.

lawren dawson

My helmet's color is pearl and it's a reflective color, so it doesn't absorb heat. perfect for summer.

indyfabz

+1. Who cares about the whole not wearing white before Memorial Day or after Labor Day convention?

Koyote

As far as whether wearing white is cooler, science actually dictates something rather different. You can Google it.

big chainring 

On hot sunny days a damp cabbage leaf under the helmet keeps you cool.

hidetaka

And you always have an emergency snack!

GeezyRider 

Ah, you're old school! I remember in the late 1950's during a heat wave, Baltimore Orioles players were putting cabbage leaves under their caps to keep cool.

easyupbug 

In Southern AZ white with a bill. Hope you never do but if you have had a basal cell carcinoma remove you will have a bill with your sun screen.

rsbob 

Love my white Lazer Z1. Super light, good airflow and better visibility than a dark color. Won’t get into the color vs heat debate which will ultimately follow. But have to say the research surprised me.

MikeDeason

It has been proven numerous times that black vehicles heat up faster and cool down slower than white or silver. This is one reason fleet vehicles are usually white.

don’t see why it wouldn’t apply to a helmet but perhaps it doesn’t.

philbob57

Not a lot of glass in cycling helmets.

I haven't done a scientific study, but I was swayed by the argument that all that foam between one's head and the shell makes the color a minor consideration. If I'm wrong, so be it. Also, I did the research Koyote mentions and recommend it. 'Science' ... 'scientia' ... 'knowledge'.

veganbikes

Yes but why was that brought up here. It wasn't the OP involved in that argument and to be fair the thread started in 2018 and got zombied in 2023 so technically 2 pages and then another one years later with I think almost if not all different people. Plus 3 pages in 5 years isn't much heck we can have 3 pages in a day. Also this is an online forum so kind of the whole point of this place is to talk about bikes and bike related topics of which helmets are one.

I mean complaining that an online forum is an online forum in an online forum is an odd one. I could understand if it came to blows and got shut down by the mods that is where arguing goes to far but a normal debate on cycling stuff is daily business for a cycling forum.

Also would not want to eat helmet sauerkraut. Not my kinda snack. Though pickles are delicious and pickle juice is phenomenal while riding but I will keep that off of my head thank you very much : )

hidetaka

I linked it because I was seeing the same points being repeated pointlessly and the discussion was inevitably going into the same loop. As to the highlighted section, should I start next daily thread about disc brakes/tubeless/carbon or leave it to someone else? Why should I want this forum to be stuck in a Groundhog day loop of endless 'debates'? What if, and that's a crazy thought, we try to do a bit better instead of becoming a less popular version or Red-dit (which, hilariously, is a banned word here >.>)?

Pratt

Far be it of for me to spoil everybody's enjoyment of a juicy internet argument, but people have actually studied the heat transfer/retention of bicycle helmets. Although I have not reviewed all the literature intensively, to seems that air flow and hair are bigger influences on heat retention than color.

shelbyfv

Another old school is raw steak in the chamois. Now there's a snack!

veganbikes

I can see that but it wasn't a heavy discussion on it, it was pretty short and over and then got briefly zombied and over but with different participants. It is one thing to have the exact same conversation re-hashed by the exact same people over and over but different people with different ideals even if similar is not really a Groundhog Day situation. However I thought Groundhog Day was a hilarious movie and need to re-watch it, it has been a looooong time. Better the movie be "Groundhog Day" then "Leprachaun 5: In The Hood". There are only so many topics in cycling that haven't already been hashed for decades but that is the fun to a degree so long as it isn't totally just the same people back and forth each time.

I think the reason the Redd is banned because they are also home to adult Triple X content not suitable for a bicycle forum. It might be frustrating but in the end makes sense because there isn't a separate site for that content it is all part of that so you either leave it all in and get the content you don't want or you filter it out completely and no need to worry. While probably a majority of the posters here are over 18 in actual physical age the ease of which we can devolve into pubescent or prepubescent creatures is easy (as I am sure the moderators can attest to, and to which I have never taken part )

firebird854

The prevail ROCKs for this, I'm as sweaty as it gets and it kills it in the Summer.

KerryIrons

You are confused about the heat issue. Yes, the black plastic absorbs more heat than white plastic, but the foam of the helmet is a great insulator and combined with the wind blowing through, in a blind test you would not be able to tell the difference between a black or white helmet. We all want cooler helmets, but it is about ventilation, not color. Physics is phun.