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After cracking my last helmet in the process of obtaining a concussion, I spent all winter agonizing over what to replace it with. I finally picked one up yesterday at the Trophy Bike Garage. I’m kinda particular about the aesthetics of helmets, in an irrationally personal way. So after months of browsing the internet, and after months of changing my mind, I ended up getting a 2008 Giro Xen in matte sepia. (In case you’re wondering, close runners up were the Specialized Air-8, and the Catlike Whisper, if it were possible to find one in the US).
One of the reasons that I thought to do this, is that I had a hard time finding pictures of this helmet online. Call me vain, but I was hesitant to drop over $100 on a helmet that I wasn’t sure if I’d like. So, hopefully this will help someone else out. Its hard to describe the color, and its definitely not coming across well via digital pictures. Its somewhere between maroon and brown, with almost a silvery shimmer. Maybe mauve-like? I also took the visor off immediately. I couldn’t find any pictures without the visor before I purchased it. Does anyone actually use those things??
I was fortunate enough to be able to get out for a 20 mile ride the day after picking the helmet up. Without getting too technical, the helmet feels and fits great. It was chilly this morning, so I don’t know about the venting/cooling yet. And I really like the look of it, a nice midpoint between lasery road helmets, hard-angled mountain bike helmets, and globe-like skate helmets.
The thing I don’t like (yet, at least) is the retention system. Compared to my previous helmet, it seems a little difficult to adjust on the fly. And the front view is kinda mushroomy, but that seems to be hard to avoid, particularly with a big head like mine. Neither is a deal killer. So overall, I’m excited to have new helmet.
Beer by Bike 