BIKE HELMETS
Our most recent helmet buyer’s guides have involved the pick of the aero road helmet crop being put through their paces in the wind tunnel (head to 220triathlon.com for the results), but this year it’s the turn of the sub-£100 road lids. That’s not to say drag-reduction wasn’t considered when testing, but the focus on the following pages is more on comfort, ventilation and added features over watts and painstaking yaw-angle analysis.
While EPS (expanded polystyrene) still dominates the build of road helmets (Hexr’s plant-based Polyamide-11 construction helmet is three-times this test’s budget cap), the helmets here still take noticeably different approaches to comfort, ventilation, aerodynamics and safety. Comfort is key and, while trying before you buy is the ideal, the range of internal height adjustments, retention systems, strap adjustability and sizing variations will likely ensure these helmets fit most head shapes.
As opposed to aero road helmets or especially cone-shaped TT lids, the more traditional helmets here offer increased ventilation due to the larger number of air channels; great for hilly rides in the summer, but you’ll want a skull cap underneath in
