Helmets Buying Guide | Motocross helmets | Racing Helmets |
Helmets (Motocross Helmets, Racing Helmets, Commuting Helmets) are the most important & most valuable thing we riders buy because they save our lives, they protect us when we are enjoying the spine-tingling thrill with our motorcycles. They are just like our guardians. Shopping for helmets can be a confusing task, especially when you step into the shop and see multiple options and magnificent designs on the showcase. At that moment, your mind starts thinking; “How can I make the right choice for something I am going to use on my delightful motorcycle? And precisely what should I consider before buying one?”
You should start with “what kind of a rider you are?”
You wish to go on long tours & feel the freedom of the valleys and mountains with your motorcycle or you want to go flat out on the race track, tucked in with the throttle pinned wide open or it is going to be a rock and roll in the city and adding a spice of a weekend ride with the club and taking a break from the daily routine or having some action on the trails, giving tarmac a holiday & on the other hand, it should be well equipped with quality & safety standards DOT, ECE, SNELL.
This is going to make your choice easy!
Now you might be thinking how?
Every helmet you see is precisely designed for its specific use.
Trails are the place to test the skills of the rider in extreme conditions; It’s where the fight of the machine Vs the mad dirt starts! But a skilled rider can turn that fight into fun & enjoyment. For such people or dirt riding enthusiasts, Scott Motorsports has developed motocross helmets providing MIPS (Mind impact protection system) and adjustable ventilation system to maximize safety & enjoy riding with confidence.
Helmets (racing helmets) that are designed for race purposes have aerodynamics -to cut through the wind blast at higher speeds, their cushioning & padding are snug fit to hold the head of the rider even in a high-speed crash, the shell is well equipped with carbon fiber, fiberglass, or composite, making them feather-light in the weight & matching them to the safety standards required on the racetrack. To an extent Bell Helmet’s qualifier series, Airoh GP-500, Scorpion Exo 710 are a few of the helmets available in a pocket-friendly price looking at their built quality & safety standards they fit in, they fulfil the requirements.
Commuting requires ease of access; it is like getting on & off the helmet frequently so it should not be hesitating! On the other hand, they should have good ventilation with a quick-release, making it easy to take off and as of the options available, THH, Nikko, SMK, NHK is the complete package with safety a DOT certified at a good pocket-friendly price.
A truer kind of a person should prefer softer paddings, better ventilation with a matched weight distribution & aerodynamics designed in a way that it won’t make that person feel tired even if wearing helmets (Motocross Helmets, Racing Helmets) for a longer time, the padding’s fit & vision of the visor should be like a comfort zone synchronized with the sitting position to make that person enjoy every second of the ride & some brands like Bell, Airoh, Scorpion Exo, FLY Racing etc come with a decent price with ECE certification might feel like an absolute package for such people, but things change when riding on the race track! It’s a fight to go faster, to make a difference between a contender & a champion.
With all the above-mentioned specifications, now you know how helmets are designed depending on their specific use, make the right choice & you will not ever regret buying them & helmets should be good & up to the mark rather than just being expensive, just be precise with the size that fits the head. It should fit properly, and, in the end, a good helmet is a good helmet! Decal’s, Graphics & Themes are just to make them attractive, just think.
Will a cheap helmet with little to no safety and a VR46 sticker on it going to protect you in a crash? 🙂
Keep riding, be safe & remember Helmets save lives.