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How to Choose a Bike Helmet

woman sitting on her bike, looking down to show her light blue Fox mountain biking helmet

How to Choose a Bike Helmet

Fox mountain bike helmets sitting on truck bed

If you're looking into how to pick the right bike helmet, you probably already understand the importance of head protection. Helmets are essential for every ride, and in some areas, they're a legal requirement. Since all helmets in the U.S. are required meet the same impact protection standard, there are some extra factors worth thinking about when you're shopping.

In this article, we're here to guide you through the various types of bike helmets and help you in understanding the key factors to keep in mind while shopping. Let's dive in for a quick overview:

Ensure you find a helmet that fits correctly: A good fit is key for proper protection (and for actually wanting to wear your helmet), so be sure to choose the right size and adjust it properly.

Consider a bike helmet that suits your riding style: Helmet categories help streamline your choice by guiding you towards options that match your requirements (remember, a road helmet can work on a dirt trail, and a mountain bike helmet can be used on the road). Bike helmets typically fall into three basic types:

  • Recreational Bike Helmets: Offer affordability and basic impact protection for recreational bike rides around town.
  • Mountain Bike Helmets: Feature excellent ventilation to keep your head cool on the trail. Most designs extend at the rear to provide more head coverage because of the possiblity of falling backwards on the trails.
  • Road Bike Helmets: Lightweight, well ventilated to keep your head cool, and usuaully an aerodynamic design for increased performance.

To find the perfect bike helemt, visit a Level Nine store in Utah and speak with a helpful staff member. You can also reach our Customer Service team through live chat, phone, or email using this link.

Bike Helmet Fit

Giro bike helmets

A proper fit is crucial when selecting a bike helmet to ensure effectiveness in a crash. Comfort is essential since you'll wear the helmet for every mile of every ride.

First step to finding your helmet size is by measuring your head circumference. This will help you guage what size to shop for when you decide to pick up your new bike helmet.

Bike helmet sizes:

  • Extra small: Below 20" (51cm)
  • Small: 20"-21.75" (51cm-55cm)
  • Medium 21.75"-23.25" (55cm-59cm)
  • Large: 23.25"-24.75" (59cm-63cm)
  • XL: Above 24.75" (63cm)
  • One size fits all: Highly adjustable

Mountain Bike Helmets

POC mountain bike helmet

Mountain bike helmets are designed with tons of ventilation and extended rear coverage to cater to the demands of mountain biking. They provide airflow for cooling during off-road rides and offer added protection from falls backward, common in mountain biking, improving safety on rugged trails.

Mountain bike helmets often have adjustable visors for sun glare and debris protection, strong construction for impact absorption, and compatibility with goggles for added eye protection on rugged trails.

Mountain bike helmet variations:

  • Mountain / XC: Some mountain bike helmets are designed to accommodate various riding styles, including cross-country (XC) biking. These helmets may feature adjustable visors and ventilation systems suitable for long rides in varied terrain. When selecting a mountain bike helmet, it is important to consider compatibility with additional accessories like goggles or camera mounts for capturing off-road adventures.
  • Full face: Full-face mountain bike helmets are designed for maximum protection, particularly for downhill riders. These helmets feature a sturdy full-cover design that offers head and face protection during high-speed descents and technical trails. The secure fit and construction of full-face helmets provide riders with confidence and safety on those challenging downhill decents.

Road Bike Helmets

Road bike helmets on road

Road bike helmets are crafted with a focus on aerodynamics and lightweight design to enhance performance on the road. The emphasis on aerodynamic efficiency and reduced weight is aimed at optimizing speed and comfort for cyclists. These helmets feature streamlined ventilation systems that ensure maximum airflow, keeping riders cool during long rides and maintaining comfort even in high-speed conditions.

Road bike helmets typically do not have visors but focus on sturdy construction for impact protection, ensuring essential safety for cyclists. They are designed to be compatible with cycling sunglasses, providing sun glare protection and improving visibility during rides.

Road bike helmet variations:

  • Road racing: These helmets are specialized for speed and aerodynamics, perfect for competitive road cyclists. These helmets prioritize aerodynamic shapes and lightweight materials to enhance performance during fast-paced road races, improving the rider's efficiency and speed.
  • Time trial: Time trial helmets are crafted for time trial events, with a focus on reducing drag and maximizing speed. They feature elongated shapes and aerodynamic designs to minimize air resistance, enhancing performance in individual time trial races.

Additional Helmet Info

POC full face helmets

So what are some of the additional features we keep talking about? Most, if not all, are designed around adding more comfort to your riding experience. Adding safety is one of these aspects which I would say adds to comfort, since if you feel like you're more likely to fare well in a crash you're more comfortable pushing the limits while riding.

Venting is one of the features most commonly added to helmets. The reason this costs more is because it takes additional shaping of the shell and addition reinforcing in specific areas in order to keep the helmet safe while reducing overall surface area. This usually involves some more expensive materials with a higher strength-to-weight ratio to keep weight down, as well.

Antimicrobial helmet linings are also a common feature among higher dollar helmets. This helps reduce helmet funk from a lot hard days of riding. One of the materials used is X-Static fabric, which uses small amounts of silver to discourage microbial growth that cause bad odors.

Retention systems are usually nicer on higher dollar helmets as well. This usually means that they are easier to adjust and have smaller notches between adjustment clicks, making for a more customizable fit. Some may also move from a half-retention system, tightening just from the rear half, to a full circumference system that tightens from all directions of your head for a nicer fit.

Some of the additional safety features that are included in helmets include variable density foam, inner bracing in the shell and foam, and multi-thickness padding for a better fit to keep the helmet in place when it needs to be there.

All bicycle helmets are required to pass certification testing in order to be sold, which means all helmets are tested to the same level of safety among a given standard (different countries may require different safety standards and testing methods). What varies mostly is the amount of coverage a helmet offers at the cost of how much airflow is allowed for cooling. Find what fits your needs best and start trying some helmets on to see what feels comfortable.