I got a new helmet. It had been a few years (and maybe a few crashes), so I was due. I started by really overthinking things, before finally stopping in to see my friends at JRA Cycles. Adam, the manager there, was kind enough to walk me through my options and more or less tell me what was good and less good about a range of helmets.
I tried some on. I hefted them for weight. I compared high-priced models to their more affordable relatives.
Finally, I settled on the Speedframe Pro because it has good volume without being too big. It’s MIPs equipped, which feels like a must-have to me, it looks pretty good, and the price ($179.95) is in the middle range of what you pay for high-end helmets. It felt like a good value to me, and Adam thought it was a good choice.
You can get the Speedframe for $129.95, which has some but not all of the same features as the Pro. I spent a bit more because I ride mountain bikes an awful lot, and no one wants to feed me soft foods for the rest of my life. I’m no pro, but I play one on this website sometimes.
Maybe my favorite thing about this helmet is the clasp. Is that what you call it? The latch? The clasp? The buckle. Right. It’s a buckle. The buckle on the Speedframe Pro is magnetic, so you really can open and close it with one hand. It very cleverly slides apart, forward and back, not side-to-side, so it doesn’t come apart while you’re riding, or while you’re crashing for that matter.
If I have one knock on it, it’s that it seems to channel sweat down my nose. There are solutions for that problem, but it is curious. I see nothing in the pad configuration that would make it so. Perhaps it’s just that I sweat like a cold beer on a hot picnic table, and the Speedframe Pro can’t fix that.
Anyway, it comes in 7 different colors, and even if you’re not a Pro yourself, I’m certainly not, it’s a great, comfortable helmet for everyday wear.
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“If I have one knock on it, it’s that it seems to channel sweat down my nose. There are solutions for that problem, but it is curious. I see nothing in the pad configuration that would make it so. Perhaps it’s just that I sweat like a cold beer on a hot picnic table, and the Speedframe Pro can’t fix that.”
Here’s how to “fix” that: I live in the ATL metro so I know about sweat. I’ve tried every manner of sweat channeling gizmo, liner and helmet. The best I’ve found are Wickflow headbands. I use these with any helmet I run and on every ride. Wickflow uses a lycra band with a small silicon bead that allows moisture to flow out the sides by your temples. The lycra prevents the dreaded waterfall overflow that plagues every other moisture directing band. That I can wear glasses throughout a two hour plus ride in the summer without having the menses becoming impossible to see through should sell them right there. However, they are inexpensive too. I do not work for Wickflow, but I’ve turned many on to these. https://wickflow.com/product/2-pack/