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limar ultralight+ helmet
every time i pen a helmet review, for no earthly reason, i feel honour-bound to enter into discussion over the perennial helmet debate. it is, by now, something of a redundant exercise, for i'm pretty sure that everything that could be said probably already has and it's very unlikely that i could add anything significantly meaningful.
however, to offer a brief recap of thewashingmachinepost's stance, i figure that, if you don't want to wear a helmet when riding, that's your prerogative; i always do, in similar fashion to fastening a seatbelt when in a car. as will be seen from this review, modern-day helmets weigh remarkably little and scarcely place an onerous burden upon your head, so if that was your only reason for not wearing a helmet, it may be time to re-appraise the situation.
helmets are not a singular solution to rider safety; if a motor vehicle hits you at speed, a sculptured lump of polystyrene on your head is unlikely to make a lot of difference. but, if like me, even after all these years, you're still a tad unsure of your tyre adhesion limits allied to your own bike handling abilities, it might be prudent to increase those safety limits wherever possible.
personally speaking, the above reasoning notwithstanding, i mostly wear a helmet because it makes me look faster.
this particular edition of this particular limar helmet accomplishes the latter with aplomb, just as much via the 22 air vents as the particularly aerodynamic styling. this is the same lid as worn by both the astana and direct energie teams and on the evidence of my recent bike rides, with good reason. i'm assuming that i have a pretty standard-size head, for almost without exception, every review model i've received has fitted perfectly over the top of the inevitable casquette (real men always wear a casquette and with the peak down). the limar ultralight was no exception.
their competition+ fit system is not only adjustable circumferentially by means of a well-sized knob at the rear, but can also be adjusted vertically to suit the vast majority of heads. limar claim that the ultralight is "the world's lightest helmet", one which i am not in a position to dispute (175g for the medium and 210g for the large); if testimony were required, i have already cycled away from debbie's convinced i'd forgotten the helmet when i was in fact, already wearing it.
i also have to take it as read that this particular dod of aerodynamically styled polystyrene will protect my head in the event of any unfortunate happenstances when riding. though i'm happy to explore the bulk of the helmet's features, i'm none too keen to throw myself over the handlebars to check the veracity of their safety claims. it does seem slightly odd, however, that while several of limar's competitors offer mips (multi-directional impact protection system) versions of their helmets, i could find no reference to this technology anywhere near the limar website. perhaps that is yet to come?
however, a couple of welcome niceties are featured on this rather fetching red and black helmet. firstly, several of the frontmost vents offer a bug net to keep those darned insects at bay, while that tension adjuster at the rear can be retro-fitted with an led rear light. it may be prudent to remove the helmet prior to switching this on, for though it
takes only a firm push in the centre to operate the light, while it's on your head, there's no way of telling which of the three modes has been selected. and while this edition of the ultralight arrived with a removable peak (why?), apparently the team versions do not.
i've already mentioned its ultralight status in use, but thankfully this is augmented by an excellent fit, despite the availability of only two distinct sizes. though my head size veers perilously close to the lower limit of the large size, the retention system had no difficulty in creating a near perfect, non-restrictive fit with no fore and aft or lateral movement. the chin strap is easily adjusted on the fly, while a limar monogrammed pad prevents any chafing in use. and though i think the astana coloured edition looks a kilometre or two faster than the red/black version under review, there are no velocity-based complaints at this end.
the limar ulttralight+ helmet is available in sizes medium and large in ten colour variations. retail cost is £159.99. limar helmets are distributed in the uk by nrg4.
thursday 11 may 2017
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