X-Ray - The Helmet For You!!!!
Written: Aug 12 '04 (Updated Jul 12 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Strong. Safe. Stylish.
Cons: None!!
The Bottom Line: This helmet is the best!!!!!!!!
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| rapoob2's Full Review: Bell X Ray Cycling Helmet |
I love to Mountain Bike. I picked it up about five years ago (downhill mountain biking that is... I was off of training wheels when I was five thank-you-very-much) and love the sport to death. With Mountain Biking, though, comes Helmet shopping.
A Trip Down Memory Lane... - Two years ago, in August of 2002, I went for my usual trip to Colorado to go mountain biking / hiking / other outdoor fun with my family and some good friends. At that point, I had only been downhill mountain biking a few times, only when I went on this trip. I also had bought my own helmet but was renting a bike for the trip. My X-Ray helmet was all shiney and new. The sun reflected off the top. If you listened very closely you could hear angel's singing whenever the sun glistened off the top. Well... maybe not... point is, the helmet was brand-spanking-new.
Last possible trip down the mountain. Start a paragraph off like that, you know it's not gonna be good news. I'll keep you waiting. I am inherrently lazy sometimes. I'm not afraid to admit it, though. In high school, I played varsity basketball for two years. In college, I have run varsity track for two years. I'm in pretty good shape. However, I just couldn't bring myself to pedal up the mountain. Something about flying down that steep, rocky, dirt path gets me going. So there's a lift in Vail that takes you to the top of the mountain. It closes at 4. It was 3:58. I just made the lift. My plane was leaving tomorrow morning to come back East. This was, indeed, the last ride for my trip.
Earlier in the week it had rained fairly hard, and at certain points there were rain ruts (places where rain had washed away the dirt and left a rut in the road). Going down one of the smaller trails (Fred's Lunch if you're familiar with the mountain at all) a little too quickly, I didn't pay attention to the warning sign about the rain ruts. Most of them on the mountain were small enough that they didn't matter. The one that I saw in front of me was much to big. I tried to jump it, but since it was a rental bike it didn't have toe clips (and I didn't have biking shoes on... or biking pedals for that matter) so I could only pop the front tire over the rut and not the back one. Bad idea. The back tire hit the inside of the rut. My bike flipped and launched me, in just an undershirt and shorts, down the mountain. I landed on two places. My head and my shoulder. I broke my collar bone. I had the worst road rash that I have ever had. My head was fine, the helmet a little dinged up. I broke both the tires (the actual metal in the tires somehow), the seat, and the handlebars on the bike. Needless to say, I was in pain, but I had no head injuries what-so-ever (besides a mild concussion). To this day, I think that the X-Ray saved my head from tremendous damage.
At Winter break, I bought another X-Ray and a Mountain Bike of my own. I was hooked.
Durability - This helmet has amazing durability. If you didn't just read the story, go back and read it. It explains how this helmet is extremely durable. Bottom Line.
Why I Bought The Helmet - I wish I could say that I went out and did extensive research on bike helmets before making the decision to purchase the X-Ray. Unfortunately, it's not so. I went to the local bike store, looked around, and bought the helmet that looked good. I bought it purely for the aestetic appeal.
Style - This helmet is styling. I say that pretty much because of the visor. The visor on the helmet, while this may seem somewhat stupid, is great. It keeps the sun out of your face and out of your eyes if you're going slow (I dunno about you, but if I'm going fast I usually need sunglasses or I can't open my eyes). The colors on the helmet are pretty good. Not a boring, solid color, but rather a couple of colors inter-twined. I like that.
Fit - This helmet fits my head very nicely. I don't feel like I'm wearing a brick on my head, which I have felt in the past with other helmets. It provides the sensation that you do not have anything on your head. You can, for the first time in your cautious life, feel like a badass but still retain your heart of gold. How precious. The cooling vents dispursed around the helmet let the wind go through your hair still. They do, however, give you the infamous "helmet hair," which is similar to hat hair, but instead of having all your hair crushed fat onto your head, you only have criss-crosses that are. Amusing for everyone else? I think so.
Overall - All in all, the X-Ray is a great helmet. What more could you ask for?? It's comfortable, stylish, and extremely durable. The visor is removable, so if you really don't like it, take it off!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
rapoob2
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Member: Ryan Brennan
Location: New York, New York
Reviews written: 65
Trusted by: 27 members
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