At a glance Premium off-road lid with big vents and extra rear protection
Tested by
Jon Adams, tester for The Bike List
Performance
I bought my first Xen helmet way back in 2004 - primarily
because I liked the idea of the enhanced rear protection developed
from skate helmet designs. Skaters' falls can quite often result in
an impact to the back of the head (think 'banana skin' or 'newbie
on ice skates') whereas this is a rare one for road cyclists. The
latter tend to fall off the 'low side', where the wheels lose
traction and they slide off, the 'high side' where they're flung
over and across the bike, or the classic 'over the bars' where the
front wheel stops and you keep going. In all these, the hands and
arms are often the first point of impact, though with any of them,
it's possible to hit the back of your head, particularly if you go
into a slide or roll after t
he initial contact. This
is especially true when it comes to off-road tumbles, as anything
can happen - and it's not the fall itself, but what you land on or
career into that does the damage.
But the Xen isn't just about extra protection at the rear of the skull; it's got 17 enormous vents in it, too, and they work by scooping the airflow over your head and out the back, keeping you cool. The 'Wind Tunnel' vents are sculpted to be most efficient in a more upright, mountain bike position, and they work very well to deliver a cool ride, despite the extra protection and the fact that this is no ultra-lightweight lid. For me, one of the things that makes the Xen really special is the POV (Point of View) visor that can be tilted up or down to shield your eyes from sun, rain, bugs or dazzling car headlights. Other visors do this too, of course, but with a 15º angle to play with, you can adjust the visor with precision without moving the helmet back or forward on your head (you shouldn't really do this, as the helmet's position should be fixed once it's correctly adjusted and fitted). The visor is a fantastic device that genuinely offers protection from the elements and headlight glare, and if you get into the right position, it even helps to deflect the wind from your eyes. This is great in winter when you can't wear glasses because of a balaclava (the lenses fog up) so to be able to adjust a visor to fend off an icy north-easterly is a real godsend.
Though it's primarily
designed as an off-road lid, the Xen's features make it a solid
choice for commuting as well. The Roc Loc 4 adjuster at the back
offers a handy place to clip a rear flasher, and if it this gets in
the way of your jacket's collar, or you've adjusted the Roc Loc
tabs to the max and have nothing left to clip a light to, a couple
of large zip ties through the rear vents will offer a secure mount
for your tail light. Round the front, the visor is removable if you
want to fit a Gore-tex helmet cover (you can put the visor back on
afterwards) and there are plenty of opportunities to mount a helmet
light using either the vents or the visor itself. The straps secure
with a Fastex buckle and are fairly soft on the skin, and the
aforementioned Roc Loc 4 system is quick to adjust whether it's
going over a bare head, skull cap or balaclava. The Xen comes in S,
M and L sizes, and if you ride through the winter, I'd recommend
you get the size big enough to take your preferred headwear
underneath, as the big vents make the Xen too cool to wear without
additional back-up in sub-zero temperatures.
Like any helmet, the Xen will get hot when you're toiling up a
climb on a warm day, and the first sign that you're working hard
tends to be when the Coolmax padding reaches saturation point and
the sweat starts dripping. Unfortunately, the Xen's 'sweat channel'
is right in the middle at the the front, and the salty stuff will
drop down your forehead and run down either side of your nose. If
you've got shades on, it'll collect on the inside of the lenses and
leave a salt stain right in front of your eyes. The only way to
really deal with this is either to remove your 
glasses, and push the
front against your head to 'wring out' the padding against your
forehead (not pretty) or to take the helmet off to sort it out (not
clever if you're still pedalling). The other alternative is to wear
a headband or Buff between your forehead and the padding to absorb
the sweat, but this means you'll be insulating your head and you
won't be getting the maximum benefit from the cooling vents.
This is a minor gripe though, on an otherwise excellent helmet, and the features, fit and all-round comfort more than make up for the sweat-on-the-shades issues.
So the big question is, should you buy it? Well, if you want to spend this amount on an off-road lid that doubles as a solid commuter offering, go right ahead and join the thousands of happy Xen wearers. There are stacks of designs in the range to suit your sense of style, from conservative single colours to urban camo chic, and because the Xen has been around for several years, there are nearly always last season's colours available at discounted prices if you shop around. As with all helmets though, the fit comes before the styling or the venting, so make sure you try it on and are happy it's a good match for your noggin. Once you've done that, you should find a Xen that meets your needs for around £75 or so, and for this, it's a great buy. To splash out the full SRP means you're very picky about this year's colours or you're not shopping very smartly!
Buy from: www.chainreactioncycles.com
Giro says:
The Xen is the original and now iconic all-mountain helmet. Its smooth low-profile style hints at skate-style influence, but its big vents, light weight, and expanded rear coverage define it as a high performance helmet for the modern mountain biker. And the colors and graphics this year are really something special. Sort of like art for your head.
- Fit system - Roc Loc 4
- Construction - In-mold - EPS liner, polycarbonate shell
- Ventilation - 17 Wind Tunnel vents, internal channelling
- Features - POV adjustable visor with 15° vertical adjustment
- Weight - 300 grams
- Meets CE EN1078 certification
- Giro crash replacement cost £62.50
- Sizes - Sml 20-21.75in / 51-55cm, Med 21.75-23.25in / 55-59cm, Lrg 23.25-24.75in / 59-63cm
Find out more: www.giro.com
Giro Crash Replacement Programme: www.madison.co.uk/giro
