Gear Review Time!
TL:DR – If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.
I’ve had my new Shoei GT-Air Wanderer for about a month and a half or so now, and I figured it’s about time for me to write up my thoughts on my new lid.
Weight – this is a light helmet. Really light. It might be the lightest helmet I’ve ever owned (my Dainese Yu is probably really close weight-wise). I really barely notice that I’m wearing it, which is great. There’s nothing I dislike more than when my neck gets tired from wearing a really heavy lid.
Wind Buffeting – another big plus, and actually a pretty big surprise for me is how stable this lid feels when the breeze picks up. My other Shoei (the more off-road styled Hornet) as well as my Scorpion EXO-500 both whipped my head around a fair bit, making for one uncomfortable and nervous rider when the winds picked up. I’m starting to wonder if much of my wind nerves were caused by my helmeted head being bumped around, because I’ve ridden in some fairly windy conditions (winds that would have been nerve-wracking with other lids) and haven’t been nearly as bothered. My head now feels like it’s just staying put. I like that.
Ventilation – it’s been a heatwave in Portland, with temps in the 90s for the last week and a half, and prior to that, temps in the 80s. The GT-Air has a big chin vent as well as good intake and outtake vents on the top, and with them all open and the faceshield cracked, I’ve been staying comfortable. Not as comfortable as in an air-conditioned car, but I haven’t been completely, disgustingly sweaty when I pull my lid off, either. I feel pretty comfortable saying this lid has some good hot weather ventilation. It hasn’t been cold though, so I’m not able to update how the helmet’s comfort is when the vents are shut tight.
Fogging – my number one pet peeve of helmets is fogging. In fact, my other helmet (my Scorpion EXO-500) has the most ridiculous fogging problems – it’s nearly unwearable in the rain, and in the PNW, that’s unacceptable. The GT-Air comes with a Pinlock, a second layer that you add to the inside of your faceshield that reduces fogging to almost nil. I don’t think I’ll buy another lid that isn’t Pinlock-compatible. It’s that good. Granted, I haven’t tried this particular lid in the rain (it hasn’t rained in a month), but other Pinlocks I’ve used have made rain-related fogging a non-issue. Because this helmet comes with a Pinlock specially fitted for the helmet, the edges are nearly out of your peripheral vision, which makes for improved peripheral vision. Much nicer than a standard Pinlock, which doesn’t typically cover as much real estate on your faceshield.
Visibility – It’s not quite as wide-viewing as my Shoei Hornet (that has some pretty ridiculous viewing), but it’s definitely got more viewing space than my Scorpion. Always better when your peripheral vision isn’t stopped by the side of your lid. Added bonus – the GT-Air comes with a drop-down sun visor, eliminating the need for wearing sunglasses. I’m light-sensitive, stemming from a bad eye infection years ago, and while I’d prefer to have a darker sun visor, I don’t have any issues with the standard one. The drop-down visor covers most of my viewing area, only leaving a small area below my cheekbones that isn’t covered – pretty similar to wearing sunglasses, but with the bonus that you can flip up the visor with a quick flip of the visor level if you’re headed into a tunnel.
Cost – really, this is the big negative. With retail hovering around $670 (you can get deals if you shop around, and solid colors are less spendy), it’s the Cadillac of lids, with a price tag to match. However, I don’t own a car, so if I want to go somewhere, it’s on my bike and as a result, my cost per wear will be pretty negligible when it’s time to retire this lid in 5 years’ time.
Overall, I’m really pleased with my new lid. It’s pretty (hard to tell in the photo, but the sides of my lid have a stunning white-on-white honeycomb pattern), mostly white (for increased visibility), and does a great job of reducing wind buffeting while keeping me cool on hot days. The only performance areas I’m still wondering about are rain and how it keeps the heat in when it’s chillier out. I’ll have to update this come fall, when I can evaluate those areas.