Weight Weenies

There are a few Selectors kicking around local and Open TT's

But that was how I'd seen it presently stand too.

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I too have noticed more non approved helmets around at the races. Annoying doing the right thing and other riders using potential faster options that should get picked up during scrutineering...

When it's not allowed due to excessive Aussie red tape, I'm not so concerned.

Normally I'd agree. But what if you restrict youself to one of the few standards approved helmets and someone ignores the rule and they place ahead of you by a few seconds? I restricted my time in the tunnel to helmets that were approved - would have liked to test more as I expect I could have found a better helmet than the one I still use.

Sorry for dragging this off topic in a Cycling Australia rant - since you have the PM, I'd suggest trying to borrow both and field test?

If you feel that strongly about being beaten by a guy in a non approved helmet you can always lodge a complaint with the commassire who will then have to disqualify the rider.

Agreed. The last CyclingNSW College of Commissaires AGM I attended (2yrs ago?) the hot topics were helmets and the 'approved' wheel regulations. Commissaires should all know that if it doesn't have the "2063" standards approved sticker then they can't allow it in a race.

EDIT: If you feel bad about ratting out your fellow competitors and having them disqualified after the event, write a letter to CA and complain that there were people using illegal helmets at a particular event and demand they tighten their belts for the next event.

As mentioned by a few others, helmet fit is very personal and the outcome of ones bike fit and riding style. With snow on the ground for the next several months, I've been testing a few of these myself! Below is the Giro Selector vs. the Bell Javelin. As you can see from the videos, I just can't get the Giro to 'settle' between my shoulders.

Giro Selector:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmkLo0G89qI

Bell Javelin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqiVqSH4CdE

Didn't say I was getting beaten by riders using non approved helmets Irish, it was purely a hypothetical... Though I did miss out on a State Masters gold medal one year by 8 seconds over a 20km ITT - ended up third so every second does matter. If either of the two guys were rocking illegal equipment, I would still not protest, rather speak to them in person; as the ITT scene is still small enough here to know everyone.

kman wrote:If you feel bad about ratting out your fellow competitors and having them disqualified after the event, write a letter to CA and complain that there were people using illegal helmets at a particular event and demand they tighten their belts for the next event.

I may just take that approach kman. I'm not going to single anyone out after a race.

kman wrote:If you feel bad about ratting out your fellow competitors and having them disqualified after the event

Seriously... leave it be... what difference does it make?

Juanmoretime wrote:I've ridden the Advantage two and if you do well with head back and can keep the tail of the helmet on your back it will be very aero.

Speak for yourself! I have a large head and can *just* fit it fore-aft... but the gaps on the side are quite large. Didn't work for me. Oddly the large seems to have thicker foam than the medium...

Actually *no* helmet I've tried fits worth a damn... which is why I now "customize" my helmets.

Selector tested only slightly slower for me than an old Met fairing (the plastic shell with no foam). However it was a long way behind another option - again *for me*. Advantage seems to be faster than Selector for a number of people...

But, as others have said, it's very individual - I've had reversed results between two different riders in the tunnel - Uvex fastest for one and slowest for the other.

"Compared to other aerodynamic helmets, there is nothing that comes close."

Their chart contradicts this. The Spiuk Kronos is virtually identical. It does make me wonder about all the other helmets they either didn't test, or chose not to include in this marketing piece.

No kidding. They chose to include a brand that ~1% of Kona athletes used (Lava equipment count), instead of ones that have far better representation (Rudy-35%, Louis Garneau-23%, Lazer-12%). The thread on Slowtwitch with Specialized engineers chiming in was about as worthless as the chart. I don't think they said they tested other helmets, just that it was the fastest they saw and the chart represents those helmets in the fastest configuration. Not that it much matters, I think the rumor is only ~350 available to the public.

That's one thing I can't stand about the cycling industry, everyone takes all this time and effort for highlighting the virtues of their latest and greatest product with flashy sites and presentations, but the data is usually sorely lacking (as though somehow obfuscating it is to our benefit), and the actual products themselves have very poor availability (see: original Shiv, P5, this helmet, etc.). I don't think they quite get the idea behind perceived exclusivity and actual exclusivity.

I had access to a number of aero helmets a bit more than a year ago and gave field testing a shot. A few of them came in close enough that I wasn't confident there would be any significant difference when accounting for error, so I kept the one I already had, as it offered a bit more versatility in terms of covering vents to make it faster if I so chose.

WMW wrote:Seriously... leave it be... what difference does it make?

True we aren't racing for sheep stations... But if the rules clearly limit equipment and they are being broken by a few people it is an unfair advantage.

I see this just the same as other rules being broken by some racers such as staying in the draft/too close when passed. Or is that also okay as we aren't earning a living from racing?

Back to TP's question. You know enough people, borrow as many helmets as possible and field test.

Rusty Project were giving away free helmets at Kona a could of years ago with the proviso that you wore it for the race. This probably goes some way to skewing the figures for the number of triathletes wearing them.

Great marketing idea though.

I'm tempted by either the Rudy project or the Kask, I'm not sure about the visors though, bit worried about it steaming up. I'm a Tri geek, so ventilation is a consideration, though given that I live in Scotland I probably shouldn't worry to much.

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