Giro Vanquish MIPS
£239.99 › Aero road lid with venting aplenty
GIRO WAS THE FORERUNNER IN the aero-road helmet genre, launching the Air Attack in 2013. Since then, Giro has been working hard on its replacement, the Vanquish.
Giro says it better understands the aerodynamics of using a shield – the magnetic clip-on visor first seen on the Attack – and how to place and shape vents for comfort without compromising the shape’s aero benefits.
The helmet’s pseudo two-piece hard outer shell steps down just past the crown to create an aero ‘trip’ layer, which makes the air flow smoothly back as if you were wearing a full-on teardrop-style time trial helmet. In the front the Vanquish has four large vents and the internal channelling offers plenty of breathable room. A MIPS [Multi-Directional Impact Protect System] layer has been well integrated too. By using a custom shape of the plastic liner this extra level of safety has little impact on cooling.
The Vanquish is expensive, so we like that the shell wraps around the whole underside of the EPS core, offering greater protection from accidental damage. This adds weight, and at 371g (L) plus 54g for the visor it’s no lightweight, but not so heavy we noticed it. The Roc Loc 3 rear retention system is minimal yet easy to adjust.
The look of the visor divides opinion, but the magnetic clip works brilliantly and the quality of the optics is impressive. It’s deeper (75mm) and wraps further around your face than standard sunglasses. It provides protection from the wind and sits away from your face more than sunnies. On longer climbs we did get a bit of fogging creeping in from the brow, but pulling the visor off, flipping it over and magnetically securing it out of the way is easy.
The Vanquish is a very comfortable, breathable helmet and though the price is high you do effectively get a sunglasses replacement in the price.