Giro Vanquish MIPS Adult Road Cycling Helmet

For the past year my primary cycling helmet has been a Giro Aeon. That is the basis for the following review & comparison. I only bought this helmet for the visor and therefore have not worn it on any rides without the visor. I've taken it out on 4 rides, for 100+ miles, one of which included a 889' climb with 4% decent. I've been an avid cyclist for over 20 years and can be a little critical when it comes to my cycling gear. Overall I give this helmet 4 out of 5 stars because it's not perfect right out of the box.Aerodynamics (5 of 5): Winds in my area have been 5-10 mph this summer hence the desire to purchase an aero helmet. My first ride with this helmet was on a day with 10-15 mp winds. About two miles into my ride it occurred to me there was a noticeable reduction in drag compared to the Giro Aeon. I reach 41 mph at a full sprint riding on a road with a 45 mph speed limit in between my house and my favorite cycling trail. As this is my first aero helmet, I am very pleased with reduction in air resistance.Airflow (3.5 of 5): The videos on the Giro website presented some interesting airflow and wind tunnel tests that had me very optimistic about the cooling effects. In reality, the Giro Aeon is noticeably cooler and will remain my go to helmet on hot days when there is no forecasted wind. During the months of July and August, it is typically 85-100 degrees with 75%+ humidity. Very miserable cycling conditions. The visors deflection of the wind also blocks some of the air flow that would come up from underneath the helmet. When riding with the visor you are solely depending on the four vents to bring in air. I've discovered I have to hold my head at a very specific angle to maximize the airflow. During the Fall, Winter and Spring, this is not going to be a concern. I anticipate loving this helmet fall through spring. Unless there is snow or ice on the road/trail, I continue to ride down to 20 degrees. Reduced airflow is going to be a blessing.Style (3 of 5): Giro typically makes their helmets with some pretty nice color schemes. For a $275 helmet, the designers could have put a little more effort into the appearance. I had a very hard time picking a color. I didn't like the black for safety reasons. I prefer helmets that provide something that helps vehicle drivers spot me on the road. The white was very plain. I settled for the white and spent a couple days airbrushing some metallic silver strikes with a translucent black fade. I'm not the best at airbrushing so it's not perfect and might not withstand the test of time, but it looks a lot better in the meantime.Lens (4 of 5): Overall I am okay with the lens. I've not yet experienced any issues with fogging. So far the magnetic locks seem to be working quite well. The visor has a good field of view and does not overly interfere with my peripheral, vision which was a major concern. I would prefer a polarized lens but the glare off the road and trail surfaces hasn't been too bad so far with the lens that came with it. I wanted to order a clear lens so I could wear my polarized photochromic cycling glasses underneath, but replacement lenses are not cheap and hard to find. Buyer Beware: Giro does not sell replacement lenses. When I contacted Giro to ask about replacements I was sent the link to a separate website (Amazon won't let me post the website). Replacement lenses are $59.99, plus $5.00 handling fee for orders under $100. It would have been nice if the helmet could have been ordered directly from Giro with a choice of which lens you want with the helmet. In dark and low conditions, particularly in the winter, I will not want the lens that came with the helmet. I will have to order the clear lens so I can wear my polarized photochromic cycling glasses. It will be the winter that puts the anti-fogging to the test. I wear a balaclava under my helmet. Cycling glasses fog immediately when stopping from my breath. I'm hopeful the lens is far enough away to prevent that from happening.

I purchased the Vanquish helmet to replace my older (~2012ish MFG Dated), Bontrager Quantum one. Reason being, the older Quantum didn't have MIPS and the it just felt like it sat to high on the head, with the adjustment strap that runs around the whole thing, being closer to the ears (hard to explain). Both helmets are the same Medium size.I wear glasses, Oakleys and RayBan. The RayBan glasses are Transition type, Oakleys are not. Part of buying the new helmet, was due to the removable shields. I LOVE THEM. I can fit my normal Oakleys under the shield of the Vanquish, and it feels like I'm not wearing them. I don't like the Transition glasses on bike rides as they take too long to adjust to light. With the shield, I can swap as needed, or remove. magnetic mounts work great.Weight is slightly heavier than the Bontrager one, 12.7 vs 10.8oz. But I expected that with MIPS and the shield (1.8 oz by itself). Doesn't feel noticeable while wearing. Not sure yet on cooling as I haven't rode with the new one. The vents are fewer but they are bigger all around. They also funnel air forward to back, vs, just being spaced out. The MIPS system actually keeps the whole thing floating anyway, whereas the old one sat right on the head. That helps with air movement.Adjustment is easy and the straps are thinner/less intrusive than the Bontrager helmet. And the color/lens look, are perfect. Will update as needed.

After about 20 rides (and no fall or anything) the adjustment behind the head started to fail. I can turn it, nothing feels broken, yet it no longer holds the tension so I can no longer have the helmet hold my head correctly.When you spend 250 bucks for a stupid helmet it sucks to have to throw it away for a two-dollar part...It's been a couple of months that I made the purchase so I can no longer return it and when I try to contact the seller Amazon asks me to select a product but since the product is no longer in its return period I cannot even contact the seller!At this point I'm not gonna spend hours of my life dealing with this, but I won't buy that brand again.If at least it had failed since the beginning it could have been a quality control issue, but if the part fails after a few rides the only explanation is that it was weak in the first place.

Love it. During a recent round of treatment for basal skin cancer on my face you could see the imprint of my sunglasses from years of bike commuting in the sun. Wearing sunblock runs into my eyes and blurs the lenses of sunglasses so instead I decided to check out this visor. Definitely get more double takes with the alien like look, but keeps the sun off the top part of my face.Its comfortable and fits well too. You have to be a bit careful with it as the lense can get knocked off easily, but that's my only complaint thus far.Airflow's nice.I've only been using it for a few weeks. Will report back if there's any trouble.

Muy cómodo, se va ajustando conforme lo vas usando, la mica corrida ayuda muchísimo en la visión, ligero y con gran ventilación, 100% recomendable.