New motorcycle helmet

Published by Matt Polaine | Filed under Matthew's wishlist, Motorcycles

I have bought helmets off eBay and have been using one more than 10 years old to keep costs down, but a new motorcycle helmet would be a great gift. I am after a flip front type, so that those prats in a small number of fuel stations and most Tesco fuel stations, don’t refuse to serve you when you are paying for fuel, even refusing to take the cash out of your hand! There have been times when I have filled up with £8.99 of petrol, handed to the Tesco staff £10 and they refused to serve me unless I remove my helmet.  So I pick up a snack for around £1 or less, show them, put the £10 on the till and walk off. I’ve paid, what can I be arrested for?

You might think this is all a bit OTT, but in poor weather, I have clothing interlocking with the underside of my helmet, the wet is still kept out, and I can keep my glasses on. To take the whole lot off, letting some water down my neck, and then putting it all back on again is a real, real pain. If you are a driver, it would be like the staff asking you to take your socks and shoes off before they serve you, and then you have to put them all back on again with wet and cold feet.

Security excuse is a joke. Fake number plates and dark glasses with a bobble hat are accepted by staff. It is just another anti-bike anti-cyclist attitude because we are the minority.

So afer all that rant, a flip-up lid gets around this. However the cheaper helmets are both heavy, noisy, and let in rain. OK if you are using a scooter around town, but a complete waste of money when it is cold and wet on motorways. The flip-up helmet with the best reviews so far is the Scuberth C2, which is a long way ahead of the competition in my view. Expensive, but you get what you pay for. I do keep a look out on eBay, but they are so good, they are usually sold by word of mouth.

Costs around £290. Size: small 54-55. Colour: must be WHITE!