Me and my friend Roko out riding near Nederland, CO. August 2021

This week I worked with a couple of people who needed to get fitted for a helmet. One rider in particular stood out because of her discomfort with wearing a helmet in general, especially a full face. So she asked to see this specific helmet:

This helmet is particularly unique because it can convert from an open face to a modular helmet, so the chinbar can open and then flip backwards to the backside of the helmet. You can wear it this way while riding. Who wouldn’t want the ability to quickly convert from an open to a close? The downside to doing this with traditional modular type helmets is that they are too heavy and cumbersome to ride in at more than parking lot speeds.

The challenge here was that her headshape was a much stronger oval than an intermediate: She was closer to a 4 but that helmet is closer to a 2, almost a 1. You’re probably wondering, how would I know that? Well, if you are also a 4, then a 2 would feel loose side to side but snug front to back. So you’d probably be able to hold the helmet on both sides and turn your head sideways quite a bit inside the helmet.

Helmet fitment is a lot like fitting shoes. Sometimes you have a narrower foot, sometimes a wider foot…and then something in between.

But the even greater problem that she was facing was her aversion to helmets. So even though her perfect fit was actually one of these two which are intermediate ovals that lean towards #1.:

As someone who’s job it is to fit you for a properly fitting helmet, I always have to give you the benefit of the doubt. It’s your head, your comfort and your safety. I pointed out to her why the Bell SRT was the better fitment for her shape. It also has soft, squishy cheekpads and has a forgiving fit all around that doesn’t squeeze too hard in all the wrong places. (I didn’t have her try on the Shoei because it was well above her pricepoint, and she was already feeling uncomfortable with the process as it was) so she could compare the fit to the Shark.)

Although she recognized the Bell to be a better fitment, I encouraged her to try the Shark (at home first, for about 30-45 minutes) to see if it would be comfortable enough for longer rides. That way she could return it if she needed to and see how she felt afterwards. The other thing I had to do was size her up to a Medium even though her Bell/Shoei size was a Small. There’s no way you can comfortably wear a rounder (#2) helmet shape if your head leans towards the oval (#5) side.

Of course I want people to wear a perfectly fitted helmet as much as possible, but she was so visibly uncomfortable with the idea of wearing any of these that I didn’t want to turn her off completely from wearing one. She left without either, because unfortunately the greater issue of installing a Sena Headset became more complicated with the way that Shark is designed. It’s virtually impossible to mount any other headset on the side of that helmet. It’s primarily designed to work with their proprietary unit.

The best thing you can do is to first understand your shape per the graphic above and then find a helmet that fits as close to it as possible. The more you wear it, the more you will notice these fit differences and how they contribute to issues such as heaviness, noise and visibility.

Of course, wherever you’re riding I hope you’re wearing a great helmet that works for you.

Me, at my MSF Dirtbike class down at King George VA, Memorial Day Weekend

I promise, I’ll get to the Denver part in a minute.

But first, just wanted to say that it’s been an even crazier year and I was working way too much these past couple of months.

I’m happy to say that I finally came out from under it and was able to take a whopping 3 days off on Memorial Day Weekend to go take some dirt and adv classes with DC Dirt Camp. I wrote a review on Common Tread, about my experience. Needless to say, I LOVED IT.

Riding in the dirt was always on my bucket list, and in my future. I guess I was just buying my time or something.

Well the time is now, because at the end of July I’m doing a 1 week guided tour with the amazing Pat Jacques of ADVWoman.com!

I’m going to be riding on the Backcountry Discovery Route in Colorado with her and an awesome group of women adventure riders. One of those women is my new bff BJ Hessler, founder of DC Dirt Camp where I trained recently. For the Adventure class, I rode a Yamaha XT250, courtesy of my friend Marjorie (bless you!). Which is so perfect because I’m going to be riding one for the trip as well. It’s fate.

Me, on my friend’s XT250, affectionately nicknamed Jaxson.

So getting ready for such an incredible adventure, I decided to just gear up for it almost like I was going on the trip now. I decided to go all out with the following. Here are some thoughts on each piece that I ended up getting:

Shoei VFX-Evo Helmet $539, XS and 100% Armega Goggles with HiPer Lens $120

The main reason I chose this is because Shoeis fit my so very well. I did try the Bell Moto Flex 9 Carbon but the sizing isn’t quite perfect, since I have to choose Small. I’m always a Shoei XS but this one is too tight for me to get my head in so I did a SM. It already felt broken in so that’s why I went for the Shoei which felt perfectly tight and ready to break in. I’m so glad I did because it was a perfect fit.

The reason I didn’t choose a dual sport helmet is because i wanted the lighter weight and increased ventilation of the VFX-Evo that Shoei’s Hornet-X2 (which you can practically convert to 2XS as well with this liner) dual sport doesn’t offer.

I have a very intermediate oval head, veering close to the long oval spectrum. I find that the vast majority of helmets don’t hug the base of my skull in the back as much as I’d like to, and they end up being a little too wide from ear to ear in the back. If you need a 2XS offroad race helmet then you can also buy the SM 17MM liner and convert it almost to an 2XS. The Bell Moto Flex 9 in XS is probably the closest fit to a 2XS as well.

I know what you’re thinking about these goggles. Yes, they’re insanely expensive for goggles. But, omg, they are so insanely comfortable and ventilated. The lenses are optically correct and the closest fo a mini faceshield you can get. That means, virtually zero distortion and makes it feel as if you’re looking through a car windshield. I also have terrible vision at distance (even with contacts), and I have to wear special glasses (when wearing contacts) to help me literally see straight.

I don’t know what it was, but I didn’t feel the need to wear my glasses until the end of the day. I was able to squeeze them into the goggles since I have a small face, but I imagine if you have bigger glasses it might be hard to do that. Needless to say I didn’t feel a thing all day, and the helmet + goggles were venting like crazy.

Also, the BDR in Colorado is going to be HOT. So I absolutely felt the need to invest in the most ventilated helmet + goggle pairing to be as comfortable as possible for this trip.

Fox FlexAir Mens Pyre Jersey ($80)+ Pant ($220)

My measurements: 5’2”, 37” Bust, 33-34” Waist, 37” Hips, 28.5” inseam.

OMG. I know what you’re thinking, $300 for dirt gear? Well okay, listen, I am who I am. So I naturally gravitate (in all aspects of life) to the finer things. But because of my friend Ryan (ALL YOUR FAULT), he showed this outfit to me and then I just had to have it. You know when you find that perfect pair of shoes? THE wedding dress you want to wear? THE perfect motorcycle for you? It was basically like all those things.

Okay, the reality is its just like other jersey sets, except for the awesome colorways. (HELLO FOX RACING, quit with the basic black/pink/blue/white colors and give US THE COOL SH*T.)

I’m fortunate? enough to have a small men’s body, except that I have a waist like a squashed pumpkin. I have no torso, so every men’s small shirt is a bit long, and that’s why it’s folded up in the second photo.

So it fit me perfectly given my measurements, and that I have a slightly longer inseam than other gals who are my height. You might be wondering why this suit is so expensive. I think it really comes down to these pants. They’re incredibly stretchy and lightweight. Especially around the knees/legs where you’re constantly bending and moving. The shirt is essentially a mesh shirt, completely and fully meshed so when it’s 100F in July in Colorado I’ll be uber comfy.

But I guess I have to summarize the overall fitment of this Fox set as Slim/Straight. So if you’re a guy shopping for this outfit, think about your preference for slim fit shirts and size yourself up and down accordingly, especially to fit your armor underneath.

Leatt 3DF Youth Airflite Lite Body Protector $199 and Leatt 3DF 5.0 Impact Shorts $109

leatt_youth3_df_air_fit_lite_body_protector_750x750.jpeg

So underneath it all I’m wearing this armored shirt. It’s a Youth LG/XL. Because well, I’m short and small enough to wear young men’s clothes apparently.

But there is an adult men’s version here.

Something that’s nearly impossible to find is a women’s specific, armored dirt shirt. There’s only one decent option from Alpinestars.

It’s out of stock, and I honestly wasn’t a fan. I wanted the softer armor for comfort and youth options are a perfect alternate for someone my size. I also wanted something to fit comfortably underneath my jersey and this was a perfect combination.

Something that is desperately needed is better options for women’s offroad, armored shirt and shorts. There’s a ton of options for youth and mens. Who else do they think is taking the kids to dirtbike camps and dirt riding? JUST the men? No. More often than not, Mom is the one approving such activities and very most likely co-leading the way (and approving such purchases while she manages the household finances).

It’s an incredibly challenging fitment, so I applaud the courageous brand who decides to try and put forth an option in the near future. (Klim, Leatt, please help us!)

There are a few other options that could’ve worked from Knox’s womens apparel line, but I nothing dirt specific, so I decided to go this route.

The Leatt shirt is so very light, it’s 100% meant to wear underneath a dirt jersey, not meant to be worn alone, and also mean for the dirt. It’s as light as possibly, fully meshed, even with cutouts in the armpits and along the forearm. The Knox choices offer more coverage and are designed moreso for street riding. I wanted the lightest choice I could get so that’s also why I chose this Leatt. Oh and because I have such a short waist, I wanted something that barely covered my waist since I was also wearing armored shorts.

TCX Michelin Comp Evo 2 Boots $499

Thinking about all the gear, boots were my main concern. I have pretty small, wide feet; US 7, Euro 37/38. I also didn’t want to wear basic dirt boots, because I wanted something that would be protective enough for the BDR trip that is going to be predominantly offroad. I just knew that spending that much time on the dirt for me would have to mean a dirt specific boot rather than a dual sport. I wasn’t sure if I’d be too uncomfortable off the bike, but after spending two days on and off the bike in these boots, I know that I’m going to be fine.

Learning in a pair of boots like these that offer complete lateral support, rigidity and stiffness throughout the soles made both of my days extremely successful. I felt like someone was literally holding me up as I stood on the pegs. The soles were grippy, snug and felt glued to the footpegs. It felt easy to shift my weight side to side, brake and shift after figuring out the right standing positions.

The only challenge I had was room. My ankles and feet are small, so the ankle space was very very wide. Luckily, I have the inserts I use in my track boots and I simply filled them up. I also added an additional heel insert like this to give me even more height! That essentially put me on the balls of my feet rather than tiptoe, which was perfect.

Fly Racing Dirt Pro Lite Womens Gloves, Sale $25.46

These are very simple dirt gloves, nothing that offers any type of protection for the street. I just needed something simple that was lightweight and had good dexterity since the weather was mild and we weren’t doing any street riding whatsoever.

For the BDR Trip, I’m definitely going to wear something that’s dual sport oriented like these gloves which offer a little more street protection on the palms rather than a lighter dirt only type of protection:

Revit Sand 4 Womens Gloves: I tried these on, unfortunately I was between XS and SM because my hands have slightly short fingers and are wider in the palms. So XS is too tight but SM is too loose in the palms. For this reason, I don’t think I can do them. What I loved about them is the stitching is external so you don’t feel the stitches along the fingers. I also like the soft armor, so it doesn’t get in the way of the hand controls when you’re standing up.
Held Desert Womens Gloves: I haven’t tried these on, but Held gloves fit me really well because they’re a slight in between fit with Rev’it. I’m thinking of getting size 7s. They tend to have minimal stitching inside their gloves, so I’m seriously considering these as an option. Kangaroo leather palms also mean incredible dexterity. I’m a little concerned about the knuckles being too bulky though.
Revit Striker Womens Gloves: These are great in XS; lightweight, stretchy and pretty comfortable but feeling the stitching along the fingers is driving me crazy. The knuckles on these are soft and squishy, so I don’t anticipate them being an issue.

Ahhh I’m still not sure what I’m going to do as far as gloves! LOL. I only know that I don’t want just dirt gloves, I want more protection for my hands, but finding the right fit is always a challenge.

Lastly,

I’M MOVING TO DENVER

Opportunities have presented themselves and I’ll be starting a new adventure in the Fall with RevZilla. Stay Tuned for updates, but as of July 5th I should be in downtown Denver.

Find me on social media (@gearchic) if you want updates!

Let's Talk About Helmets

It's Been Awhile In Denver

Riding the Colorado BDR with Pat Jacques, July 2021

Riding in Colorado with Robin

Interviews in Denver

Getting Dirty and Moving to Denver