Smith

Rover MIPS Helmet

Before you take a look at your battered old helmet and decide to give it one more go-around on the trails this season, we’d recommend giving Smith’s new Rover MIPS Helmet your full, undivided attention. We’ve had nothing but good things to say about the safety-conscious designs Smith has rolled out over the past few years, but budget-friendly has never been a selling point of the brand’s innovative creations. That changes with the Rover MIPS, which is effectively a more economical take on Smith's first mountain bike helmet, the Forefront.

Whether you count yourself as a Lycra-clad fixture on the weekend XC race circuit or prefer to spend your days exploring the unknown on your enduro-leaning trail bike, the Rover doesn’t compromise on safety to decrease price. In fact, by using less of its hallmark Koroyd material, Smith shaved weight from the Rover MIPS and improved ventilation. Smith constructs each of its helmets with the honeycomb-esque Koroyd because it compresses in the event of an impact, furthering contributing to the the standard In-Mold EPS foam shell’s protective properties.

Smith also adds the further protection of MIPS to round out the design. MIPS, or Multi-Directional Impact Protection System, refers to Swedish technology built into the helmet to minimize the damaging effects of angled impacts. The technology takes the form of a thin inner liner, flexible and light, which rotates upon impact to potentially lessen the likelihood of brain injury in crashes that generate oblique, sloshing force.

In addition to all that safety, the Rover MIPS also comes with Smith’s proven VaporFit fit one-handed adjustment system and AirEvac vents—18 to be specific—arranged to usher air through the helmet. As you rally over rock gardens and lean around unexpected corners, the Rover will sit securely, offering extended coverage along the temples and the back of your head. Plus, the integrated visor is built into the helmet’s shell, so it won’t move around or break off in a run-in with the ground when things get rowdy.