When we caught up with Leatt at Crankworx, their long-awaited full face helmets were just made final following production delays. Now, they’re in production and expected to be on the water by year’s end for delivery then or first of 2016.
The helmet incorporates all the expected features -inmold construction, adjustable breakaway visor, compatibility with their neck protection- plus a few bonus treats like hydration pack hose integration. The real special feature is the 360 Turbine cushions that handle rotational impact forces to lessen the risk of concussion. Check those out, plus more new protection for your joints and hands, below…
The 360 Turbine cushions squish and flex, letting the helmet move slightly in twisting or lateral paths to absorb some of the shearing and rotational forces caused by impacts. This, in turn, mitigates how much of those forces are transmitted directly to your skull, then brain, which they say reduces the likelihood of getting a concussion.
In the event you do rack your noggin pretty hard, patent-pending low friction cheek pads make it easy for emergency responders to slide it off your head. Add to all that a massive range of sizes for adults plus two kids models and it’s looking like they’ve got a real winner. Check out the full line with specs, features, weights and other details in our Crankworx coverage.
Want one of the first ones? Talk to your local bike shop, dealers can book orders now.
Joining the knee protection line are the 3DF (left) and Hybrid models. The 3DF uses a new, slimmer and more flexible protection that still meets CE standards but moves with you better. They’ve added new mesh and wicking materials to the inside and perforated everything so it breathes better, too. The outside of the pad is covered in Aramid fibers to hold up to all the scrapes and scratches it’s likely to see.
The Hybrid takes all that and adds a small, vented hardshell section just below the kneecap. Both have a pre-curved shape to improve comfort on the bike, and both use silicone gripper sections inside to keep them from slipping down and around.
The AirFlex knee guards were also introduced at Crankworx and use ArmorGel, a soft, flexible substance that hardens on impact. That makes it lightweight thin, but means it’ll still keep you from getting too banged up during enduro and all-mountain escapades.
We’d seen the gloves before, too, but in case you missed them they also get ArmorGel sections across the fingers and knuckles.
Premium palm materials mean solid grip, and depending on the model, the ArmorGel extends across all knuckles and down the outer fingers most likely to take one for the team if you clip a tree.
