Bell was hanging out at the Outdoor Demo this year and they put on a fantastic show, complete with cold water-relief from a Supersoaker for any rider who rolled by wearing a Bell Helmet, and a free BBQ and beer party in the afternoon.
While some booths try to bolster a slim showing with giveaways and flashy displays, Bell was not one of those booths, with several awesome, new products on display.
Bell Super
New Improved for this year is the Super enduro/all mountain helmet. Designed to provide superior protection compared to traditional XC lids, yet fantastic cooling and comfort compared to DH lids, the Super attempts to ride a very fine line.
Bell’s new over-brow ventilation design helps keep even this rather-large helmet breathing and cool, even during long, all-day rides. After some serious wind tunnel testing, Bell discovered that most air doesn’t flow into the big vents on top of your head, but instead gets trapped between the glasses and the brow of the helmet. This new over-brow ventilation design captures the air from where it naturally blows and routes it into the helmet and over your head, for superior cooling.
I rode away from Outdoor Demo with a Super on my head, so stay tuned for a long-term review.
Super MSRP: $125
Bell Stoker
As you can see from the photo above, the new Stoker also features the same over-brow ventilation. Compared to the Super, the Stoker is a lighter, more stripped-down version of the same helmet that is a little more cross country-oriented. While lighter weight than the Super, the Stoker doesn’t have all of the same bells-and-whistles, but should still provide solid performance.
As a welcome tradeoff to the reduced complexity, the Stoker retails for $55 less than the Super: MSRP $70.
Bell Transfer 9
New for this year is the Bell Transfer 9. Very similar to its big brother, the Full 9 (stay tuned for Syd’s upcoming review of the Full 9), the Transfer 9 retails for half the price of the Full 9 ($200 compared to $400).
The change in materials requires a 150-gram weight addition, but only 150 grams more at $200 less? That’s pretty spectacular!
Bell Intersect
Also new for this year is the Intersect, with its skate-style influences readily apparent. However, Bell takes the standard skate appearance and makes it so much more comfortable and performance-driven with flexible, segmented EPS padding. This segmented EPS conforms to your head, and you can even flex the helmet in your hands to see how well it adjusts.
MSRP: $60
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Sep 23, 2013