Bell Helmets have debuted their new Gage road lid, which supplants the long-running Volt flagship, at UK distributors Madison's iceBike* show. The Gage is named after the address of the original Bell Auto Parts where the company was founded.
The new helmet is lighter and sleeker than the Volt, but still impressively falls south of the US$200 price point. Claimed weight is just 233g – 64g lighter than the Volt – thanks in part to the aggressively molded EPS foam liner and lighter-weight webbing, buckle and cam-lock sliders.
The internal reinforcement cage yields what look to be larger vents than the Volt, too, along with deep interior channeling to help funnel air from front to back. Carryover features include Bell's long-running TAG retention system, X-Static antimicrobial padding, plus an overall shape that's highly reminiscent of the Volt – albeit with a much more rounded form that's more pleasing in our view.
True to Bell's recent statements regarding the company's new direction, retail price is impressively kept in check at $190/£159.99. Sponsored pro teams are expected to begin using the Gage in competition at the Spring Classics in April.