Light, airy and fast: New Giant Pursuit aero helmet

Light, airy and fast: New Giant Pursuit aero helmet

Sub-250g aero lid made for all-around racing

Giant's new Pursuit road helmet has huge intake vents up front

Courtesy Giant

Ben Delaney

Published: June 29, 2016 at 11:07 pm
Giant's new Pursuit road helmet has huge intake vents up front - Courtesy Giant
As is the current trend, the Giant Pursuit seeks to offer both good aerodynamics and good ventilation - Courtesy Giant
Combined with deep internal channels, the large rear ports help move air across the head - Courtesy Giant
The Pursuit comes in six styles - Courtesy Giant

Every rider at the Tour de France wants the fastest gear possible, but none want to overheat while racing. In conjunction with Tour team Giant-Alpecin, Giant created the new Pursuit aero road helmet, which blends good aerodynamics with good ventilation.

Giant certainly isn’t the only company chasing the aero-yet-airy ideal for helmets. Giro’s Synthe was perhaps the first successful road helmet to achieve this happy medium, and Scott’s new Cadence Plus — ‘faster and cooler than a bare head’, Scott claims — is the most recent example of this two-in-one style.

Along with Giant-Alpecin, Giant worked with France’s Aero Concept Engineering on the design, which it claims is fast “without any compromises in weight, ventilation or fit.”

As is the current trend, the giant pursuit seeks to offer both good aerodynamics and good ventilation: as is the current trend, the giant pursuit seeks to offer both good aerodynamics and good ventilation - Courtesy Giant

Speaking of fit, Giant is notable in its offering of two fit styles, Western (with a more oval shape) and Asian (with a rounder shape). Each comes in S, M and L, with M weighing a claimed 250g.

If you’re familiar with Zipp’s aero wheels, you’re familiar with the concept of dimples used for smoothing airflow. With the Pursuit, Giant uses two big dimples on the sides of the helmet to move air, claiming that this minimized aero drag.

Combined with deep internal channels, the large rear ports help move air across the head: combined with deep internal channels, the large rear ports help move air across the head - Courtesy Giant

Giant says the massive vents up front are ‘drag neutral’, and that when combined with internal channeling and vents at the back allow for good airflow through the helmet.

Giant uses two types of foam in the helmet; low-density foam to absorb energy from low-speed impacts, and high-density foam for crashes at higher speeds.

Light webbing and antimicrobial padding round out the features on the $230 helmet.

The pursuit comes in six styles: the pursuit comes in six styles - Courtesy Giant

Ben Delaney

Contributor

Ben Delaney is a journalist with more than two decades of experience writing for and editing some of the biggest publications in cycling. Having studied journalism at the University of New Mexico, Ben has worked for Bicycle Retailer & Industry News, VeloNews and BikeRadar. He has also previously worked as Global Brand Communications Manager for Specialized. Ben covers all things road and gravel, and can be found logging big miles in the Rocky Mountains that nestle alongside his home in Boulder, Colorado. He has covered the most important bike races in the sport, from the Tour de France and Tour of Flanders, to the Unbound gravel race, and specialises in tech content, showcasing what the pros are riding and putting everyday equipment through its paces.
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