Kask has taken great care in creating the Valegro helmet, which was "developed in cooperation with Team Sky" (now Team Ineos), and you may have seen a yellow version of it ridden by a certain Geraint Thomas last year. It has loads going for it too, and only one negative.
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At just 201g for my medium-size helmet, it’s light without being super-light, and with 37 vents the airflow is very good. One of my favourite things about it is the sheer amount of adjustability that allows you to get the fit just right.
In addition to the usual ratcheted wheel at the back, there is a huge 50mm of vertical adjustment and – very unusually – each of the occipital cradles is independently adjustable.
The artificial leather ‘eco-leather’ chin strap feels just like the real thing and is comfortable and washable. It’s also a very well-made helmet overall, with the neatly in-moulded hard polycarbonate shell wrapping right under the base of the helmet, reducing damage from day-to-day knocks.
The result is a very comfortable helmet, with one slight niggle. The padding is minimalist, which is fine because it’s well placed and shaped, but the front of the two strips that reach furthest forward rub against your forehead.
It’s actually the edge of the strip the padding is glued to that irritates, but it’s enough to be a minor annoyance. But for that, this lid would be nudging five stars, because it’s still one of the helmets I regularly return to.
You get a choice of eight colours too, though not yellow, unless you’re called Geraint…
Kask Valegro specifications
- Vents: 37
- Protection: MIT
- Adjustment: OCTO Fit
- Chin strap: Artificial leather ‘eco-leather’
- Price: £170 / $250 / AU$299 (Gloss colours), AU$309 (Matt colours)
