I may get my wife a full face off road helmet for longer colder more risky rides, but right now she goes really slow and doesnt ride aggressive at all...we just putt around like grannies so for now I'll let her use her half helmet, I'm just glad I have her talked into some head protection.

 

I have a full-face MX style.....It feels good on the trail, but honestly you don't really think about your helmet once you're underway......pretty much trying to concentrate on that next tree in your path. I've taken some diggers over the years and just can't risk breaking my jaw anymore, or fracturing my front teeth in a crash. Odds of landing somewhere around your face and head are relatively high, compared to say your a$$. I personally don't like the look of the racer-box MX style, bright red helmet with yellow racing stripes, but it works really well. I went for the Snell rating and got the best helmet I could get by Arai.

With that said, I often ride around our property without a helmet I'm just very aware that my face and head are fully exposed when I do. It's pretty fun to ride without a helmet, but I would not suggest it to anybody.

 

A open face helmet is a million times better than no helmet but face protection is huge.

 

i would get a full face mx helmet it willbe just as cool if you do not wear goggles

 

There is a lot of difference in helmets out there. First off I'd shy away from the type where they can slide up. these tend to be very heavy, and weight is your enemy. Besides they are Street helmets. The reason I like full face MX helmets is that they tend to be the lightest ones out there. I am going to talk to you a little about weight. Your son is very suceptable to neck injury as he grows. Your head represents a significant amount of mass in the body. If you crash, the helmet weight tends to multiply the weight already there and can really do significant damage to include killing him if it is too heavy. I always recommend a full face also because of the protection you get in the facial area. Broken jaws, knocked out teeth etc can be mitigated or eliminated with one. Not something you get with an open face. Rocks, dust etc hitting an uprotected face can hurt.
As for heat under teh helmet, you had better resign yourself to having it. If you have a properly fitting helmet, it will be a tight fit to give you maximum protection. You can't circulate air between the head and the helmet enough to cool your head and still have proper protection. It it that simple. You will sweat.
Lastly, if you can afford it, look at some of the neck systems out there and see if the helmet you are looking for can use one. They offer protection for whiplash and give you a larger margin of safety. I'd also recommend a chest protector set up that also provides some back protection. If you have ever rolled an ATV, you know that the 400 lb monster will follow your body all the way to the ground. You will thank me for that suggestion. Now if, but when you crash, it only has to protect you one time to pay for itself. Also get yourself good goggles, and gloves, and boots that go over the ankle. I am not saying you need MX boots, but simple leather boots that go voer the ankle at a minimum. They are available at Walmart for 30 bucks. Definately, no tennis shoes, or shorts. Make him wear long sleeves too.

So to recap, MX helmets are lightweight, offer the best protection, perferred model that works with a kneck protection system, and good goggles, chest protector and proper footwear.

Do NOT wear a street bike helmet. They are TOO HEAVY and will cause more damage than anything else.

Lastly, buy light weight, not color. Choose what protects you, when covered in mud, it won't matter what color you chose anyway.

 

Eye protection is also a MUST! Riding down a trail or road without safety glasses or goggles is asking for an injury! A small bug or piece of gravel can cause serious injury to your eyes and possibly cause you to wreck the atv and injure yourself in other ways at the same time!

 

Yes..something must protect the eye's, I always wear my Oakley sunglasses. I would never go out without my shades. For night time riding though I will have to strap on the goggles or some clear safety classes or something. As for the helmets well..broken teeth can be fixed and so can jaws but a busted melon pretty much f..ks you.

 

Thanks for all the feedback eyeryone! We all picked up full face MX style helmets. After trying on everything we could get our noggin's into, my son and I both got HJC SPX buckets. The wife got a HJC AC-X3 Carbon on closeout at less than half price. We also picked up some mid priced Spy goggles. Tear off's are coming via a web order.

I must say that I'm surprised that out of all the helmets we tried on, we found more to be uncomfortable compared to those we found to be acceptable.

 

HJC makes a nice helmet, and they are always around for great prices......I've owned two myself and although they are retired in the garage they both had a long life and did their jobs. I hit a tree with my last HJC, left a nice mark on the side of the lid but I walked away no problem.....

 

full mx helmet and googles is what i use. here's mine after i flipped backwards of a long loose steep hill that had a cupple of rock ledges.