The Giro Air Attack Shield, Reflective Tape, and Winter Bliss
When they came out in 2014, the Giro Air Attack and the Air Attack Shield were touted as two of the most cutting edge aero helmets on the market. They were designed for riders
who wanted aero gains in a helmet without that long airfoil tail time-trial kinda Alien helmet thingee. You know what I mean. The Air Attack allegedly delivered all the benefits of a full aero helmet without having to worry about Sigourney Weaver trying to take you out.
I picked up my Air Attack Shield in 2015 when the huge flooding of the market with aero stuff caused a lot of blow out sales on the Air Attack line. It seemed like a good idea at the time. All the cool guys were wearing them, except that I’m not exactly Alexander Kristoff. So, to avoid looking like a “Fred,” I didn’t wear it too much. It was warm, I was slow, and it made me look a little like something from A Bug’s Life when I had the full visor down. I wore it a few times without the visor, see Grand Island Team Time Trial recon shot above.
So, the visor on the Air Attack Shield clips onto the front of the helmet using three magnets, and it settles nicely into three small depressions at the front. One extremely cold day, my sunglasses kept steaming up. I just could not get them to clear. I thought about the Air Attack Shield and the clip on visor that I never wore. The next time I ventured out on a cold snowy day, I wore the Air Attack Shield with the visor, and it was awesome. The visor stayed clear and the helmet that was a bit warm in the summer worked extremely well in the cold. The lack of ventilation actually made it perfect at 30 degrees, and the solid design kept the snow from saturating my balaclava that fit perfectly underneath. I liked it so much that I found a clear visor to supplement the dark “sunglasses” one. When the snow gets too heavy and the lenses get too wet, I can whip out a towel to clear them or bring an extra set of glasses. The shield can be flipped up and sits snugly and securely up and out of the way.
Since I figured that I would use this in inclement weather, it has been my go to for rainy days, snow, and just plain cold days on the bike. I even went a step further by adding reflective tape to the back. The tape can be had on eBay, Amazon, or online from several manufacturers like 3M. It lights up like a candle when a car behind shines its headlights on me. Since I wear this so often in rain and in the winter, it made sense to dress it up with the reflective tape, since I am riding mostly in low light situations. One day, I hope to add some strips of the tape to my frame to make myself even more visible in the dark.
See the video I made below. I know it isn't great, but it gives you a little bit of an idea how well the tape works in the upstairs hall in the dark with a headlamp panning back and forth. LOL!
The amazing thing is how well this high tech speed merchant gear works for the winter riding that I like. It helps me to get out despite the blowing drifting snow or the light rain. The shield works great to keep those snowflakes out of my eyes which can be a real pain in the ass… face, actually. You can pick the Air Attack Shield up rather cheaply online. They are still around and they still can be had for a song. This is a high end helmet that can easily be had around the $100 or less price point. It is every bit as good protection and aerodynamic-wise as any helmet ever produced. And in the winter when you have your neck garter up and your shield down, no one will think that you look dorky. They’ll think you look like a badass riding in the sleet and snow. And you will be comfortable. A warm comfy badass at that.