Shark’s new modular Helmets

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Until Roof came along, there were Jet, full-face and system helmets, and Roof converted a lot of Jet helmet wearers into their then-unique semi full-face, because not only did the chin guard lift up, but it rotated all the way round to the back of the helmet – rather than sitting up like a medieval knight’s visor – offering the best of both worlds.

The downside was that they only fitted a certain shape of head – bad news if you’ve got a chin that fall outside the arc of the chin guard’s arc – but on the bright side, their fellow Frenchmen, Shark, weren’t far behind them.

The styling is more modern – and it has more space for a chin, even managing to miss mine, which is a first – and only you’ll know whether that suits you, and they have just launched two new models. Both are statement helmets, and the new Evojet takes things in a new direction … well, it follows on from the short-lived, long-forgotten Schuberth J1 of a few years ago.

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The EVO-ES is the best place to start because a lot of people are familiar with this versatile design now, and it’s an evolution rather than a revolution. It incorporates all of the improvements to the design in a single helmet, including the patented ‘Auto-Up/Auto-Down’ system that prevents any kind of clash between the chin-piece and visor – basically, a clever cam that moves the visor out of the way when you move the chin guard in either direction, while still allowing very close tolerances and ‘panel fit’ as car manufacturers would call it, for reduced noise.

More exciting is the EVOJET, which is more than a jet with a chin guard.

It looks like the best-vented full-face helmet on the market, except that what look like massive vents beneath the main shield are actually just at a different angle, and the closure is complete. And its party trick is that the chin guard that locks securely onto the shell of the main helmet is permanently bonded to the visor itself.

The downside will be that a replacement visor won’t be cheap, but it does offer better peripheral visibility than most full face helmets and it looks quite funky. But then its minimalist design has been worked down to the last detail, including carefully concealing the entire mechanical system behind the side plates for a truly streamlined style.

Internally, a MICROTECH lining is said to offer unrivalled comfort and consistent support no matter how long the journey, and they say that the helmet guarantees rider comfort with continuous ventilation thanks to an optimised ventilation system – and a rear air extractor to lose surplus heat – and there’s a diffuser on the chin guard that distributes air across the width of the visor.

And yes, that is an internal sun visor.

Shark EVO ES: from £222.20 – £252.54
Shark EVOJET: from £203.49 – £229.60
shark-helmets.com

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