off-road.cc

The Endura MT500 is made for enduro-style racing and trail riding with a wide, adjustable visor and mounts for lights, goggles and cameras, as well as holes for docking glasses and space for your goggles under the visor. It's extremely comfortable and offers great coverage too.

• Buyer's guide to mountain bike helmets: get the best bike helmet for you
• When should you replace your bicycle helmet? We asked the experts...
• Review: KASK Rex helmet - high coverage trail lid, at a price

Obviously, the big difference between the Endura MT500 and most other helmets is the use of Koroyd; a layer of shock-absorbing straws pieced together in the vents to offer additional protection from head injuries, which is something Koroyd say exceeds the standard safety requirements for a helmet.

• Buy now from Cycle Store

It's worth noting that a couple of the less-thickly haired members off.road.cc test team have had issues with Koroyd lids abrading their scalp during tumbles, so if you have a very short haircut - or no hair at all - that's worth bearing in mind.

The Koroyd straws do hamper airflow, meaning it's warm in hot weather

The MT500 also comes with all the mod-cons you’d expect from a high-quality helmet; including antibacterial lining, front goggle and glasses docking, a one hand micro-adjustment fitting system (operated by a dial on the rear of the head) and a lifetime crash replacement from Endura.

There's a goggle clip at the back, plus plenty of coverage

Although the crash properties were not actually tested by myself during an accident (luckily!), I certainly appreciated the secure fit of the MT500, as well as a feeling that the helmet really covered my head, right from the eyebrows, down to the back of my ears, and everywhere in between. The shape of the rim is very curvy too; something that fills me with confidence after having received a severe black eye from crashing in a different, more angular, helmet earlier this year. 

The peak lifts up to allow you to store goggles beneath it

However, with great coverage and great protection comes a small cost; the vents aren’t as open as a standard helmet, so it can get a little warm in high temperatures. This should be fine for the majority of the year in the UK, but if you frequent the Alps or sunnier climes, I would recommend thinking about the MT500 in white to help reflect some light and heat. This, however; is a minor performance negative for an exceptional helmet. The comfort alone makes this my current go-to helmet for all of my off-road rides. 

You might also like:

• Review: Troy Lee Designs A2 MIPS helmet
• Review: Smith Optics Forefront MIPS helmet