Giro Atmos Helmet Review - Maximum Air Flow

The Giro Atmos is the second helmet I ever bought and I liked it so much that after a year I bought another one in a smaller size. My first helmet was a Giro Transfer which is a nice helmet and a great value at $40 but I wanted something with more ventilation. The Atmos is about as airy and well ventilated as they come. Combined with it being ultra low-weight it's like not wearing a helmet at all so obviously the helmet is quite comfortable. This helmet is so well ventilated that when it's cool out my head actually gets a little cold and I have to wear something underneath it. The Atmos has a dial adjustment in back to make tightening or loosening a simple one-handed process.  I think this helmet looks pretty stylish too but I guess that depends on the shape of your head. My wife looks better in the Transfer. I also like the fact that I was able to find one with lots of hi-viz yellow on it. It’s surprisingly hard to find a hi-viz helmet. My only complaint is that the straps were much too long and I had to cut some off and seal the ends with a lighter. However, the strap issue is common to all helmets and it’s an easy fix. Yes at $180 this helmet is more expensive than some but it’s still about $70 cheaper than the very high end helmets and I don’t see what advantage those most expensive helmets provide. Like I said earlier, I have this helmet in two sizes. My head size is 57 ½ cm which must be an awkward size because in my large helmet I have to tighten the dial almost all the way and in my medium helmet I have to loosen the dial almost all the way. My first Atmos is a large and I went with that because I wanted to be able to wear a cycling cap under it. But as time went on I quit wearing my cap and realized I could wear a size medium which my wife thinks looks a little better on me (and her opinion is what matters). So now I have the best of both worlds. I wear my medium sized Atmos helmet almost all the time except when it gets really cold and I need to layer up under the helmet. I also keep a light-mount attached to my large Atmos helmet at all times for the occasional ride in the dark. Just to compare the Atmos to another helmet I bought (and returned) a Lazer Genesis helmet which is more expensive. I bought it because I can’t leave good enough alone but also because the Genesis comes in ALL hi-viz and I had to have it. Mistake. That helmet is so much heavier that I couldn’t get used to it. It’s also less ventilated and I wouldn’t have been able to wear it in the heat of the summer. So back to the store it went.