Giro’s new flagship trail helmet comes packed with some great practical and safety features. At the top of the list is the MIPS brain protection system – a thin plastic layer between the liner and pads, designed to reduce rotational forces in the event of an angled impact.
The MIPS system goes unnoticed when riding and adds little extra weight to the Montaro, which tips the scales at 378g. The dropped rear boosts safety further.
The lengthy peak can be pushed up out of your eye line, leaving enough space below to sit a pair of goggles. We tried the Montaro with a variety of glasses too, and had no fit issues with any of them. There’s also a camera/light mount that snaps into the central vent up top. Ours was fiddly to fit but secure enough once in place, yet tricky to then remove again.
Giro’s proven Roc Loc cradle makes it easy to get the fit right, the minimal padding provides a deceptive amount of comfort. The 16 vents keep the Montaro relatively well-ventilated, though we've tested better vented lids in the trail category, including Giant's Rail helmet.
One shortcoming of the 'Matte Flame' colourway our US editor tested is that the high-visibility plastic is fades very easily. After four days of riding in bright sunlightthe helmet lost a lot of its fluorescent luster. Colour fade is often a problem with fluorescent paints and plastics. We've encountered no issues with any of the other seven colourways.
Our test helmet at left after four days of riding in bright sunlight compared to a new Montaro at right — maybe sunscreen is the answer?
Fading issues aside, the Montaro does its job comfortably. And while looks may be subjective, we reckon the Montaro is one of the best looking trail lids out there.
