Soon to take a coast to coast trip, with most of the trip in the west, hanging around the grand canyon and utah trails. Off road is going to be a factor. Wee Strom is going to be the weapon of choice, but, the helmet.... Do street helmets preform ok on the dirt? Goggles are the biggest decision factor i suppose. Should I just get a dirt oriented helmet for the whole ride? I don't know how keen I am on taking one of each, BUT that may be my best option. ADV thoughts?
You'll not be off road, but rather on dirt roads. Street helmet is fine. I ride all through that area and much of it dirt roads aboard a Yamaha 250 dual sport or a KTM 690. I use either a Shoie Hornet dual sport helmet or a Nolan street helmet. They have face shields so I don't use goggles at all. If I was with a large group and there was a lot of dust I might use goggles. MX style helmets have a sharp chinbar that grabs the turbulence on the highways. Plus they are noisy.
I figured it would be. And I assume I will be solo, unless a tag along jumps in. No plans on a group though. Maybe I'll hit you up and we can hit some trails in march/april.
Dual sport helmets are like dual sport tires. You have to choose based on what you will ride the most. I use my street helmet for trails. Street helmet on the trails is much better than dirt helmet on the street. IMHO Just bought a dual sport helmet and look forward to trying it out.
I've worn my Shoei street helmet on a couple of western trips (3500 & 4500 miles) that had lots of dirt roads out there. No problems at all and I never wished I had my Hornet out there. However, a Pinlock shield is a huge asset when it gets cold or you get sweaty/huffy in the helmet. I still wear the street helmet on local DS rides in winter because it keeps my head warmer.
You are really OK if you are riding alone. If you ride with someone else....lead, or you will find out what you DO NOT like about a street helmet out there. They get dusty inside and out of the visor if you follow someone.
Another vote for street helmet. I wear my street Arai with a pair of good sunglasses underneath. Keep the shield down on the street and up in the dirt and count on the sunglasses for protection from bugs mostly. 75+mph with a dirt helmet on the street is much worse than the slight advantage a dirt helmet provides off-road imo.
My experience is opposite...my street helmet buffets badly on my Tiger, whereas my dual sport helmet is far steadier up to 80 and above (I start getting some lift at 80). Noise is a big issue though... If it's below 50 degrees, or I'm not the first one in line, I need goggles...I can't keep the visor down once I stand up and/or start working off road due to fogging.
Look at the GMAX gm11d or gm11s....dual sport helmet.The peak easily comes off so you can use the helmet as a street helmet ( I use a nickle or a dime to do this....easy to do) then put the peak back on....if you want for off roading.They run about $ 115---$130.
