As a motorcycle rider, have you ever been privy to a helmet-muffled conversation at a red light, after which you simply nodded and rode on? Or, if you have vision problems, have you ever tried forcing your glasses through the windshield of your full face helmet, only to end up damaging those expensive things? There is now a simple solution for those common riding problems.

Modular helmets have quickly become the future of convenience and comfort for motorcycle riders across the world. These relatively new additions to the rider’s arsenal of gear are great alternatives to the helmet choices of the past. Full face helmets offer the most protection, but provide the rider little convenient access to the face while on the road, the only opening being the flip up windshield. Also, outside of sometimes expensive helmet communications system, full face helmets can severely limit and muffle a rider’s conversations with his fellow riders at red lights. Easier communication and facial access can be achieved through the use of half helmets, but these, of course, provide much less protection in the event of an accident. Modular helmets, however, provide a fine balance between the protection of a full face helmet and the access of a half helmet.

A modular helmet follows the design of a full face helmet, meaning coverage over the entire head and face. These helmets are designed with an extremely tough but lightweight outer shell, which is more often then not a composite material that helps to keep the shell rigid enough to withstand damage, but also flexible enough to absorb some of the force from an impact. Inside, the helmet is lined with soft, removable padding, strategically placed to provide a proper fit, but to not be stifling, which is important when the rider is sitting with the sun beating down on him or her at a stop.

Here, however, is where the difference of a modular helmet arises. Modern modular helmets usually have a button located on the chin bar of the helmet, typically located in the center and large enough that it can be easily operated by either hand with a glove on. When the button is depressed, the entire front face of the helmet can be pushed back, allowing the rider access to his face and plenty of ventilation when stopped at a light. This feature is particularly convenient for riders who wear glasses. Back in the day, those riders had few options, except to stuff an expensive and fragile pair of glasses through the windshield opening of a traditional helmet and hope for the best.

It is very important to mention that for optimal safety, all manufacturers recommend that a modular helmet should always be closed when the motorcycle is in motion. For safety and convenience, though, modular helmets truly are a gift to motorcyclists everywhere.